Henry Abbott

In 1992, the all-female music collective En Vogue released “Funky Divas,” a 13-track album with a running time of 52 minutes and 15 seconds. Sixth on the record is one of the group’s top hits: “Giving Him Something He Can Feel.”

The song fits within its time and the prevalence of rhythm and blues, soul and funk during the 1990s. Beginning with a very simple beat and bass line, the rhythm section establishes a groove for following horn and vocal harmonies. After a few repetitions, the singers bring in their lyrics, advocating for the transcendent power of their love.

A few late nights ago, I played En Vogue’s piece for Nyla Danzy ’27 over headphones. She immediately fell into its cadence, moving her head to the beat. Once the song finished, she said to me, “I really like it. I would Shazam it.”

As we began to talk about the general components of the music and what stood out to us, I struggled to figure out exactly what to touch on. However, we quickly found ourselves returning to the same topic: the lyrics.

Considering how basic the instrumentation of the track is, Nyla and I concentrated on “the dynamics of love.” Nyla shared with me that she felt conflicted by the theme of “giving,” and we reflected on the physical versus emotional implications of its prevalence throughout the stanzas.

“Obviously, [the song] has this very sensual undertone,” Nyla said. “I’m taking a James Baldwin English seminar right now, and we just read ‘Another Country.’ A lot of what James Baldwin was battling with at that time was the concept of love. What does love mean? Is love completely sexual? Is love sensual? Is love just a connection and a knowing of one another?”

The link to Baldwin’s meditations on love and its importance resonates deeply with En Vogue’s work. The title, lyrics and pacing of the song are heavily associated with the concept of maturity and how it relates to physical intimacy.

The first stanza goes as follows: “Many say that I’m too young / To let you know just where I’m coming from, yeah / But you will see it’s just a matter of time / My love will surely make you mine.” The frequent mentions of youth, societal standards and the defiant nature of love throughout the song result in an interesting entanglement of feel-good ambience and a suggestion of something more charged.

Nyla’s introduction of Baldwin also brings in another element pertaining to popular culture: the undercurrents of Blackness within the piece. Further, Nyla’s perspective concerns what has been and continues to be seen as appropriate for Black women within their communities. Nyla articulated to me: “There’s this idea within the Black community that we have to shield young Black girls from their sexuality for a while because Black women are sexualized. I’m not saying that En Vogue was intentional in doing that, but I do think it’s a way to view female sexuality, especially a line like that. They say, ‘I’m too young, but I’m from the ghetto. Let me show you.’”

The expression of love perpetuated in “Giving Him Something He Can Feel” appears to be centered around touch and the manner in which it can be employed as a gift.

I asked Nyla what her personal methods of engaging with love are. She immediately dove into what she prioritizes for her relationships: “There was a conversation I had [recently] with someone about this concept of getting to know people’s roots, especially at Bowdoin, and how not a lot of people ask, nor does it seem like they want to know.” She explained that, conversely, being “curious” about others and learning about what characterizes them “is a form of vulnerability” and love.

Of course, all are individually aware of what helps them convey their love to others. With this in mind, it was intriguing to apply the words of En Vogue to various frameworks and perspectives (i.e. Baldwin, ourselves, etc.) and, in turn, interrogate why or why not certain “love languages” ring true.