"Alicia Keys has always been such a great person, it shows through her content and what she sings about. In a sea of manufactured sex appeal, Alicia shines through with her genuine and classical approach to writing."
"Her voice is so amazing."
"She is a one in a million talent."
"One of the most powerful voices I've ever heard."
"Alicia Keys is Perfection."
"She has recorded some of the best songs in music history."
"A timeless talent."
"She's so beautiful... so talented... and so relevant."
"Pure talent, one of the best to come out in years."
"A talented and strong woman with incredible lyrics and beautiful music."
When this artist debuted in 2001, it was a breath of fresh air to an industry which had taken the easy road paved with bubblegum and musicians with precious little artistic talent. A classically-trained pianist, she didn't settle for mediocrity but instead came up with thought-provoking songs that made a difference.
Alicia Cook was born January 25, 1981 in Manhattan, New York. Her parents separated when she was two and was raised by her mother. At the age of four, Alicia appeared on The Cosby Show in the episode "Slumber Party" and enrolled in music and dance classes throughout her childhood. She played compositions by Mozart, Beethoven and Chopin on the piano beginning when she turned seven. When she was 12, Alicia enrolled in the Professional Performing Arts School and she began writing songs at age 14. Alicia graduated as the school valedictorian at the age of 16.
In 1994, Alicia met Jeff Robinson, who became her manager and introduced her to A&R man Peter Edge at Arista Records. Edge later described his initial impressions to HitQuarters:
I had never met a young R&B artist with that level of musicianship. So many people were just singing on top of loops and tracks, but she had the ability, not only to be part of hip-hop, but also to go way beyond that.
Alas, Arista records folded, so Keys followed Davis to his new J Records and recorded songs for the movies Shaft in 2000 and Dr. Dolittle 2 in 2001. Alicia released her debut album Songs in A Minor in 2001.
Keys was the big winner at the Grammy Awards as her peers awarded Song of the Year, Best R&B Song and Best R&B Vocal Performance (all for "Fallin'"), Best New Artist and Best R&B Album to the bright new talent. Keys was also nominated for Record of the Year for the million-seller "Fallin'".
She scored seven American Music Award nominations and took home trophies for Favorite Female Soul/R&B Artist, Favorite New Artist, Pop/Rock and Favorite New Artist, Soul/R&B and earned an ASCAP Pop Award for Most Performed Song for "Fallin'".
The Billboard Music Awards joined the chorus to celebrate this new amazing talent with eight nominations for Keys and two wins. "Fallin'" was nominated for Hot 100 Single of the Year, Songs in A Minor was nominated for R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year and Keys was nominated for New Artist of the Year, Female Albums Artist of the Year, Female Hot 100 Singles Artist of the Year, Female R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year, and won for Female Artist of the Year and New R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year.
Alicia co-wrote, co-produced and sang on the song "Impossible" for Christina Aguilera's album Stripped and appeared in the television series Charmed and American Dreams.
"Unbreakable" earned Grammy nominations for Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance. Alicia also received nominations for Best R&B Album, Best R&B Performance (for "If This World Were Mine", a duet with Jermaine Paul) and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance (for "If I Was Your Woman"). Keys started her own recording studio in Manhattan called The Oven Studios, which she co-owns with Kerry Brothers, her songwriting and production partner.
In 2006, the Songwriters Hall of Fame honored Alicia with its Starlight Award. The following year, Keys starred in the movie Smokin' Aces and earned further accolades for her role in The Nanny Diaries.
"Her voice is so amazing."
"She is a one in a million talent."
"One of the most powerful voices I've ever heard."
"Alicia Keys is Perfection."
"She has recorded some of the best songs in music history."
"A timeless talent."
"She's so beautiful... so talented... and so relevant."
"Pure talent, one of the best to come out in years."
"A talented and strong woman with incredible lyrics and beautiful music."
When this artist debuted in 2001, it was a breath of fresh air to an industry which had taken the easy road paved with bubblegum and musicians with precious little artistic talent. A classically-trained pianist, she didn't settle for mediocrity but instead came up with thought-provoking songs that made a difference.
In 1994, Alicia met Jeff Robinson, who became her manager and introduced her to A&R man Peter Edge at Arista Records. Edge later described his initial impressions to HitQuarters:
I had never met a young R&B artist with that level of musicianship. So many people were just singing on top of loops and tracks, but she had the ability, not only to be part of hip-hop, but also to go way beyond that.
As Edge was about to move to Columbia Records, Alicia signed with Columbia. Keys signed a separate deal with So So Def Recordings and co-wrote and recorded a song for the 1997 movie Men in Black.
But after two years, Alicia's career was yet to get off the ground with Columbia, so she called Clive Davis at Arista Records, who signed her to a contract. At this time, Alicia chose Keys as her stage name.
Thanks to the hit single "Fallin'", Songs in A Minor debuted at #1, a remarkable achievement for a new artist. "Fallin'" took the world by storm, catapulting to #1 for six weeks in the U.S., also hitting the top in New Zealand and the Netherlands, #2 in Germany and Switzerland, #3 in the U.K. and Ireland and #7 in Austria. Alicia also won an MTV Video Music Award for Best New Artist in a Video.
The landmark album has now sold over six million copies in the United States and 12 million throughout the world. Keys' second single, "A Woman's Worth", was highly underrated even at #5 in New Zealand and #7 in the United States and was nominated for Best R&B Video at the MTV Video Music Awards
She scored seven American Music Award nominations and took home trophies for Favorite Female Soul/R&B Artist, Favorite New Artist, Pop/Rock and Favorite New Artist, Soul/R&B and earned an ASCAP Pop Award for Most Performed Song for "Fallin'".
The Billboard Music Awards joined the chorus to celebrate this new amazing talent with eight nominations for Keys and two wins. "Fallin'" was nominated for Hot 100 Single of the Year, Songs in A Minor was nominated for R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year and Keys was nominated for New Artist of the Year, Female Albums Artist of the Year, Female Hot 100 Singles Artist of the Year, Female R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year, and won for Female Artist of the Year and New R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year.
Alicia won Best-Selling R&B/Hip-Hop Artist at the World Music Awards. She combined with Eve for the hit "Gangsta' Lovin'", a #2 smash on both the Popular and R&B charts in the U.S. that also reached #4 in Austria, #6 in the U.K. and Switzerland, #7 in New Zealand and #8 in the Netherlands.
In 2003, Alicia followed her debut with another strong album, The Diary of Alicia Keys, which debuted at #1. "You Don't Know My Name" led things off at #1 R&B and #3 Popular in the United States.
"If I Ain't Got You" became a #1 R&B song and #4 overall in the U.S. and also was certified Gold. Keys also earned Best R&B Video at the MTV Video Music Awards, with the video also nominated for Best Female Video.
Keys' great work garnered 14 Billboard Music Awards, including Artist of the Year, Hot 100 Artist of the Year, Billboard 200 Album of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Album of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay Single of the Year (for "Diary"). She won seven trophies for Female Artist of the Year, Hot 100 Songwriter of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Artist of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Singles Artist of the Year, R&B/Hip-Hop Single of the Year and R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay Single of the Year for "If I Ain't Got You".
Each of the first two singles earned Most Performed Song status at the ASCAP Awards. The Diary of Alicia Keys sold another eight million copies globally. "Diary" (with Tony! Toni! Toné!) peaked at #2 on the R&B chart and #8 Popular.
Keys also worked with Usher on the smash "My Boo", which rose to #1 for six weeks and reached #3 in Switzerland, #4 in Germany, #5 in the U.K., #6 in the Netherlands and #7 in Ireland.
Eight more Grammy nominations came flying in with Keys winning for Best R&B Album, Best R&B Song (for "You Don't Know My Name"), Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (for "If I Ain't Got You" and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals (for "My Boo"). Keys won four more Grammys, Best R&B Song ("You Don't Know My Name", Best Female R&B Vocal Performance ("If I Ain't Got You", Best R&B Album and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals ("My Boo" with Usher). She also won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Musical Performer.
Alica also won Best-Selling R&B Artist at the World Music Awards. She pulled another hit from her album with "Karma", which peaked at #20 and earned her a second successive Best R&B Video trophy at the MTV Video Music Awards, outdualing "My Boo", which was also nominated.
Alicia released a collection of unreleased poems from her journals called Tears for Water: Songbook of Poems and Lyrics. Keys explained that the title is the basis for her songwriting because "everything I have ever written has stemmed from my tears of joy, of pain, of sorrow, of depression, even of question". The book was one of the best-sellers of 2005 according to the newspaper The New York Times.
Eight more Grammy nominations came flying in with Keys winning for Best R&B Album, Best R&B Song (for "You Don't Know My Name"), Best Female R&B Vocal Performance (for "If I Ain't Got You" and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals (for "My Boo"). Keys won four more Grammys, Best R&B Song ("You Don't Know My Name", Best Female R&B Vocal Performance ("If I Ain't Got You", Best R&B Album and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals ("My Boo" with Usher). She also won the People's Choice Award for Favorite Female Musical Performer.
Alica also won Best-Selling R&B Artist at the World Music Awards. She pulled another hit from her album with "Karma", which peaked at #20 and earned her a second successive Best R&B Video trophy at the MTV Video Music Awards, outdualing "My Boo", which was also nominated.
Keys recorded her contribution to the MTV Unplugged series at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2005. Unplugged debuted at #1 and has now sold over two million units worldwide. The single "Unbreakable" climbed to #4 on the R&B chart.
In 2006, the Songwriters Hall of Fame honored Alicia with its Starlight Award. The following year, Keys starred in the movie Smokin' Aces and earned further accolades for her role in The Nanny Diaries.
In 2007, Keys released the album As I Am, which achieved another #1 debut to tie her with Britney Spears for the most consecutive #1 debuts on the Album chart by a female artist. The big hit "No One" locked on to #1 for five weeks on the Popular chart and 10 weeks on the R&B chart and gave Alicia her biggest international hit since "Fallin'"--#1 in Switzerland, #2 in Canada and New Zealand, #3 in Germany and Austria, #4 in the Netherlands, #6 in the U.K. and #8 in Ireland.
The following year, Keys was awarded with Best Female R&B Artist, Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards and another nod for Most Performed Song at the ASCAP Pop Awards.
As I Am has sold over three million units in the U.S. and over five million around the world. The single "Like You'll Never See Me Again" stalled at #12 overall but reached #1 for seven weeks on the R&B chart.
The album earned Best Album, Pop/Rock and Best Album, Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards--that's mass appeal at its finest that is difficult to achieve. Keys was also nominated for AMA's for Artist of the Year, Favorite Female Artist, Pop/Rock and Favorite Female Artist, Soul/R&B. Alicia won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Superwoman" (a #12 hit on the R&B chart) at the Grammy Awards.
Alicia and Jack White recorded the theme song to the movie Quantum of Solace ("Another Way To Die"), the first duet in the history of the James Bond series, which reached #4 in Switzerland, #8 in Germany and #9 in the U.K.
Keys won a People's Choice Award for Favorite R&B Song (for "No One", and was nominated in three other categories: Favorite Female Musical Performer, Favorite Song from a Soundtrack (for the song above) and Favorite Star 35 & Under.
As I Am has sold over three million units in the U.S. and over five million around the world. The single "Like You'll Never See Me Again" stalled at #12 overall but reached #1 for seven weeks on the R&B chart.
The album earned Best Album, Pop/Rock and Best Album, Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards--that's mass appeal at its finest that is difficult to achieve. Keys was also nominated for AMA's for Artist of the Year, Favorite Female Artist, Pop/Rock and Favorite Female Artist, Soul/R&B. Alicia won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Superwoman" (a #12 hit on the R&B chart) at the Grammy Awards.
Alicia and Jack White recorded the theme song to the movie Quantum of Solace ("Another Way To Die"), the first duet in the history of the James Bond series, which reached #4 in Switzerland, #8 in Germany and #9 in the U.K.
Keys won a People's Choice Award for Favorite R&B Song (for "No One", and was nominated in three other categories: Favorite Female Musical Performer, Favorite Song from a Soundtrack (for the song above) and Favorite Star 35 & Under.
In 2008, Alicia starred in the movie The Secret Life of Bees. The following year she co-wrote and produced "Million Dollar Bill" for Whitney Houston and collaborated with Jay-Z on the song "Empire State Of Mind". The duet rose to #1 on both the Popular and R&B charts in the United States, #4 in Australia, #6 in the U.K. and Switzerland, #7 in New Zealand and #8 in the Netherlands.
Keys earned a World Music Award for Best-Selling R&B Female, Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration and an MTV Video Music Award for Best Collaboration. She also won the Golden Note Award, given to artists "who have achieved extraordinary career milestones", from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
In 2009, Alicia released the album The Element of Freedom, which debuted at #2. "Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart" was her biggest hit on the album, reaching #2 on the R&B chart and #27 overall in the U.S. and #7 in the U.K.
Alicia was nominated for Favorite Female Artist, Soul/R&B and Best Album, Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards and for Top R&B Artist and Top R&B Song (for "Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)" at the Billboard Music Awards. She also was nominated for Best R&B Artist and Favorite Online Sensation at the People's Choice Awards.
Keys performed at the Cayman Islands Jazz Festival and at the end of the year, Billboard ranked Alicia as the #5 artist of the decade and the #1 R&B artist, while Keys was nominated for Best R&B Artist at the World Music Awards.
In 2010, Keys and Swizz Beatz were married on the island of Corsica and in October of that year, Alicia gave berth to a son. She recorded the song "Speechless" with Eve, which is dedicated to that son.
Keys earned a World Music Award for Best-Selling R&B Female, Grammy Awards for Best Rap Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration and an MTV Video Music Award for Best Collaboration. She also won the Golden Note Award, given to artists "who have achieved extraordinary career milestones", from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers.
In 2009, Alicia released the album The Element of Freedom, which debuted at #2. "Try Sleeping With A Broken Heart" was her biggest hit on the album, reaching #2 on the R&B chart and #27 overall in the U.S. and #7 in the U.K.
Alicia was nominated for Favorite Female Artist, Soul/R&B and Best Album, Soul/R&B at the American Music Awards and for Top R&B Artist and Top R&B Song (for "Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)" at the Billboard Music Awards. She also was nominated for Best R&B Artist and Favorite Online Sensation at the People's Choice Awards.
In 2010, Keys and Swizz Beatz were married on the island of Corsica and in October of that year, Alicia gave berth to a son. She recorded the song "Speechless" with Eve, which is dedicated to that son.
The following year, J Records was disbanded and Alicia was assigned to parent label RCA. Keys released her fifth studio album Girl on Fire in 2012, a winner at the Grammys for Best R&B Album. The title song became another worldwide hit, #2 on the R&B chart and #11 overall in the U.S., #4 in Germany, #5 in the U.K., the Netherlands and Switzerland, #6 in Canada and #7 in New Zealand.
Keys was nominated for Favorite Female Artist at the American Music Awards and she earned three Billboard Music Award nominations for Top R&B Artist, Top R&B Album and Top R&B Song. Alicia was nominated for Favorite R&B Artist in both 2012 and 2013 at the People's Choice Awards.
In 2013, Alicia's VH1 Storytellers special was released on CD and DVD. The following year, Keys released her first children's book, Blue Moon: From the Journals of MaMa Mae and LeeLee. She also gave birth to another son late in the year. Alicia was nominated for World's Best Live Act at the World Music Awards.
Keys was nominated for Favorite Female Artist at the American Music Awards and she earned three Billboard Music Award nominations for Top R&B Artist, Top R&B Album and Top R&B Song. Alicia was nominated for Favorite R&B Artist in both 2012 and 2013 at the People's Choice Awards.
In 2016, Keys became a new judge on the television show The Voice and released the song "In Common", her first single in four years. Alicia released the single "Blended Family (What You Do For Love)" in advance of her album Here.
Here reached #2 in the Album chart, Keys' seventh Top 10 album.
Keys again was a judge on The Voice in 2017 and performed at Rock in Rio. Alicia hosted the Grammy Awards in 2019, and her performance playing two pianos at the same time drew raves.
Alicia released the memoir More Myself: A Journey and hosted the Grammys again in 2020.
Keys released the album Alicia in 2020 which contains one of her best career songs, the million-seller "Underdog".
Alicia has charted 24 hits, with nine landing in the Top 10 and four #1 songs. All of Alicia's studio albums have gone Gold with the exception of her newest released two months ago, and she has two Platinum and three Multi-Platinum albums. She has three Gold, three Platinum and three Multi-Platinum singles to her credit.
Alicia has won a Songwriter's Hall of Fame Award, 15 Grammy Awards out of a total of 29 nominations, three World Music Awards from five nominations, five American Music Awards among 16 nominations, nine Billboard Music Awards from 27 nominations, four ASCAP Pop Awards, two People's Choice Awards from nine nominations and four MTV Video Music Awards from 12 nominations.
That's considerable success for an artist around barely over 15 years. If she can continue to record gems, she'll stay in The Top 100*. Alicia Keys has definitely earned it to this point.
That's considerable success for an artist around barely over 15 years. If she can continue to record gems, she'll stay in The Top 100*. Alicia Keys has definitely earned it to this point.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.