Alicia Keys is a rarity, especially
in an industry where the hottest musical acts often do
only one thing: sing. But, Keys, who burst onto the scene
in 2001, is a musician through and through. An accomplished
pianist, Keys writes all of her own songs, drawing from
her experiences and emotions. It’s little wonder,
then, that Keys has earned a reputation as one of the
premier singers today.
Music has been a part of Keys’ life from her
early childhood. When most little girls were running
around playing house with dolls, seven-year-old Keys
was learning how to play the piano. At fourteen, she
began writing songs. A student at the prestigious Professional
Performance Arts School in Manhattan, Keys honed her
singing talent. She was only 16 when she graduated and
quickly found herself in one of the world’s premier
universities, Columbia.
Columbia, however, wasn’t part of Keys’
destiny. Instead, she dropped out of university to pursue
her musical ambitions. It wasn’t long before the
record labels came calling; in fact, everyone wanted
to sign the talented Keys. Her first record deal, penned
in 1998, came with Arista Records; a year later she
would sign with J Records to continue working with famed
producer Clive Davis. Keys was on the fast-track to
fame. Having helped catapult such legends as Whitney
Houston and Carlos Santana to international fame, Davis
had a vision for Keys’ future. Soon, Keys was
a fixture on MTV and BET. She even appeared on The Oprah
Winfrey Show which immediately exposed her to millions
of people around the world.
Davis’ knew what he was doing, and it showed.
The very day Keys’ debut album, “Songs in
A Minor” hit store shelves in 2001, it sold more
than 50,000 copies, an impressive first day outing.
“Songs in A Minor” made Keys a bona fide
hit, and her freshman offering quickly went multi-platinum.
Overnight Alicia Keys’ concert tickets became
a premium, and the young star had fans the world over.
Keys followed “Songs in A Minor” with “The
Diary of Alicia Keys,” another major hit. Her
third album “Unplugged” was released in
2005, and she continues to make public appearances and
perform for fans around the country to promote “Unplugged.”
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