In place of former hip-hop collaborators she has brought in blues maestro John Mayer, who complements her neatly on the wry, piano-heavy 'Lesson Learned'. Much of this album feels like a deliberate homage to the best of mainstream Seventies and Eighties soul, with a pop-savvy modern edge contributed by co-producer Linda Perry. Alicia Keys, the beautiful, light-skinned, black bombshell diva from Harlem released her third studio album 'As I Am' in November 2007 to much funfair some five years after her smash 10 million selling Songs in A Minor (2001). The danger for many artists who spread themselves across such a range of pursuits is that you end up forgetting what it is they are actually good at, so it's fortunate that As I Am brings the focus back to Keys's exceptional voice, which dominates these new songs with all the force of her acknowledged influences - Aretha, Nina, Janis, Billie.Ībandoning the urban influences on Diary, which featured collaborations with rappers Nas and Rakim, As I Am returns to a purer, more traditional soul sound, ranging from the sweet, caramel-smooth 'Tell You Something' or 'Like You'll Never See Me Again' to the powerful, raw-voiced anthems 'Go Ahead', 'Sure Looks Good to Me' and 'Superwoman', in which she channels every great diva who has ever asserted the power of woman. These songs, like a fair portion of the album's remainder, are not lacking in energy or conviction, but they're raw as in crude.W here does Alicia Keys find the time? Between the release of her last album, 2005's Unplugged, and this, As I Am, her first studio album since the seven-times-platinum, four Grammy-winning The Diary of Alicia Keys in 2003, she has produced a New York Times bestselling book of poetry, appeared in two Hollywood films, established her own production company, developed and co-written a teen drama series, travelled to Africa as ambassador for Aids charity Keep a Child Alive and, presumably finding herself with a spare weekend, run her first marathon.
Pharrell Williams is on the couple's perseverance anthem "Work on It," a wobbly ballad, while Illangelo was involved with "Holy War," where some dulled drums interrupt a mostly acoustic number about backward societal views of war and sex. The outside productions don't add a whole lot. Anyone who faults Keys' lack of technical mastery should be able to feel the depth of the pain the singer expresses in that highlight. The biographical "Blended Family (What You Do for Love)," featuring A$AP Rocky, hits all the right supportive notes despite borrowing from Edie Brickell's "What I Am." Most affecting of all is the gospel-blues dirge "Illusion of Bliss," a modern-day version of James Brown's "King Heroin" presented from the addict's point of view. "She Don't Really Care_1 Luv" is prime hip-hop soul with an appearance from legendary vibraphonist Roy Ayers. For all the haste, the album does contain a batch of career standouts. 2003 - The Diary Of Alicia Keys (UK And Japanese Edition) 2005 - Unplugged 2007 - As I Am (The Super Edition) 2009 - The Element Of Freedom (Deluxe Editions) 2012 - Girl On Fire 2013 - VH1 Storytellers 2016 - HERE (Deluxe Edition) 2017 - Vault Playlist Vol. Lines that provoke furrowed brows arrive as early as the intro. The expressions are sometimes heard as Keys feels out a rhythm, like she's warming up, while in "The Gospel" they sound like temporary placeholders for lyrics.
There are more yeahs, ohs, and unghs (and fucks) here than on any previous Keys album. At points, Keys' invigorated energy level and need to simply expel ideas, rather than refine them, lends the album a hollow quality. Pared down compared to Girl on Fire in every respect, Keys' first album since 2012 was created primarily with husband Swizz Beats and Mark Batson - a trio dubbed in the liner notes as the Il'luminaries.
That anti-processing mentality and heightened social consciousness carried into the making of Here. At some point, she stopped wearing makeup, fed up with the standard of perfection to which women are held. Between the release dates of her fifth and sixth albums, Alicia Keys was as visible as ever, acting on Empire, coaching on The Voice, performing on Saturday Night Live and at the 2016 Democratic National Convention.
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