Friday, June 6, 2008

Alicia Holds the Keys

Alicia Keys is a musician first. When you see her live you can fully grasp the power she has as a remarkable pianist and an honest singer that comes from the body of her soul. It is impossible to deny her remarkable beauty and graceful presence on stage. Her baby grand appears as a natural extension of her long arms and her eyes are sharp and subtly demand your unwavering attention.

Yesterday I saw Alicia belt out an array of moving songs that have gained her worldwide recognition and graduated her to be a multi-Grammy award winner and one of the musical prodigies of our generation. Alongside my best friend Dee, I came to once fall madly in love with her all over again, a feeling I experiences when I first saw her perform 3 years ago at The Urban Aids Benefit Charity Concert. Alicia is worth spending the money to see live for this is the avenue you she is disciplined to shine--live. Classically trained as a pianist since the age of 6, Alicia is a complete natural on stage. She sings with little distraction from anyone or anything around her, she remains focused on her music alone.

What has changed it not her caliber as a performer, but her maturity on stage. Her confidence has grown from when she emerged as a shy, 21-one year old girl from NY who was ushered on to the scene under the wing on Clive Davis (who also discovered the likes of Whitney Houston). What I learned was that this woman sweats her soul and watching her rain this precipitation down her face makes you feel like you are being witness to her fighting and exercising her demons. Her music has always expressed her relationship with love, whether these are enlightening experiences or painful ones, Alicia manages to connect to the truth of the matter through gauging her emotional experiences through raw song writing and beautifully composed music. She blends the sound of r & b with classical music elements to create songs that are timeless and successful at making a sound that reignites in the present, with the sensibility of past influences, experiences, values and reflections.

Alicia appeared in all black-- an elegant sleeveless top with a skinny fit pair of trousers and high heels and she looked fitter than ever (which got many parts of me racing!!). She wooed her fans with such of her classics “A Woman’s Worth,” “If I Ain’t Got You,” “Secrets,” “Karma,” “Fallin” and “Unbreakable.” She covered off quite a few singles off the new album, including a ladies chanting session to “Superwoman,” and a roar in the crowd when she sang “No One.” I was extremely moved through this experience and Alicia’s words reminded me that though the trials and tribulations of relationships and trying to find love, I must remember that “It Sure Looks Good to Me.”

This concert was an experience that I will carry with me to remind me to hold on, stay strong, believe and never stop seeking the love that I wish to find. Alicia is inspirational and I am sure that her songs will continue to guide me and comfort me at times that I seek to understand this complicated life.

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