Women in Literature and Music

Alicia Keys

Alicia Augello Cook was born January 25, 1981, in New York City, New York. She was raised by her mother, Nikki Augello, who was a part time actress and paralegal. She began taking piano lessons when she was 7 & at her mother's insistence Alicia stuck with the instrument. She was accepted at the prestigious, Professional Performance School, in Manhattan, where she majored in choir. She excelled and was permitted to graduate at only 16.

While in high school, Alicia had already grabbed the attention of several music executives and there was a bidding war when she graduated, in 1998 she signed with Arista records. Though she had been accepted at Columbia University on a full scholarship, after attending only 4 weeks, Alicia left and devoted herself fully to her music.

In 1999, Clive Davies left Arista Records and created a new label called, J Records. Alicia decided to sign with his new label; Davies had also signed other big name artists like, Aretha Franklin to his label. Unlike many of her pop music contemporaries, Alicia produced and wrote a lot of her own music. At J Records, Alicia found the freedom to complete her debut success, which included material she had begun working on years earlier. Davies organized a series of media appearances for Alicia, to increase the hype for her  debut album, which included small venue and tv appearances. When it was finally released, Alicia's first album, Songs in a Minor (2001), went platinum 5x over. Critics praised the album for not just sophistication but the lyrical maturity. At the 2002 Grammy's, Alicia took home four awards for: Song of the Year, Best R&B Song,  Best R&B Album & Best New Artist.

After a highly successful debut, Alicia Keys released her second album, The Diary of Alicia Keys, in 2003, the album debuted at No. 1 & she won several awards for the album, including; Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, Best R&B Song, Best R&B Album & Best R&B Performance by a Group or Duo, for her duet with Usher for the song "My Boo".

Alicia's seemingly unstoppable career continued in 2007 with the release of, "As I Am", she collaborated with even more artists this time around. The album also debuted at No. 1 and sold over 740,000 copies in it's first week & earned her two more Grammys. In 2008, she recorded "Another Way to Die" with Jack White, which became the theme song for the Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. Alicia recorded hit single, Empire State of Mind with fellow New Yorker, Jay-Z, in 2009.

By the end of 2009, Alicia had released her 4th studio album, The Element of Freedom. Which didn't fare as well as some of her previous albums, debuting at No. 2 with the single, "Doesn't Mean Anything" and reaching No. 60, on the Billboard Hot 100. However it was Alicia's first album to hit No. 1 in the UK. Nevertheless, with the release of Girl on Fire, in 2012, Alicia was back on top. In 2014, she won another Grammy for Best R&B Album. 

In July 2010, Alicia married hip-hop producer, Swizz Beatz and the couple welcomed their first child together in October that year, a son named Egypt Daoud Dean. In December 2014, they welcomed second son, Genesis Ali Dean. 

Alicia Key has also made several appearances in tv and film throughout the years. Including, The Cosby Show (1985-92), Charmed (1998-2006), American Dreams (2002-05), Smokin' Aces (2006) & The Nanny Diaries (2007) but most notable is her role as a judge on the TV singing competition, The Voice, which she joined in 2016.

On January 22, 2017,  a day after Donald Trump was inaugurated as the president of the USA, a lineup of celebrity activists including Alicia Keys, Madonna, Cher, Ashley Judd, Scarlett Johansson, America Ferrera and Janelle Monae, participated in the Women's March, in Washington; which drew in 1 million people, who advocated for women's rights and equality for everyone & protested against President Trump's stance on various issues, including immigration and environmental concerns. The march sparked similar marches all over the country and the rest of the world. 

https://www.biography.com/people/alicia-keys-9542485