The Secret Life of Keys
An honest and soulful singer/songwriter with 11 Grammy Awards to her name, Alicia Keys has begun to try her skills as an actress. Here, she reveals her inspirations and what's in store for the future.
A GIFTED ARTIST WHO SINGS FROM HER SOUL, ALICIA KEYS GETS PERSONAL ABOUT HER FLEDGLING ACTING CAREER AND WHAT INSPIRES HER MUSIC.
It doesn't take a genius to figure out the formula for pop stardom: Mix a catchy hook, a danceable beat and a mellifluous voice with good looks, and you're one massive marketing budget away from a shot at the big time. It takes a lot more brain power and hard work to find artists who can generate successful albums year after year, adapting to musical trends while staying true to their essence. Th at sort of genius can't be faked, and it can't be learned-you have it or you don't.
Alicia Keys has it.
Born Alicia Augello Cook in 1981, Keys has been a natural talent right from the start. The child of an Irish-Italian mother and African-American father, the New York native started playing piano at the age of 7 and was later accepted into the prestigious Professional Performance Arts School of Manhattan. She graduated from there when she was only 16 (as valedictorian, no less), and within two years, the singer-songwriter had her first record deal.
Keys' big break came when legendary impresario Clive Davis signed her as the flagship artist for his J Records label. Her 2001 debut, Songs In A Minor, sold more than 10 million copies worldwide and won five Grammy Awards; 2004's The Diary of Alicia Keys earned her three more.
But the last two years have been Keys' best yet. Having previously appeared in small roles in Smokin' Aces and Th e Nanny Diaries, she gave her strongest acting performance to date, starring alongside Queen Latifah, Jennifer Hudson and Dakota Fanning in 2008's The Secret Life of Bees. Her 2007 album, As I Am, became her fourth consecutive No. 1 record (2005's Unplugged also earned the top spot), selling more than 700,000 copies in its first week. Th e album won two of the five American Music Awards for which it was nominated, and it has a chance to win two golden gramophones at the 51st annual Grammy Awards on Feb. 8. And though nominations had not yet been announced at press time, she may well earn her first Oscar nod for "Another Way To Die," her duet with Jack White for the Quantum Of Solace soundtrack.
Looking radiant in a red gown, her skin glowing as warmly as her smile, Keys sat down to discuss music, movies, Bond and Bono.
WHO WAS IT THAT NURTURED YOU AS A CHILD TO REALLY BELIEVE IN YOURSELF?
"As a young kid, I had two wonderful women in my life who helped to raise me. One is my mother, who was a single mom and a very strong woman, who showed me everything about being a woman. The second was my grandmother, who was very intelligent, very compassionate and a very giving woman. I would say the two of them were two of my greatest inspirations."
WAS THERE ANY PARTICULAR ADVICE THEY GAVE YOU ALONG THE WAY?
"Get 'em, girl!" (Laughs)
HOW DO YOU DIVIDE YOUR MUSIC AND FILM CAREERS AT THIS POINT IN YOUR LIFE?
"Well, it's all about scheduling, but it happens naturally. When I'm creating music, it's definitely all about that. I couldn't possibly think about doing a film while I was making an album. I don't even begin to know how to do that. But there are times before I start the recording process that things come together and that's a good time to do a film.
I try to balance things out in that way so I'm not doing both simultaneously."
DO THOSE DIFFERENT FORMS OF CREATIVITY COME FROM THE SAME PLACE FOR YOU?
"That's a great question. There are a lot of similarities, and for me the similarities are about where it comes from within me. With both music and film, my main goal is to make sure it comes from a truthful, authentic, honest place. When you hear it or see it, I want people to feel something, because I feel it. It's also similar because you get used to putting yourself in vulnerable positions as a performer. Let's say I wrote a song three years ago, and tomorrow night I'm going to perform it. Three years ago I felt that emotion, but now I'm kind of over it, yet I can still recall how I felt and portray that emotion for three minutes. So it's a lot like acting in that sense."
AFTER YOU'VE POURED YOUR HEART AND SOUL INTO CREATING AN ALBUM AND GOING ON TOUR, DO YOU FEEL A SENSE OF RELIEF TO BE ON A FILM SET, WHERE THERE'S A DIRECTOR TELLING YOU WHAT TO DO?
"Honestly, I do. My music is very personal and I have a hand in putting it together from beginning to end. I'm there every step of the way, getting no sleep and mixing and producing until it's like, 'Whew!' Then to do a tour, I have to rehearse and put together the band and singers and arrangements until it's like, 'Whew!' So when I walk on the set, I'm obviously putting a lot of work into it, but I'm not writing the script, producing the movie, directing and acting in it as well. I get a chance to just become this other person, and that's my job. I like it, especially because I get a chance to express something that's not about my life. I get to learn about this other person and their experiences, so it gives you a better sense of empathy. Not to mention the hours are way better on film."
HAS THE NARRATIVE APPROACH TO STORYTELLING IN MOVIES EFFECTED THE WAY YOU APPROACH THE CRAFT OF SONGWRITING?
"Interestingly enough, I was just hanging out with Bono a while ago… Isn't that crazy? Not to name-drop, but he was playing me some of his music and talking about how the way he created it was influenced by a storyteller's approach. It was very interesting for me to listen to it in that context, because I'm very emotional and tend to talk about what I feel. I don't tend to tell the whole story around it, unless it affects me in that way. I did write a song called 'Open Hand' that tells the story of a woman in an abusive relationship who learns that the strongest grip is an open hand. But I would like to do some writing for the stage, so maybe when I get into that it will put me into more of a storyteller's mindset."
YOUR SECRET LIFE OF BEES COSTAR QUEEN LATIFAH WAS OBVIOUSLY A TRAILBLAZER AS FAR AS URBAN MUSIC ARTISTS BECOMING SUCCESSFUL ACTORS. WHAT WAS IT LIKE WORKING WITH HER?
"We bonded really well. I actually knew her before, but that experience kind of solidified our understanding of each other. It was so much fun, we would just laugh all the time. She will have you cracking up, and just naturally lights up a room."
IS THERE ANYTHING YOU'VE LEARNED FROM HER CAREER THAT HAS GUIDED YOU IN YOUR OWN?
"Yeah, I'm a big fan of her in every way. I just love the way she's been able to create her own path. I really appreciate the way she tries out different musical styles and telling diff erent stories. She's really broken the mold in a lot of ways, not only in music but in film as well. Blazing your own trails and finding your own way is something I've learned from her."
"ANOTHER WAY TO DIE" WAS THE FIRST JAMES BOND THEME BY A DUO, AND YOU AND JACK WHITE AREN'T ARTISTS MOST PEOPLE WOULD EVER IMAGINE WORKING TOGETHER. WHAT WAS THAT EXPERIENCE LIKE?
"Jack is one of my favorite people, and I'd always wanted to work with him. It was a very interesting combination because he's very musical and focused and genuinely wants to create great things. We connected very well, but it took so long to get the two of us in a room together. I'd be in Nebraska and he'd be in, like, Iceland, but we finally pulled it together, and I just loved how hard and soulful and electric it was."
HOW DO YOU FEEL ABOUT THE STATE OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY TODAY? HAS THE LABELS' SHARP TURN AWAY FROM SUPPORTING CAREER ARTISTS AFFECTED THE WAY YOU APPROACH YOUR WORK?
"I think that everything changes, and that's just a part of life.
Th ere's definitely a great need for a more forward way of thinking; it can't be the way the music industry was for so many years anymore. I think [record companies] got complacent and greedy and things started turning the wrong way, and now they're struggling to fix it. But I think that real music will always have a place in the world, because music is the soundtrack of the universe. People are always looking for artists they can trust and depend on, so it's just about learning new ways to express yourself. People who are just getting signed now are getting awful deals, but in a way it almost gives somebody like me more independence. I think that people won't abandon the artists that they trust."
DO YOU HAVE ANY SPECIFIC GOALS FOR THE FUTURE OF YOUR ACTING CAREER?
"I just want to continue to ascend and get better as an actor.
I want to be better at what I do every time I do it. As far as specific goals, I think I just want to blaze my own trail. I definitely want to produce films and write great stories and create the music for theater."
HOW WOULD YOU LIKE TO BE THOUGHT OF IN THE FUTURE: AS A SINGER WHO ACTS OR AN ACTOR WHO SINGS?
"As an artist."
Crossover Successes
Alicia Keys is hardly the first artist to make the leap from topping the music charts to succeeding at the box office. In fact, she's merely the latest in a long line of urban artists who have successfully made the transition to acting:
| QUEEN LATIFAH HIGHLIGHTS: Jungle Fever (1991), Chicago (2002), Ice Age 2: The Meltdown (2006), Hairspray (2007) COMING UP: Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs BOX OFFICE TAKE: $517 million |
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| BEYONCÉ KNOWLES HIGHLIGHTS: Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002), Dreamgirls (2006), Cadillac Records (2008) COMING UP: Obsessed BOX OFFICE TAKE: $316 million* |
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| ICE CUBE HIGHLIGHTS: Boyz n the Hood (1991), Friday (1995), Barbershop (2002), Are We There Yet? (2005) COMING UP: Janky Promoters BOX OFFICE TAKE: $243 million |
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