Alicia Keys is Essence magazine’s newest cover star!
The 15-time Grammy winner features a-front of the June issue of the publication – which arrives ahead of the release of new music.
Within the edition’s inner pages, Keys opens up about motherhood, the inspiration behind her new material, and
On Her Blended Family:
We are a beautiful blended family. I’m super proud of all of us. I think one of the things that we talk about a lot is just we’re so quick to find the negative in everything. We’re so quick to just latch on to it and hold on to it and never let it go, and it’s a really beautiful thing to see the opposite side of that and to witness it in a genuine way and experience it. I think we just don’t get to see enough of it, and there’s plenty of it. There are plenty of people who have new families and are then able to bring their entire families together. Whatever’s natural, you know? It’s just a natural vibe. You can get to know each other and actually create sisterhood, create understanding. I just don’t think we get to see it a lot, or at least it’s not featured, even in the media. You do something superpositive and the media’s not paying attention to that. It’s wild, wack. We are really proud of it. Our kids are flourishing. They’re beautiful.
On The Inspiration Behind Her New Music:
The most powerful thing is that I’m getting to know myself, and I am loving every side of myself. I’m not so quick to be concerned about the fact that this part is a little bit jagged or rugged. Or this part might be a little bit, you know, super raw. Or this part might be a little bit down or sad. I don’t have to pretend like I’m not all those things. I don’t have to be in the perfect mood or do all the right things. I can just be off and I can also be my greatest self. I can be the mixed-up emotions that we all are. So I’m just loving getting to know all of me and then being able to express that in these different musical facets.
On How Motherhood Changed Her:
Becoming a wife and a mother, specifically a mother, really taught me so much. I remember clearly wanting to remove the negative energy around me quickly, and prior to that, I didn’t feel so drawn to do that for myself. But doing it for this new soul made sense to me. And then that evolved into realizing that if it’s not really feeling like the right thing for me…if it’s not feeling really good, I’m not going to do that. I used to say yes to everything. I think I started to learn about boundaries for myself and creating space for myself and allowing there to be an ending. I started to understand the difference of, like, if it’s flowing, it’s flowing. If it’s not flowing, go back tomorrow. It’s okay. You don’t have to force it.
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Keys’ last released an album in 2017 with the arrival of ‘Here.’ A yet untitled, the follow-up is due this year.
Did she mention Mashonda?
Why would she?
Mashonda is the 2nd mama in her blended family. At one point people were saying that Swizz is doing stuff with them both.. you know those interviews where all 3 of them are sitting on the coush.. Awkwaaaaaaaard
We get it sis, you have a blended family. What else is going on?
My thoughts exactly
Her first album was perfect…i just wish she could recapture that magic. She is just a massive snoozefest as of late. The image, subject she talks about its all so boring and bland. She needs to stop reminding everyone of the shady way she got with Swizz yes they all moved past their differences but fans are not so forgiving best to give that subject a wide berth. And her no makeup look is also very boring image wise.
A: She’s addressing how things panned out after getting with Swizz because EVERYONE ELSE made such a big deal about it – now she’s letting us know that negativity has not shaped her and she’s GOOD.
B: She has started makeup again compared to when she first went bare – it’s just not heavy and even Stevie Wonder can see that from the cover pic AND the following image she is wearing light foundation ??♂️
She is boring and her swizz beats story is boring don’t matter whether she is good or not it’s not interesting. Minimal makeup or no makeup doesn’t change the fact she needs some oomph image-wise.
I hope her new music is better than her last 2 album. Give us some you don’t know my name kind of Alicia or some Falling kind of Alicia or even some No One kind of Alicia
I love every album of hers. They’re all something different and special on their own. She’s always been an artist I could always feel no matter what she did. Ready for a new album.
Ok Alicia, you’re not the Virgin Mary Mother of Christ … although it seems you do like to dress like her.