Things You Might Not Know About Alicia Keys

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8. Record Label Drama

After high school, the singer first signed a recording contract with Columbia Records but left the label after two years because of a contract dispute. According to her, her career had stalled under Columbia’s label because of executive indecision over the direction of her career and major changes that occurred within the company. She then signed a demo deal with Jermaine Dupri and So So Def Recordings and appeared on the label’s Christmas album performing “Little Drummer Boy” and recorded a song “Dah Dee Dah (Sexy Thing)” for the movie Men in Black, but the deal never resulted in an album, so she called Clive Davis who signed her to Arista Records, which later merged with J Records.

A photo posted by Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys) on Aug 6, 2015 at 9:59am PDT

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7. Gifted Child

Throughout her childhood, her mother enrolled her in music and dance lessons. She started studying classical piano when she was seven years old and was soon playing Beethoven, Mozart, and Chopin. When she was 12, she enrolled in the Professional Performing Arts School where she majored in choir and she began writing her own songs when she was 14. At the age of 16, she graduated from high school and was valedictorian of her class.

A photo posted by Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys) on Oct 11, 2015 at 12:02pm PDT

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6. Family

Alicia Augello Cook was born on January 25, 1981, in the Hell’s Kitchen area of Manhattan, New York City, to Teresa, a paralegal and part-time actress of Italian, Scottish, and Irish descent, and Craig Cook, an African American who was a flight attendant. Her parents separated when she was two and her mother primarily raised her. She has two half-brothers, Clay Cook and Cole Cook.

A photo posted by Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys) on Nov 13, 2015 at 3:21pm PST

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5. University

The “Fallin’” singer was accepted at Columbia University and was given a full scholarship after she graduated high school, but she only attended university for four weeks before she withdrew so that she could pursue her music career full-time.

A photo posted by Alicia Keys (@aliciakeys) on Aug 28, 2015 at 1:03pm PDT

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4. Romance with Swizz Beatz

The “Girl on Fire” singer is married to rap producer Swizz Beatz. Although they have known each other since she was 16, when they first began dating in 2008, their romance caused a great deal of controversy because he was still technically married to singer Mashonda Tifrere. Although Mashonda and Swizz had separated, according to Mashonda, they were still in a sexual relationship when he hooked up with Keys. Making things even more complicated, Swizz Beats welcomed a child another woman, Jahna Sabastian, just a month after he and Mashonda announced that they had separated. Keys has denied that she got together with Swizz Beats while he was still with Mashonda, and in July 2010 she married him. Together, they have two children, Egypt, born in October 2010, and Genesis, born in December 2014.

JStone / Shutterstock.com

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3. Appearance on The Cosby Show

When she was just four years old, the “If I Ain’t Got You” singer appeared on The Cosby Show in the episode “Slumber Party.” In the episode, she and a group of girls attended a sleepover party at Rudy Huxtable’s and she can be seen sitting on Cliff’s lap pretending to ride a horse.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TT0KOBtp9Rw

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2. AIDS Awareness

Keys is very involved in trying to bring awareness to AIDS. She is the co-founder and Global Ambassador of Keep a Child Alive, a non-profit that provides medicine to families with HIV and AIDS in Africa and India. She’s had a keen interest in raising awareness for the AIDS epidemic since she was 8 years old when her mother’s close friend died from the disease. In 2005, she and U2’s Bono recorded a cover version of Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush’s “Don’t Give Up” called “Don’t Give Up (Africa)” in recognition of World AIDS Day and she has also visited African countries such as Uganda, Kenya, and South Africa to promote care for children who are affected by AIDS. Her work in Africa was documented in the documentary Alicia in Africa: Journey to the Motherland.

Photo by Nicolas Khayat/ABACAUSA.COM

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1. Famous Friendship

The “Empire State of Mind” singer met Beyonce when she was 16 and they have been friends ever since. Now that they are both mothers, their kids hang out together. According to Keys, her son Egypt has a major crush on Beyonce’s daughter Blue Ivy. He even shared an innocent kiss with her, much to Jay Z’s dismay. Jay Z was so unhappy about the kiss that he called Keys’ husband Swizz Beats to tell him to watch his son!

Photo by Rex Features

Cate

Cate has a B.A. and an M.A. in English Literature and has been the Managing Editor of Fame10 for more than 6 years. Despite having a love for the works of Thomas Hardy, Leo Tolstoy and Lord Byron, she also has an intense fascination with pop culture. When she isn’t writing for Fame10, she’s planning her next big adventure in Southeast Asia.