New album shows Alicia Keys as she is

If you haven’t heard Alicia Keys’ latest album, “As I Am,”
you obviously haven’t been paying attention. Her No. 1 single,
“No One,” has received unprecedented airplay and television
exposure. I’ll even venture a guess that the strains of this
incredibly popular song surely have been heard at least once
this semester emanating from the backpack of that one person
who somehow always forgets to set his or her cell-phone ringer
to vibrate during class.

Alicia Keys shows off her classical musical training in the
album’s introduction. Keys begins with a piece that bears a
striking resemblance to Frederick Chopin’s “Nocturne in C
minor.” The “As I Am (Intro)” ends with a smooth beat laid
over the Romantic era-sounding piece.

Commanding lyrics and a driving beat make “Go Ahead” a
powerful standout. Even though the background vocals slightly
are reminiscent of early En Vogue and Christina Aguilera, I
found myself nodding my head along with Keys, in spite of
myself, as she declares, “You best be on your way.”

While empowerment drives “Go Ahead,” “Superwoman”
portrays its message in a more inspirational fashion. Keys sings,
“Even when I’m a mess, I put on a vest with an ‘s’ on my chest.”
It’s a declaration through which – even in the midst of adversity
– one can derive and display strength from within.

“Like You’ll Never See Me Again” takes an intimate look at
fate and mortality and brings to light how uncertain our lives
are from one day to the next. The delicate ostinato creates an
ethereal undercurrent that coincides with the song’s fragile and
uncertain subject matter.

Keys packs “As I Am” with cameo appearances. John Mayer
is featured on “Lesson Learned,” a slower R&B ballad about
the process of enduring and emerging from a dilemma, armed
with knowledge from the experience. Timbaland shows a softer
side of his production talent on “Prelude to a Kiss.”

The dragging tempo in “The Thing About Love” left me
slightly bored, as did the retro-style “Teenage Love Affair,” but
songs that did not impress were few and far between.

To say I didn’t like this album, with its insanely popular
singles, would be a lie. To say I wish I didn’t like it would be
an even farther flight from honesty. The truth is, with their
simple melodies and optimistically romantic messages, I am
always happy to hear sweet, catchy songs like “No One” shuffle
through on my iPod-assisted walks to campus-but on my
own time, not the radio’s.

My grade: B+