Alicia Keys is a household name and we still keep on fallin' in love with her. Why? Because she's the REAL deal. In the era of pop and rock artists suddenly turning to creating techno electronic Music with simplistic lyrics she is faithful to her piano and her roots. In the century of contoured faces being the only determinant of Beauty she bravely refuses to wear the smallest bit of makeup. Alicia Keys is the artist the world needs, now more than ever.
Less is more
My friend once told me that without makeup I look like Alicia Keys without makeup.
Not to brag, but have you seen her? She looks absolutely gorgeous! As you probably already know (who wouldn't want to learn all the secrets to her stunning truly natural look??), Alicia has a few tricks up her sleeve. She draws upon the magical powers of ice, cucumber and oils that tighten her skin and bring blood to the surface. I don't think you could call it cheating (as some envious internet trolls already indicated). She is naturally beautiful, and no, it's not her fault. In fact, Alicia's decision to go makeup-less is not even about prettiness but about truth, freedom and feeling confident in your own skin, regardless of any flaws you think you might have. Women have been carrying the pressure of being artificially beautiful 24/7 on their shoulders for quite some time now.
The overwhelming number of beauty tutorials on YouTube is clearly a sign that we need a powerful figure like Alicia Keys to help us realize things have gone too far. With additional pressure of constantly being in the public eye, her approach to appearance is indeed revolutionary.
We got way too much in common
When we add music to her groundbreaking standpoint in the beauty matter, we receive a coherent picture of what Alicia is fighting for.
Her sixth studio album titled 'Here' tells a story about the struggle and empowerment of African-American women. Imagine New York, the ghetto poverty and a girl from a multicultural family. Alicia begins her album with pieces of street poetry to create the foundation upon which we can build a mental picture of a Harlem Queen.
She describes the harsh reality of her main character's everyday life and uses her voice to highlight other themes of the album including, but not limited to, celebrating beauty imperfections, embracing cultural differences and trading hatred, ignorance and violence for compassion, respect and love. 'Here' is about facing the truth of everything that is wrong with today's society. It is a reminder that we all have much in common, regardless of our skin color, world view or social status and finding unity in diversity is the key to our peaceful future.
At 2016 MTV Video Music Awards, before 'Here' was released, Alicia recited a beautiful poem. Little did we know it was her new song titled 'Holy War' from her then upcoming album. You can hear it in her voice, she is ready to practice what she preaches. Hopefully, the rest of the world will follow in her footsteps.
