Alicia Keys Review

Arizona Federal Theatre | Phoenix, AZ

September 10, 2022

15-time GRAMMY Award-winning singer, songwriter, and musician Alicia Keys brought an amazing performance to the Arizona Federal Theatre. Promoting her eighth studio album, The Alicia + Keys World Tour began on August 2, 2022, in Charlotte, North Carolina, with the last performance being set on September 24 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Joined by Philadelphia-based singer Pink Sweat$, the pair set out to spread as much positive energy as possible during their time. Ending his 45-minute opening act on his 2021 track, “Pink City,” Sweat$ tells the audience that he loves the city of Phoenix, and has them repeat a few lines as he sings his final song for the night, “‘I am great, I am spectacular, I am good enough.’ That shit feels good, right?” The crowd agrees as he walks off the stage, a huge smile on his face, waving at the cheering audience.

After a quick change of equipment and instruments on the stage, the lights dim, and the crowd roars with anticipation. The main screen on the stage fills with bright orange swirling lights, and parts right down the middle to reveal the main act, as Keys opens her performance with “Nat King Cole.” At this point, everyone in the venue is on their feet, voices screaming.

The first thought that came to mind was how she sounded exactly like her recordings. Her incredible vocal range isn’t her only instrument though; Keys spent her entire two-hour performance bouncing back and forth between front and center stage and displaying her talents on the piano. Anytime her fingers touched the keys, you knew you were in for a show. Her passion and soul for music is so evidently seen anytime she goes back to the instrument.

Around mid-way through the show, Keys says she wants to play a game with the crowd. In her new album, she samples herself and plays with the beats using an MPC controller to demonstrate her versatility. Keys says this pays homage to all the hip hop that has inspired her throughout the years, but it also shows her leaning into her duality of sound. This is where the original and unlocked tracks come from.

After playing through a few tracks from her new album, the crowd gets to choose whether they liked the original or the unlocked version more; it was an awesome experience to see an artist interact with their fans like that.

As her time on stage winded down, Keys hit all of her chart-topping songs, such as “Girl on Fire,” “Empire State of Mind,” and “If I Ain’t Got You.” At this point, the venue was shaking. It was packed to the brim and the crowd was so loud you would’ve thought there were 50,000 people there. The liveliness and energy the crowd brought was amazing, and Keys was reciprocating that energy all the way.

After expressing her love and gratitude to the city of Phoenix, Keys exited the stage. It was a performance I was ecstatic to be able to see and I’ve got my fingers crossed she comes back soon. Alicia Keys is still on top and always will be!