Alicia’s Keys is one of the most celebrated artists of this generation, and some would say, one of the greatest of all time. The award-winning artist began singing and playing the piano at age 7, and at 12, she began creating original compositions.
Three years later, he signed with Columbia Records, but after problems with the label, he joined Arista Records. Keys released her first album on J Records in 2001 and it garnered her five Grammy Awards in 2002. Since then, Alisha has never looked back and continues to bless us with musical inspiration.
This article will take a look at Alisha’s parents and how they helped shape the star artist we know today.
Alicia’s mom worked three jobs to support her daughter.
Rob Kim/FilmMagic
Alicia was born on January 25, 1981 in Hell’s Kitchen, New York, the daughter of Teresa Augello and Craig Cook. Craig and Augello weren’t together, and it was up to him to raise Alicia. Teresa had an Italian background and worked as a paralegal. She sometimes had to work two or three jobs to keep the family afloat. Alice told him Oprah that she was surprised at how hard her mother worked. She said:
“She worked all day. I don’t know how she put up with her day by day. If there was a big trial, she would come home at 3 am, then get up at 6 am and move on… But I realized that if everything fell apart, she would always be there”.
Alicia’s mom encouraged her to start playing the guitar and writing music, and it turned out to be the right choice. She said The Guardian, “When I had nothing else, I had my mother and the piano. And you know what? They were all she needed.”
Alicia reconciled with her father after her paternal grandmother fell ill
Alicia’s African-American father was not present in her life growing up. She was a flight attendant and had two other children. She had an estranged relationship with Cook, and that made her appreciate her mother more. Alicia told The Guardian that she avoided talking about her father because she did not want to fit the stereotype of having an absent father.
Keys’ feelings toward her father began to change after her paternal grandmother fell ill in 2006. The traumatic experience allowed her to see Cook in a different light. She said The Daily Mail:
“You will realize what is important when you see a person that you love very much and you will not have them for a long time. It was important to her. And I saw [my father’s] love for her. I realized that she was not an evil person, so I said: ‘Can we start from this point? We can be friends? I can start to understand you and you can start to understand me.”
Cook and Keys reconciled and are now close. Craig also has a close relationship with Alicia’s children Egypt and Genesis. Alice told him The Daily Mail that holding on to anger wasn’t worth it. She said:
“My father and I are fine now. I would say that in the process of growing up you realize that you have been holding on to anger. I was angry then and I’m sure I had a right to be angry, but if you hold on to all this anger, the only person you’re hurting is you.”
Alicia recently told Dax Shepard that she is grateful to have mended her relationship with her father.
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Categories: Biography
Source: vcmp.edu.vn