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| title7 = Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)
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| note7 = featuring [[Drake|Drake]]
| writer7 = Keys, [[Drake (entertainer)|Aubrey Graham]], Brothers, [[Noah "40" Shebib]]
| writer7 = Keys, [[Drake (entertainer)|Aubrey Graham]], Brothers, [[Noah "40" Shebib]]
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Revision as of 21:17, 23 February 2010

Untitled

The Element of Freedom is the fourth studio album by American R&B musician Alicia Keys, released December 11, 2009 on J Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during May to September 2009 at The Oven Studios in Long Island, New York. Production was handled by Keys, Jeff Bhasker, Swizz Beatz, Noah "40" Shebib, and Kerry "Krucial" Brothers.

The album debuted at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling 417,000 copies in its first week. It became Keys' first non-number one album in the United States and her first number one album in the United Kingdom. The Element of Freedom has spawned three singles that attained chart success and was certified platinum in sales by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) one month after its release. Despite mixed criticism towards its low-key sound and Keys' songwriting, the album received generally positive reviews from most music critics.

Background

After recording her third studio album, As I Am, Keys began to "find the way to totally be myself and what that meant; figuring out what choices I wanted to make and not make in order to truly honor myself".[1] She described The Element of Freedom as diverse, but noted that there is a "balance". She explained that "one side is strong and one side is vulnerable", which she pointed to as the theme of the album. The album has a "strong, edgy feel", but is also "intimate and vulnerable and delicate".[2] While on Black Entertainment Television's 106 & Park, she described the album: "The way that the songs progress [on the album] are gonna take you on a natural high. I just want you to feel a sense of freedom, I want you to feel out-of-the-box, feel inspired, You're definitely going to be taken on a trip, I know you're going to be shocked, you're going to hear things that you probably didn't think that I would sound like. It's a journey."[3] Keys revealed to the The Times that in the period she was recording the album, she used to listen to artists such as Genesis, Tears for Fears, Fleetwood Mac and The Police.[4]

In an interview with Billboard magazine, Keys stated that she "eliminated all of the boundaries and all the limitations, so that you can feel your freedom and express your freedom in every way you possibly can".[5] The Element of Freedom was scheduled to be released on December 1, 2009, to correspond with World AIDS Day, but was pushed back to December 15 for additional recording.[5][6] According to the senior vice president of urban marketing for J Records, Keys "had a couple of more things in the oven and she wants this to be right [...] So we gave her the additional time she needed." Keys pointed out that she felt the album was being rushed for no reason.[1]

Recording

It feels emotional and vulnerable but there's also a kind of freedom in it. I can't quite find a better word than freedom to really describe it. Even though every song has touches of different textures and sounds, the overall [sense of] freedom is the thing that grounds it. It's definitely the theme of where I am in my life.

Alicia Keys[1]

Keys began working on the album in May 2009. During this time, Keys and her audio engineer bought several vintage keyboards, describing the Moog as her "special best friend".[7] Recording took place in The Oven Studios in Long Island, New York.[8] Keys expressed that she "didn't know what to do" when she began working on the album, but knew to do it.[9] After exhausting herself, she stated that she "finally found the key, and that is to allow yourself to be free".[9] She explained that the album dealt with overcoming depression. She went on to say, "I found more freedom. Before, I thought I could only show the strong side of me. Now there’s a mixture of strong and delicate. A new sound, a new emotion. That’s a lot of who I am right now"[10] Recording for the album was completed between August and September 2009. Keys described that she "love[d] melody so much", but approached the album with a "free zone".[7] The album includes production by Kerry "Krucial" Brothers, Jeff Bhasker and others.[5]

MTV News reported that Keys and rapper Jay-Z recorded "Empire State of Mind Part 2", a second version of "Empire State of Mind", from Jay-Z's album, The Blueprint 3.[11] The final product did not include Jay-Z.[12] In mid-November 2009, Brothers revealed on Twitter that Canadian recording artist Drake will be featured on the album.[13] Drake described the studio session with Keys as "one of the best studio experiences of my life". He explained that "I came in there and instead of being like, 'Here's the beat, get to work,' she was just like, 'Play me your favorite songs and lets battle'... It's almost like the transition from [listening to] great music to making a song — like, no one even noticed it, because she started playing the keys and I just started writing the melodies."[14] Keys stated that due to the album being pushed back, she was able to work with Drake and American recording artist Beyoncé, which she described as "the most exciting collaborations of my career yet".[15]

Marketing and promotion

In September 2009, the day after the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Keys posted the audio to the album's lead single, "Doesn't Mean Anything", on her YouTube channel.[16] The song was released on iTunes on September 22.[17] In October, she performed the song live on the Regis and Kelly show.[18] "Doesn't Mean Anything" peaked at number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 14 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[5][9]

On October 21, 2009, Keys held "The Element of Freedom Lecture & Performance Series" at New York University, free for students at the Tisch School of the Arts. Among the songs she performed included the new "Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart".[9] The song, produced by Keys and Jeff Bhasker, was released as the second single from the album.[3] The music video premiered on November 16, 2009.[19] Keys performed a medley of "Empire State of Mind", "Doesn't Mean Anything" and "No One" on the sixth season of The X Factor on November 29, 2009.[20] On December 16, 2009, BET's 106 & Park hosted a two-hour special titled 106 & Keys, which will consist of a countdown of Keys' videos and a live performance.[1]

On December 1, 2009, Keys performed a benefit concert at the Nokia Theater in New York, where all the proceeds went to the Keep a Child Alive program. The concert—held on World AIDS Day—was streamed live on the video sharing website YouTube.[15][21] A week prior to its release, Keys streamed The Element of Freedom in its entirety on the peer-to-peer music streaming service, Spotify,[22] as well as social networking website, Facebook, through an application. She became the first major recording artist in Facebook's history to do so.[23] BillboardLive.com is working with Keys to show off its new technology that allows fans to watch free concerts broadcast in HD via iPhone or iPod Touch.[citation needed] The "Alicia Keys & Friends" concert took place on January 7, 2010, at the Apollo Theater in New York. In addition to her performances, Keys introduced new artists who also performed during the event.[24] Keys also performed on Saturday Night Live on January 9, followed by an AOL Music Sessions premiere on January 14. On Valentine's Day, Keys will perform with recording artists Usher and Shakira at the 2010 NBA All-Star Game during halftime. At the show, Keys will perform "No One" from her 2007 album As I Am. She will also perform "Empire State of Mind" as well "Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart".[25] On March 3, Keys embarks on the North American portion of The Freedom Tour at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois. The European leg of the tour will commence late April 2010.[8][26]

Reception

Commercial performance

The Element of Freedom debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, selling 417,000 copies in its first week. It became Keys' first album to not debut at number one on that chart.[27] In its second week, the album sold 280,000 copies.[28] In its third week the album sold 80,000 copies.[29] In its fourth week the album sold 62,000 copies.[30] In its fifth on the US charts, the album sold 48,000 copies. The album has sold one million copies in the United States[31] and has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.[32]

The album reached number one in Switzerland and has been certified gold after sales in excess of 15,000.[33] In December 2009, the album was certified platinum in Canada for sales of 80,000.[34] The album entered the UK Albums Chart at number seventeen on December 20, 2009 and climbed to number one in the UK Albums Chart on February 7, 2010 making it her first album to ever chart within the top five and top the chart. In the space of a month, the album has spawned two top ten singles in the UK.[35][36]

Critical response

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[37]
Chicago Tribune[38]
Entertainment Weekly(A-)[39]
The Independent[40]
Los Angeles Times[41]
The New York Times(mixed)[42]
PopMatters(3/10)[43]
Rolling Stone[44]
Slant[45]
USA Today[46]

Upon its release, The Element of Freedom received generally positive reviews from most music critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, it received an average score of 66 based on 14 reviews.[47] Writers noticed Keys' transition from 1970s R&B and soul to 1980s and 1990s pop-oriented sound.[42][48][49] Keys received some comparisons to musician Prince.[39][42][45] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of Allmusic pointed out the "always apparent" influence of Prince, as Keys "swapped the retro-soul instrumentation of her earliest music for electronics". He identified the album as "clean, small-scale collection of ballads and Prince-inspired pop".[37] Allmusic's entry page for the album lists R&B as its primary genre, while noting neo soul, adult alternative, and pop rock as styles incorporated in the album.[37] The Star-Ledger's Jay Lustig hailed the album as an "instant classic" and called it "as well-crafted a collection of pop/R&B music as I've heard in a long time".[50] The Houston Chronicle noted that the production technique "makes everything feel familiar but still manages to sound fresh", calling the songs "a strong, soulful statement".[48] Writers noted that the album's tenth track, "Put It in a Love Song", distinguishes itself from the rest of the album, being described as having "dreamy, sun-dazed production" and is "quantitatively different energy".[40][42][51][52] Andrew Burgess of MusicOMH gave The Element of Freedom 3½ out of 5 stars and viewed its production as "a perfect counterpoint to Keys' voice, and the sentiment she's trying to convey", while calling the album one of "the best pop albums of 2009".[51] Mike Ragogna of The Huffington Post wrote that Keys is maturing, "both vocally and as a strong young woman".[53] Ragogna perceived that "the album doesn't really push the vocalist-pianist's music further than where it already was established on earlier releases", but noted that it "clicks better as a body of work than two of her three previous albums".[53]

However, the album also received a considerable amount of mixed reviews, with critics viewing it as "not risky enough" or lacking enough "edge".[54] Simon Price of The Independent felt that the songs "drift by disappointingly, anodyne and indistinguishable", commenting that he "genuinely had to keep checking the LCD display to see if we were still on the same track".[40] Matthew Cole of Slant Magazine noted "some retro synth work lends a funky backdrop" to Keys' "breathy vamping, alternating disco-diva choruses with Prince-worthy verses".[45] However, Cole gave it 2½ out of 5 stars and wrote "As smart and savvy a songwriter as Keys should be able to do better than this".[45] New York Daily News writer Jim Farber gave the album 3 out of 5 stars and wrote favorably of the songs' melodies.[49] However, Farber perceived its "slickness" and pop-oriented sound as a fault, writing that it "boasts a brighter, lighter sound than any previous Keys CD. But, in the process, it overshoots its goal of soul to bore straight into the heart of pop".[49] In a generally mixed review, Rolling Stone critic Rob Sheffield perceived its production as a weakness, writing that it "compresses her voice, making it sound a lot less like her, especially on the ballads. Even a great tune like the breakup blues of "Love Is Blind" can make you a little hungry to hear Alicia Keys sing it".[44] Vibe's Clover Hope viewed Keys' "rote songwriting" and wrote that it lacks her "gritty edge that once was love at first sight".[55] In a generally mixed review, The New York Times's Ben Ratliff described most of the album's songs as "professionals ... slow, clean songs with semi-classical acoustic piano, soft-pop chord changes and simple, prominent hip-hop beats", and perceived its "queenliness, and the sameness of the tempo" as a weakness.[42] Spin's Mikael Wood gave it 2½ out of 5 stars and wrote "Keys seems uninterested in breaking new ground, snooze-controlling her way through a series of familiar piano-soul platitudes".[56] In a generally negative review, Allison Stewart of The Washington Post wrote unfavorably of Keys' lyrical "banalities" and called it "another safe, uninspiring album" from Keys, writing that it "relies unusually heavily upon mid-tempo, carefully layered lovesick ballads".[52]

Chicago Tribune writer Greg Kot called the album Keys' "most consistent album and also her most low-key", and found it less "forced or gimmicky" than her previous albums.[38] Toronto Star critic Ashante Infantry gave it 3½ out of 4 stars and commended Keys for her musicianship, calling the album "a mixed soul-pop bag" and "intensely passionate".[57] Killian Fox of The Observer called it "a confident, well-crafted modern soul record" that was made without "doing anything groundbreaking".[58] BBC Online's Daryl Easlea wrote "Keys' canny ability to fox and beguile make The Element of Freedom an unexpected pleasure", and described Keys' vocals as "raw with emotion", which he felt matched the album's drum programming.[59] However, PopMatters writer Tyler Lewis gave it a 3/10 rating and described its music as "uninspiring, trendy electronica production, strident lead vocal performances, and banal lyricism".[43] Chicago Sun-Times writer Jim DeRogatis panned the album, viewing its lyrics as "empty cliches" and its sound as pretentious.[60] However, Los Angeles Times writer Randy Lewis gave it 3 out of 4 stars and wrote favorably of Keys' thematic approach, stating that she "digs deep into the multitude of implications of independence".[41] Despite writing that Keys' lyrically "remains wedded to cliché", Digital Spy's Nick Levine gave the album 4 out of 5 stars and wrote "thanks to that voice and her knack for a timeless-sounding melody, she can make even the hackneyed sound classic".[61] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly commented that Keys has "established herself as an increasingly rare thing in pop music: the class act", noting that the "often-banal lyrics" were carried by her "quicksilver" voice.[39] USA Today's Steve Jones called its songs "consistently strong and thematically cohesive" and perceived the album as "more nuanced and intimate" than Keys' previous work.[46] Giving it 3 out of 4 stars, Jones wrote that The Element of Freedom "marks not so much a departure for Keys as it does the evolution of an artist still seeking higher ground".[46]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Element of Freedom (Intro)" 0:12
2."Love Is Blind"Alicia Keys, Jeff Bhasker3:49
3."Doesn't Mean Anything"Keys, Kerry Brothers, Jr.4:32
4."Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart"Bhasker, Keys, Patrick "Plain Pat" Reynolds4:09
5."Wait Til You See My Smile"Keys, Bhasker, Kasseem Dean4:01
6."That's How Strong My Love Is"Keys4:04
7."Un-thinkable (I'm Ready)" (featuring Drake)Keys, Aubrey Graham, Brothers, Noah "40" Shebib4:09
8."Love Is My Disease"Keys, Brothers, Toby Gad, Meleni Smith4:01
9."Like the Sea"Keys, Bhasker4:13
10."Put It in a Love Song" (featuring Beyoncé)Keys, Dean3:15
11."This Bed"Keys, Brothers, Steve Mostyn3:45
12."Distance and Time"Keys, Brothers, Mostyn4:27
13."How It Feels to Fly"Keys, Brothers4:42
14."Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down"Keys, Al Shuckburgh, Shawn Carter, Jane't Sewell-Ulepic, Angela Hunte, Bert Keyes, Sylvia Robinson3:36

Track 14 contains an interpolation of "Love on a Two-Way Street", written by Bert Keyes and Sylvia Robinson, as performed by The Moments.

Bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
15."Stolen Moments" (Target/iTunes/Japan bonus track)4:52
16."Heaven's Door" (Japan bonus track)3:18
Deluxe edition bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
15."Through It All"Keys, Brothers4:28
16."Pray for Forgiveness"Keys, Linda Perry4:44
17."Stolen Moments" (Target/iTunes/Japan only) 4:52
18."Heaven's Door" (Japan only) 3:18
Deluxe edition bonus DVD
No.TitleLength
1."Doesn't Mean Anything" (Intimate "Acoustic" Studio Performance)3:55
2."Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down" (Intimate "Acoustic" Studio Performance)1:59
3."Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart" (Intimate "Acoustic" Studio Performance)3:39
4."No One" (Intimate "Acoustic" Studio Performance)4:09
5."Doesn't Mean Anything" (music video)5:13
Empire Edition - Empire EP
No.TitleLength
1."Lover Man"3:17
2."Almost There"3:37
3."No One" (live) 
4."Like You'll Never See Me Again" (live) 
5."If I Ain't Got You" (live) 
6."Karma" (live) 
7."Fallin'" (live) 

Personnel

Credits for The Element of Freedom adapted from Allmusic.[62]

Chart history

Chart positions

Chart procession and succession

Preceded by Swiss Albums Chart number-one album
January 3, 2010 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums number-one album (first run)
January 2, 2010 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums number-one album (second run)
January 15, 2010 		Succeeded by
Preceded by UK R&B Albums Chart number-one album
January 17, 2010 		Succeeded by
incumbent
Preceded by UK Albums Chart number-one album
February 7, 2010 - February 21, 2010 		Succeeded by

Release history

Country Date Format Label(s) Catalog
Germany December 11, 2009 Standard edition[73] Sony Music Entertainment 886976256128
Deluxe edition[74] 886976309022
Australia Standard edition[75]
  • Digital download
 88697465712
Deluxe edition[76] 88697608982
Ireland Standard edition 88697465712
Deluxe edition 88697608982
United Kingdom December 14, 2009 Standard edition RCA Records 88697465712
Deluxe edition 88697608982
United States December 15, 2009 Standard edition J Records 886974657125
Deluxe edition 88697608982
Empire edition
Vinyl LP[77] 886974657118
Canada Standard edition[78] Sony Music Entertainment 88697465712
Deluxe edition[79] 88697608982
Brazil Standard edition[80] 886974657125
Argentina Standard edition[81] 886974657125
Deluxe edition[82] 886976089825
Japan December 16, 2009 Standard edition[83] Sony Music Japan SICP2462
January 1, 2010 Deluxe edition[84] SICP2583
Australia January 8, 2010 Standard edition[85]
  • CD
 Sony Music Entertainment 88697465712

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  76. ^ "Buy Element of Freedom: Deluxe Edn CD/DVD Alicia Keys, Urban, CD". Sanity. December 11, 2009. Retrieved December 22, 2009.
  77. ^ "The Element of Freedom, Alicia Keys, Music Vinyl LP - Barnes & Noble". Music.barnesandnoble.com. December 15, 2009. Retrieved December 22, 2009.
  78. ^ "The Element of Freedom: Alicia Keys: Amazon.ca: Music". Amazon.ca. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  79. ^ "The Element of Freedom (Deluxe Edition): Alicia Keys: Amazon.ca: Music". Amazon.ca. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  80. ^ "Cd: Element Of Freedom, The - Keys, Alicia - R&B & Soul". Livrariacultura.com.br. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  81. ^ "Sony Music Entertainment Cono Sur". http://www.sonymusic.com.ar/. Retrieved January 7, 2010. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  82. ^ "Sony Music Entertainment Cono Sur". http://www.sonymusic.com.ar/. Retrieved January 7, 2010. {{cite web}}: External link in |publisher= (help)
  83. ^ "The Element of Freedom(2BonusTracks)【CD】-Alicia Keys｜Dance｜Dance & Soul｜Music｜HMV ONLINE Online Shopping & Information Site". Hmv.co.jp. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  84. ^ "The Element of Freedom: Deluxe Edition(+DVD, Limited, Special Edition (Deluxe))【CD】-Alicia Keys｜Dance｜Dance & Soul｜Music｜HMV ONLINE Online Shopping & Information Site". Hmv.co.jp. Retrieved December 6, 2009.
  85. ^ "Buy Element of Freedom Alicia Keys, R&B, CD". Sanity. Retrieved December 22, 2009.
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