Alicia Keys won the 2002 Grammy Award for Best New Artist. SONGS IN A MINOR won the 2002 Grammy Award for Best R&B Album. "Fallin'" won the 2002 Grammy Awards for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and for Best R&B Song.
Picture Roberta Flack with hip-hop trimmings or D'Angelo coming at the world from a female perspective and you get an idea of the immense talent welling up from musical prodigy Alicia Keys. Blessed with a soulful voice, mature-beyond-her-years songwriting, and a classically trained command of piano, it's no wonder music mogul Clive Davis brought the 20-year old performer over from Arista as one of the flagship artists for his new label J Records. Keys displays impressive range on this primarily self-penned debut that finds her taking part in arranging and/or production on every cut, once again redeeming Davis's instincts.
Besides the well-earned buzz for the gripping love-and-loathe single "Fallin'," Keys earns high marks for fusing rap beats and vintage Aretha on a confidently delivered cover of Prince's "How Come You Don't Call Me." Elsewhere, the native New Yorker's flow finds her traversing the same ground as early-'70s Stevie Wonder on the thought-provoking "The Life," while "Goodbye" proves to be the quintessential Quiet Storm kiss-off. Keys wraps up SONGS with a sanctified mix of stride piano, lush strings, and gospel-flavored back-up singers on "Lovin' U."
Release date June 26, 2001.