The icon of American Soul and R&B told the youth of Arab at the Expo 2020 Dubai to “be bold” in the changing Gulf Arab region. This happened as she released her latest album on Thursday. The 15-time Grammy winner was slated to premiere "KEYS" in Dubai at midnight (2000 GMT) on Friday, followed by a live concert on Saturday. When asked about her message to young people in Gulf Arab countries, Keys told AFP in an interview at the Expo 2020 site, "Continue to be bold, continue to be one of a kind." she emphasized not to question yourself; you already own all you require.
Large-scale social and economic changes are taking place in the region, which has a population of 57 million people, the majority of whom are under 30 years old. Keys, who has sold more than 65 million songs in her career, added that there's so much invention, so much energy, so much creativity, so much vision. It's always about improvement and growth in it." And she believed that was what that music was about- the singer-songwriter explained.
Keys explained of her next release that that was about that on this record. That album was about being unrestrained, about creating our craziest fantasies. The double-album, which contains an additional edit of each song, is also about getting down to the basics, according to Keys, 40. "It's all about getting home," says the narrator. "It's about getting back to yourself," she explained. "It's about me coming back to myself, which is why I call it 'KEYS,' and really just owning what I do and continuing to explore it." Keys will perform at the domed Al Wasl Plaza, the Expo's centerpiece, where organizers hope to attract 25 million visitors over the course of the six-month event.
The new record is her first since the outbreak of the Covid-19 virus, which has wreaked havoc on the music industry, wiping billions off its value.
Keys remarked that she thought there had been so much opportunity during the pandemic to truly connect with the people one actually loves and to grasp what matters to them. She continued that then she viewed things in an entirely different light. She believed we all do. She said that she had learned that there was a divine order to the music that she had written because she had no knowledge that there would be a pandemic, yet the music fit so powerfully with what we had been going through at the time.
Keys, who is also an actress, novelist, and activist, is planning a world tour in the summer of 2022. "Girl On Fire," a graphic novel based on her smash hit of the same name, will be released in March.
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