Here (Alicia Keys album)
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''Here'' is the sixth studio album by American singer and songwriter
Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...
. It was released on November 4, 2016, by
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. Keys recorded the album in 2014 at the New York-based
Jungle City Studios Jungle City Studios is a recording studio owned and operated by Ann Mincieli, Alicia Keys's longtime engineer and studio coordinator. Located in Chelsea, Manhattan, it was designed by John Storyk of Walters-Storyk Design Group. Recordings at Ju ...
and
Oven Studios Oven Studios is the personal recording studio of American singer-songwriter and record producer Alicia Keys, located in the Chelsea neighborhood in Manhattan, New York. Background Designed by the Walters-Storyk Design Group, the studio was ori ...
with producers
Mark Batson Mark Batson is an American producer, musician and songwriter. He has worked on albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, LeAnn Rimes, Anthony Hamilton, Eminem, India Arie, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Skylar Grey, Grace Pott ...
,
Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
,
Illangelo Carlo Montagnese (born July 29, 1987), known professionally as Illangelo, is a Canadian record producer, songwriter, musician and mixing engineer from Calgary, Alberta, who came to attention as long-time collaborator of the Weeknd. A Grammy Awa ...
,
Jimmy Napes James Napier (born 18 September 1984), known professionally as Jimmy Napes, is an English songwriter and record producer. He has won a number of awards, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, 3 Grammy Awards, and 2 Ivor Novello Awar ...
, and
Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...
. The singer had finished writing and recording material for the album before she found out she was pregnant, which put the record's release on hold. ''Here'' received positive reviews from critics, who applauded the raw and urgent quality of the music and its exploration of social struggles and African-American life. It debuted at number two on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and became Keys' seventh album to top the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...
chart. By May 2017, it had sold 131,000 copies worldwide. The album produced two singles–"
In Common "In Common" is a song by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys from her sixth studio album, ''Here''. The song was written by Keys, Illangelo, Billy Walsh and Taylor Parks, and produced by Illangelo. It is a departure from her R&B sound, hav ...
", included only on the international editions, and "
Blended Family (What You Do for Love) "Blended Family (What You Do for Love)" is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys, featuring vocals from rapper ASAP Rocky. It was written by Keys, Rocky, John Bush, Brandon Aly, Tish Hyman, Dave Kuncio, John Houser, Kenneth Withrow ...
".


Background and development

''Here'' was Keys' first album in four years, following '' Girl on Fire'' (2012). Keys said that she was not planning a hiatus, but after she finished recording material for the album, she found out she was pregnant which "put a different time spin on things". On September 8, 2014, Keys uploaded the music video to a new song called " We Are Here" to her
Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
page, accompanied by a lengthy status update describing her motivation and inspiration to write the song. It was released digitally the following week. Keys was also working with
Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...
on then-untitled ''Here'', first set for a 2015 release. In an interview with ''
Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...
'', Keys described the sound of the album as "aggressive", as one of the songs on the album was titled "Killing Your Mother" (later retitled "Kill Your Mama").Naughton, Julia (June 20, 2014)
"Alicia Keys Fronts Givenchy’s Newest Fragrance"
''WWD''. Retrieved February 6, 2020.
Keys also played the piano on a
Diplo Thomas Wesley Pentz (born November 10, 1978), known professionally as Diplo, is an American DJ and music producer. He is the co-creator and lead member of the electronic dancehall music project Major Lazer, a member of the supergroup LSD with ...
-produced song "
Living for Love "Living for Love" is a song recorded by American singer Madonna for her thirteenth studio album, ''Rebel Heart'' (2015). It was written and produced by Madonna, Diplo and Ariel Rechtshaid, with additional writing from MoZella and Toby Gad. O ...
" which was featured on
Madonna Madonna Louise Ciccone (; ; born August 16, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter and actress. Widely dubbed the " Queen of Pop", Madonna has been noted for her continual reinvention and versatility in music production, songwriting, a ...
's thirteenth studio album ''
Rebel Heart ''Rebel Heart'' is the thirteenth studio album by American singer-songwriter Madonna, released by Interscope Records on March 6, 2015. She worked on the album throughout 2014, co-writing and co-producing it with various musicians, including Di ...
'' (2015). In November 2014, Keys announced that she would be releasing a series of children's books; the first book released was entitled ''Blue Moon: From the Journals of MaMa Mae and LeeLee''. Keys gave birth to her second child, son Genesis Ali Dean, on December 27, 2014. In June 2015, Keys performed at the
BET Awards 2015 The 15th BET Awards was held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California on June 28, 2015 and was televised on BET. This year marked the ceremony's 15th anniversary and the milestone was celebrated throughout the show, which was hosted by ...
with
The Weeknd Abel Makkonen Tesfaye (born February 16, 1990), known professionally as the Weeknd, is a Canadian singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. Known for his sonic versatility and dark lyricism, his music explores escapism, Romance (love), ...
. Keys played the character Skye Summers in the second season of ''
Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...
'', first appearing in the episode "Sinned Against", which aired on November 25.


Recording and production

Keys recorded ''Here'' in sessions at
Jungle City Studios Jungle City Studios is a recording studio owned and operated by Ann Mincieli, Alicia Keys's longtime engineer and studio coordinator. Located in Chelsea, Manhattan, it was designed by John Storyk of Walters-Storyk Design Group. Recordings at Ju ...
and
Oven Studios Oven Studios is the personal recording studio of American singer-songwriter and record producer Alicia Keys, located in the Chelsea neighborhood in Manhattan, New York. Background Designed by the Walters-Storyk Design Group, the studio was ori ...
in New York. She spoke of the creative process for the album in an interview with ''Citizens of Humanity'' magazine:


Release and promotion

The lead single "
In Common "In Common" is a song by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys from her sixth studio album, ''Here''. The song was written by Keys, Illangelo, Billy Walsh and Taylor Parks, and produced by Illangelo. It is a departure from her R&B sound, hav ...
" was performed by Keys at
Tribeca Film Festival The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...
on April 21, 2016, on the May 7 episode of the comedy sketch show ''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
'', ''
The Voice The Voice may refer to: Fictional entities * The Voice or Presence, a fictional representation of God in DC Comics * The Voice (''Dune''), a fictional ability in the ''Dune'' universe * The Voice, a character in the American TV series ''Cleo ...
'' season finale on May 17, at the
UEFA Champions League Final The UEFA Champions League is a seasonal football competition established in 1955. Prior to the 1992–93 season, the tournament was named the European Cup. The UEFA Champions League is open to the league champions of all UEFA (Union of Europea ...
in Milan on May 28,
BET Awards 2016 The 16th BET Awards were held at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California on June 26, 2016. The ceremony celebrated mass achievements in black entertainment and honored music, sports, television, and motion pictures released between April ...
on June 26, and the
2016 Democratic National Convention The 2016 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention, held at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 25 to 28, 2016. The convention gathered delegates of the Democratic Party, the majo ...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 26. Keys appeared on ''
Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * Day of the present, the time that is perceived directly, often called ''now'' * Current era, present * The current calendar date Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Today'' (1930 film), a 1930 A ...
'' on September 3, 2016. On September 20, Keys performed at the
Apple Music Festival The Apple Music Festival (formerly known as the iTunes Festival) was a concert series held by Apple, Inc. and inaugurated in 2007. Free tickets were given to Apple Music, iTunes and DICE FM, DICE users who lived in the United Kingdom, through loc ...
in Roundhouse, London. ''Here'' was made available for pre-order on October 7, the same day the second single "
Blended Family (What You Do for Love) "Blended Family (What You Do for Love)" is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys, featuring vocals from rapper ASAP Rocky. It was written by Keys, Rocky, John Bush, Brandon Aly, Tish Hyman, Dave Kuncio, John Houser, Kenneth Withrow ...
" was released. On October 9, Keys headed the concert special ''
Here in Times Square ''Here in Times Square'' is a concert television special featuring American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys. Recorded at Times Square in New York City, the concert featured Keys and various guests performing songs from Keys sixth studio album ''Here ...
'', featuring performances of album tracks and previous songs with several guest artists in New York City's
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
; the special was broadcast by
BET Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...
on November 3. ''Here'' was released the following day by
RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...
. "In Common" was included only on editions outside North America as a bonus track, and was excluded from the vinyl edition as well.


Critical reception

''Here'' was met with generally positive reviews from critics. At
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 76, based on 14 reviews. Reviewing ''Here'' for ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', Andy Gill praised Keys' writing and musicality, regarding it to be "grounded in a melodic appeal that’s almost magnetic." In ''
Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...
'',
Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...
hailed the album as Keys' best record since her debut ''
Songs in A Minor ''Songs in A Minor'' is the debut studio album by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys, released on June 5, 2001, by J Records. Keys began writing songs for the album in 1995 at age 14 and recording the album in 1998 for Columbia Records, ...
'', deeming it "simultaneously raw and political", and crediting Swizz Beatz for defining "the funk her adventures in gospel grit demand, evoking Memphis thump while remaining so hip-hop that the samples stay in
Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...
- Wu-
Tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide usage of the term in English language, English is in the discipline of anthropology. This definition is contested, in p ...
territory". ''
The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...
''s Jim Fusilli credited the singer for pursuing new and less-commercial sounds without discarding her classic-soul forte, and ''
Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...
'' journalist Keith Harris said she exhibited more cruder R&B rather than the classical piano influences of her past work while suggesting a "hectic but coherent" atmosphere evocative of New York City, with influences from
boom bap Boom bap is a subgenre and music production style that was prominent in the East Coast during the golden age of hip hop from the late 1980s to the early 1990s. The term "boom bap" is an onomatopoeia that represents the sounds used for the ba ...
,
Latin music Latin music (Portuguese language, Portuguese and es, música latina) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America (including Music of Spain, Spain and Portuguese music, Portugal) ...
, and 1970s soul. ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cul ...
'' writer Nolan Feeney said Keys performed with a "fire in her voice and an almost rap-like cadence", the urgency and subject matter of which made the album her "most vital release in years — and a welcome addition to 2016's rich canon of albums ... that address black life in America. Nick Levine from ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
'' praised Keys' "looser and more youthful" approach, and appreciated that she "doesn't shy away from the personal here" while also looking outwards in explorations of social struggles. According to Ludovic Hunter-Tilney of the ''
Financial Times The ''Financial Times'' (''FT'') is a British daily newspaper printed in broadsheet and published digitally that focuses on business and economic current affairs. Based in London, England, the paper is owned by a Japanese holding company, Nik ...
'', ''Here'' was animated by "politically active music" such as
Sam Cooke Samuel Cook (January 22, 1931 – December 11, 1964), known professionally as Sam Cooke, was an American singer and songwriter. Considered to be a pioneer and one of the most influential soul artists of all time, Cooke is commonly referred ...
's 1964
Civil Rights Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from infringement by governments, social organizations, and private individuals. They ensure one's entitlement to participate in the civil and political life of ...
anthem " A Change Is Gonna Come", and suggested that Keys' "powerful vocals carry the memory of
Lauryn Hill Lauryn Noelle Hill (born May 26, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, and record producer. She is often regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time, as well as being one of the most influential musicians of her generation. ...
in her prime." Some reviewers were less enthusiastic. Andy Kellman of
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
observed energy and conviction in Keys' performance, and a number of "career standouts" in "She Don't Really Care_1 Luv" and "Blended Family". He ultimately found the album's music hastily made, "hollow", and "crude", however, attributing this to "Keys' invigorated energy level and need to simply expel ideas, rather than refine them". Vanessa Okoth-Obbo from ''
Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...
'' applauded the singer's musical experimentation and range, but found the lyrics unadventurous and objected to her "inhabiting the personae of multiple characters" at the expense of personal revelation; in Okoth-Obbo's opinion, the album "does little to further our understanding of who Keys is".


Accolades

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, rowspan="3",
NAACP Image Award The NAACP Image Awards is an annual awards ceremony presented by the U.S.-based National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) to honor outstanding performances in film, television, theatre, music, and literature. Similar to ...
, Outstanding Female Artist , Alicia Keys , , rowspan="3", , - , Outstanding Music Video , "
In Common "In Common" is a song by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys from her sixth studio album, ''Here''. The song was written by Keys, Illangelo, Billy Walsh and Taylor Parks, and produced by Illangelo. It is a departure from her R&B sound, hav ...
" , , - , Outstanding Duo, Group or Collaboration , "
Blended Family (What You Do for Love) "Blended Family (What You Do for Love)" is a song by American recording artist Alicia Keys, featuring vocals from rapper ASAP Rocky. It was written by Keys, Rocky, John Bush, Brandon Aly, Tish Hyman, Dave Kuncio, John Houser, Kenneth Withrow ...
" ,


Commercial performance

''Here'' debuted at number two on the US ''Billboard'' 200 with 50,000
album-equivalent unit The album-equivalent unit, or album equivalent, is a measurement unit in music industry to define the consumption of music that equals the purchase of one album copy. This consumption includes streaming and song downloads in addition to traditi ...
s, of which 42,000 were pure album sales. It topped the US
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated J ...
on November 26, 2016, becoming Keys' seventh number-one album on the chart. By May 2017, the album had sold 131,000 copies worldwide. Internationally, ''Here'' became Keys' least commercially successful studio album to that point, reaching the top ten only in Canada and Switzerland, peaking at numbers ten and five, respectively. However, it peaked within the top 20 in almost all countries it charted in. In the United Kingdom, it peaked at number 21 on the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts C ...
but became Keys' fourth number-one album on the UK R&B Albums.


Track listing

;Sample credits * "The Gospel" contains a sample of "Shaolin Brew", written by Robert Diggs, Jason Hunter and Corey Woods. * "She Don't Really Care" contains a sample of "Bonita Applebum", written by
Edwin Birdsong Edwin L. Birdsong (August 22, 1941 – January 21, 2019) was an American keyboardist and organist, known in the 1970s and 1980s for his experimental funk/ disco music. Birdsong did not achieve much chart success, but developed a strong fan bas ...
, Kamaal Fareed,
Ali Shaheed Muhammad Ali Shaheed Muhammad (born August 11, 1970) is an American hip hop DJ, record producer, and rapper, best known as a member of A Tribe Called Quest. With Q-Tip and Phife Dawg (and sometimes Jarobi White), the group released five studio albums ...
,
William Henry Allen Master Commandant William Henry Allen (October 21, 1784 – August 18, 1813) was an American naval officer during the War of 1812. Early life Allen was born in Providence, Rhode Island and was appointed a midshipman in the United States Navy on ...
,
Roy Ayers Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer, vibraphone player, and music producer. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at Pol ...
,
Walter Booker Walter Booker (December 17, 1933 – November 24, 2006) was an American jazz musician. A native of Prairie View, Texas, Booker was a reliable bass player and an underrated stylist. His playing was marked by voice-like inflections, glissandos and ...
and
Charles Stepney Charles Stepney (March 26, 1931– May 17, 1976) was an American record producer, arranger, songwriter and musician. Stepney is noted for his work with artists such as The Dells, Ramsey Lewis, Rotary Connection and Earth, Wind & Fire. Career He ...
. * "1 Luv" contains a sample of "
One Love One Love may refer to: Music * One Love (record producer), Timothy Sommers, American record producer, half of the duo Kinetics & One Love * ''One Love: The Bob Marley Musical'', a 2015 stage musical Albums * One Love (Blue album), ''One Love'' (B ...
", written by
Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air ( ...
and
Jimmy Heath James Edward Heath (October 25, 1926 – January 19, 2020), nicknamed Little Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually co ...
. * "Blended Family (What You Do for Love)" contains a sample of "
What I Am "What I Am" is a song written by Edie Brickell and Kenny Withrow and recorded by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians for their debut album, ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'' (1988). The song is highlighted by a guitar solo that notably features an ...
", written by Brandon Aly,
Edie Brickell Edie Arlisa Brickell (born March 10, 1966) is an American singer-songwriter widely known for 1988's ''Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars'', the debut album by Edie Brickell & New Bohemians, which went to No. 4 on the ''Billboard'' albums chart. ...
, John Bush, John Houser, and Kenneth Withrow.


Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''Here''.


Musicians

*
Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. A classically trained pianist, Keys started composing songs when she was 12 and was signed at 15 years old by Col ...
– arranger, concept, drum programming, executive producer,
Fender Rhodes The Rhodes piano (also known as the Fender Rhodes piano) is an electric piano invented by Harold Rhodes, which became popular in the 1970s. Like a conventional piano, the Rhodes generates sound with keys and hammers, but instead of strings, th ...
, keyboards,
Moog bass The Moog Taurus is a foot-operated analog synthesizer designed and manufactured by Moog Music, originally conceived as a part of the Constellation series of synthesizers. The initial Taurus I was manufactured from 1975 to 1981; a less popular re ...
, piano, producer, vocals, vocal arrangement, vocal producer, background vocals *
Roy Ayers Roy Ayers (born September 10, 1940) is an American funk, soul, and jazz composer, vibraphone player, and music producer. Ayers began his career as a post-bop jazz artist, releasing several albums with Atlantic Records, before his tenure at Pol ...
– vibraphone, background vocals (6) *
Mark Batson Mark Batson is an American producer, musician and songwriter. He has worked on albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, LeAnn Rimes, Anthony Hamilton, Eminem, India Arie, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Skylar Grey, Grace Pott ...
– drum programming, keyboards, producer *
Tish Hyman Latisha "Tish" Hyman, commonly known as Tish, is an African-American singer-songwriter and rapper. Early life Hyman was born and raised in the Bronx,Kathy Landoll“Band Crush: Tish Hyman,”''Nylon'', June 22, 2015.Rea Melissa Davis“Tish Hym ...
– background vocals (9) *
Illangelo Carlo Montagnese (born July 29, 1987), known professionally as Illangelo, is a Canadian record producer, songwriter, musician and mixing engineer from Calgary, Alberta, who came to attention as long-time collaborator of the Weeknd. A Grammy Awa ...
– instrumentation, mixing, producer * Dave Kuncio – guitar (9) * Harold Lilly – drum programming, background vocals * MusicManTy – bass, drum programming *
ASAP Rocky Rakim Athelaston Mayers (born October 3, 1988), known professionally as ASAP Rocky ( ; stylized as A$AP Rocky), is an American rapper, music producer and record executive. Born and raised in Harlem, he embarked on his musical career as a membe ...
– vocals *
Pharrell Williams Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...
– drum programming, producer


Artwork

* Meghan Foley – art direction, design * Erwin Gorostiza – creative direction * Arthur Johnson – videography * Paola Kudacki – photography * Earle Sebastian – creative direction


Production

* Alicia Keys – production, executive production *
Swizz Beatz Kasseem Daoud Dean (born September 13, 1978), known professionally as Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, rapper, disc jockey (DJ) and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, Dean embarked on his musical career as a DJ. At the ag ...
– production, executive production *
Mark Batson Mark Batson is an American producer, musician and songwriter. He has worked on albums by artists including Alicia Keys, Dave Matthews Band, LeAnn Rimes, Anthony Hamilton, Eminem, India Arie, 50 Cent, Jay-Z, Maroon 5, Skylar Grey, Grace Pott ...
– production * The Il'luminaries – production * Erika Rose – executive production * Mike Larson – engineering * Ken Lewis – engineering * Ann Mincieli – engineering, mixing * Zeke Mishanec – vocal engineering *
Tony Maserati Tony Maserati is an American record producer and audio engineer specializing in mixing. He was involved in the development of the New York R&B and hip-hop scene in the 1990s, working with Mary J. Blige, Notorious B.I.G., Puff Daddy, and Queen ...
– mixing * Val Brathwaite – assistance, mixing assistance, project assistance * John Cranfield – mixing assistance * Justin Hergett – mixing assistance * Sean Klein – assistance, mixing assistance * Brendan Morawski – assistance, mixing assistance, project assistance * Ramon Rivas – assistance, mixing assistance, project assistance, videography * Tyler Scott – mixing assistance * David Kutch – mastering * Kevin Peterson – mastering assistance * Kez Khou – project assistance * Jon Schacter – assistance * Eric Eylands – assistance


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Release history


See also

* List of ''Billboard'' number-one R&B/hip-hop albums of 2016 *
List of UK R&B Albums Chart number ones of 2016 The UK R&B Albums Chart is a weekly chart, first introduced in October 1994, that ranks the 40 biggest-selling albums that are classified in the R&B and Hip hop genres in the United Kingdom. The chart is compiled by the Official Charts Comp ...


References


External links

* {{Authority control 2016 albums Alicia Keys albums Albums produced by Illangelo Albums produced by Mark Batson Albums produced by Swizz Beatz Albums produced by Alicia Keys Albums produced by Pharrell Williams Political music albums by American artists RCA Records albums