By Elysa Gardner, USA TODAY
About two months before recording The Element of Freedom, Alicia Keys witnessed an event that would have a profound influence on her creative process: a Fleetwood Mac concert.
"It was my sister's birthday, and she wanted to see them," says Keys, 29, referring to longtime best friend Erika Rose. The R&B singer/songwriter knew of the veteran band but wasn't entirely familiar with its catalog. "So everyone was like, 'What? You don't know these songs?' "
REVIEW: Keys evolves on * * * 'Element of Freedom'
Other vintage pop acts also informed Freedom, her fourth studio album, which arrives today. Keys started "to experiment with keyboards from the late '70s and '80s. ... I listened to a lot of Genesis, The Police, Tears for Fears— people who hadn't been staples for me."
Her education influenced the album "in a very positive way. In the past, I wasn't as conscious of melody. This time, I wanted melodies that really soared, like the ones I heard at that (Mac) show."
http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/n...eys15_ST_N.htm