BUENA PARK, CA (June 4, 2004) — Multiple Grammy® Award winner
Alicia Keys may be only 23 years old, but she knows a thing or two about pianos. So it's no surprise that the top-of-the-line, 7'6" Yamaha
C7 Concert Collection Grand Piano is her instrument of choice.
Keys signed with Yamaha in late February 2004, citing the quality of sound of Yamaha instruments as the deciding factor in the relationship. "When it comes to
grand pianos, Yamaha is one of the best I have ever played!" she says. "It has a great touch, and it creates beautiful, clear sounds in any venue."
Starting with classical piano lessons at an early age, this soulful singer/pianist climbed to the top of the pop ladder while still in her teens. Her 2001 album Songs in A Minor, which blended R&B, jazz, classical, and hip-hop influences, swept that year's Grammy® Awards. And her most recent CD, December 2003's Diary of Alicia Keys, was an instant chart-topper.
Alicia, who began writing songs at 11, signed her first recording contract with Arista Records founder Clive Davis in 1998. Two years later, Davis took Keys with him when he established his new venture, J Records. Meanwhile, Alicia's academic success at Professional Performing Arts High School enabled her to graduate early. She attended Columbia University for several semesters before deciding to focus on her music.
Keys immediately struck gold – and beyond – with her debut album on J Records. The quintuple-platinum Songs in A Minor led to five Grammy® Awards, including "Best New Artist" and "Best R&B Album." Alicia's hit song "Fallin'" won "Song of the Year," "Best R&B Song," and "Best Female R&B Performance."
Alicia has extended her involvement in the studio beyond mere performance. She's taken on production, programming, and arranging roles in addition to writing, singing, and playing piano and other keyboards. "As a producer, I use a lot of Yamaha keyboards, because they have a diverse selection of sounds – they're as close to the real thing as it gets," she explains.
For their live shows, Keys and her band use a wide range of Yamaha keyboards, including the
Motif ES6,
Motif ES7, and
Motif ES8, as well as the
TRB JP2 and
TRB 5PII bass guitars. Onree Gill, Keys' musical director, notes, "Yamaha keyboards provide a reliable catalog of sounds that are essential to help me recreate such a dynamic show as Alicia Keys."
