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, but after they rejected it, she signed a recording contract with Clive Davis's Arista Records and eventually J Records. An accomplished, classically trained pianist, Keys wrote, arranged and produced the majority of the album herself. It is a neo soul album with elements of R&B, soul, jazz, hip hop, blues, classical, and gospel music. Lyrically, the songs explore the complexities and various stages of personal relationships. Despite the album's title, only two songs, "Jane Doe" and "Mr. Man," are actually in the key of A minor.
Songs in A Minor debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 236,000 copies in its first week. The album has since sold over 7 million copies in the United States and 12 million copies worldwide. It was also an immediate critical success and has since been regarded as a classic. The album earned Keys several accolades, including five Grammy Awards at the 44th Annual Grammy Awards. To promote the album, Keys embarked on her first headlining concert tour, entitled Songs in A Minor Tour.
In 2022, the album was selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Recording Registry.
Recording and production
Keys began writing the songs that would constitute Songs in A Minor at age 14, "Butterflyz" being her first composition for the album. Keys had been accepted to Columbia University, which she attended after graduating from the Professional Performing Arts School at age 16. She dropped out after four weeks to pursue her music career full time. She signed a demo deal with Jermaine Dupri and his So So Def label. Keys co-wrote and recorded a song titled "Dah Dee Dah (Sexy Thing)", which appeared on the soundtrack to the 1997 film Men in Black. She also contributed to the So So Def Christmas recordings. Keys began producing and recording the album in 1998. She completed it that same year, but it was rejected by Columbia Records. Keys explained that the producers she was required to work with by the label would tell her to "just get in the booth and sing", which frustrated her. Her record contract with Columbia ended after a dispute with the label. Keys then performed for Clive Davis, who sensed a "special, unique" artist; he bought Keys' contract from Columbia and signed her to Arista Records, which later disbanded.
Following Davis to his newly formed J Records label, Keys rented an apartment and struggled to create an album. She began writing the song "Troubles" and came to a realization: "That's when the album started comin' together. Finally, I knew how to structure my feelings into something that made sense, something that can translate to people. That was a changing point. My confidence was up, way up." Keys learned how to produce by asking questions to the producers and engineers; she wrote, arranged and produced a majority of the album. She recorded the songs "Rock wit U" and "Rear View Mirror", which were featured on the soundtracks to the films Shaft (2000) and Dr. Dolittle 2 (2001), respectively. One of the final songs Keys recorded was "Fallin". A total of 32 songs were recorded for the album. Originally titled Soul Stories in A Minor, the title of the album was changed over concerns that it would limit exposure only to black radio stations.
Music and lyrics
Songs in A Minor is a neo soul album with classical piano references and arpeggios. Keys incorporates classical piano with R&B, soul and jazz into the album's music. With influences of classical piano, classic soul and East Coast hip hop, Keys described the album as a "fusion of my classical training, meshed with what I grew up listening to [...] things I've been exposed to and drawn from and my life experiences". Jane Stevenson of Jam! described the music as "old-school urban sounds and attitude set against a backdrop of classical piano and sweet, warm vocals". USA Todays Steve Jones wrote that Keys "taps into the blues, soul, jazz and even classical music to propel haunting melodies and hard-driving funk". John Mulvey of Yahoo! Music called the album "a gorgeous and ambitious melding of classic soul structures and values to hyper-modern production technique".