Quotes from Alicia Keys

We don't draw loved ones into our lives coincidentally. They're there to shine a light on our unfinished emotional business, to reveal to us our deepest tendencies. And as my life is proving to me even now, those patterns appear time and time again, often cleverly disguised. And they'll keep right on showing up until we're willing to truly look at them.

I swear that I'll never again let someone rob me of my power. It's a promise I still work to keep.

I've spent so many years withholding parts of myself, sacrificing my spirit to make others feel comfortable. But now, I'm done with pretending, with living in a prison of my own creation. I'm done with dimming my light.

I'm a person in process, from the me I once was to the me I am now.

longed for solitude, for space and breathing room without the thought of how someone else might be impacted. Traveling with others comes with a daily series of negotiations: Is the room temperature okay? What sites should we visit? What time should we have dinner? Can I sit quietly and read while you go out shopping? On and on. By default, I cater. And rather than feeling the need to accommodate, I wanted the beautiful freedom to choose, to please only myself.

I can show weakness. I can be real. And when I reveal my true heart, not everyone is going to approve. What I know now is that I don't need them to.

When you don't speak the truth for years at a time, the words left unspoken slowly leak the air out of your connection. Even if, years later, you are ready to say what you couldn't earlier, the moment has passed. The details and circumstances have faded from memory, and yet the emotions linger.

At times, my own energy has been saying, "I'm cool with the bare minimum, don't give me more." Without knowing it, I stunted my growth because I was scared to be magnificent and doubtful that I was. If you asked me at age 22 whether I thought I was worthy, I would have answered loud and proud, "Yes!" But it's possible to declare a woman's worth and yet not fully know your own.

Like I said, I wish this world were different. But that doesn't mean I can change it for the better. This year nearly broke me. But it wasn't just the powers that got me through. I found something inside me. I found my voice, and I'm not afraid to use it. So here I am with my head to the sky and my feet on the ground. And I'm not backing down!

all of whom shared my intention to deeply impact the

don't believe in the word slave because no one chooses to be owned by someone; an enslaved person is a human being whose freedom has been stolen.

I don't have to fit in. None of us does. Our uniqueness isn't a scar, but a beauty mark. What makes us different is also what makes us wildly, boldly, and marvelously who we were born to be.

In life, we don't get what we ask for. We get what we believe. And what we believe about ourselves shows up in our energy.

I don't have to fit in. None of us does. Our uniqueness isn't a scar, but a beauty mark. What makes us different is also what makes us wildly, boldly, and marvelously who we were born to be.

Who are we really? What are all the various pieces that form us? Which parts of ourselves do we embrace or dismiss, and what does that mean or not mean? Most of us are comfortable with expressing certain aspects of ourselves, while other sides might get left in the shade by default. For me, the latter was apparently happening on an unconscious level.

I want to know who I am and accept every part of that identity. I am frightened and I am fearless. I am weak and a warrior. I am uncertain and I am confident. And by learning to embrace the paradox in all of it, I am more myself.

I am here—in the present, standing on the shoulders of all who've paved my way, in awe of where my life has led me.

I cared more about watering the roots of our connection than I cared about our age difference.

I ultimately bought two of the five items—the high-top sneakers and the leather jacket—and for days after the purchase, I was in turmoil. Not just because I'd still spent over a thousand dollars, an insane amount, in my view. But also because I should've gotten that belt.

Love me like you'll never see me again.

He broke my heart, and now it's raining, just to rub it in...

I think we deserve people who really, really love us.

Sometimes I feel like I don't belong anywhere, & it's gonna take so long for me to get to somewhere, Sometimes I feel so heavy hearted, but I can't explain cuz I'm so guarded. But that's a lonely road to travel, and a heavy load to bear. And it's a long, long way to heaven but I gotta get there Can you send an angel? Can you send me an angel...to guide me.

Falling down ain't falling down, If you don't cry when you hit the floor, It's called the past cause I'm getting past, And I ain't nothing like I was before, You ought to see me now