Here
by Alicia Keys
  • Record Label: RCA
  • Release Date: Nov 4, 2016
Metascore
76

Generally favorable reviews - based on 14 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 12 out of 14
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 14
  3. Negative: 0 out of 14
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  1. PopMatters
    Nov 11, 2016
    90
    Alicia Keys decided to make something so raw, so honest, so palpable, that it should be all but impossible for soul music lovers to ignore this release.
  2. Entertainment Weekly
    Nov 7, 2016
    83
    The combination of her subject matter and her urgent delivery makes Here her most vital release in years--and a welcome addition to 2016’s rich canon of albums from Beyoncé, Solange, Frank Ocean, Common, and Dev Hynes that address black life in America.
  3. HipHopDX
    Nov 15, 2016
    82
    HERE is sewn up together nicely and a testament to what Keys always gets right--speaking from the heart as she strokes those 88-keys.
  5. The Observer (UK)
    Nov 14, 2016
    80
    In a year of superb, politically charged albums by black American artists, Alicia Keys’s sixth record is a standout, on which her signature piano takes second place to her urgent voice.
  6. New Musical Express (NME)
    Nov 11, 2016
    80
    With Here, it feels as though she’s dug deep to produce a set of genuine, heartfelt and relevant anthems.
  7. The Guardian
    Nov 10, 2016
    80
    Despite an undertow of glum earnestness, Keys has never sounded so committed.
  8. The Independent (UK)
    Nov 9, 2016
    80
    Alicia Keys’s musicality is far superior [than Solange's]: whether developing swaying gospel fervour on “Pawn It All”, threading balofon through the two-part reflection on African-American queens “She Don’t Really Care/1 Luv”, or riding a perky Latin shuffle for “Girl Can’t Be Herself”, her work is grounded in a melodic appeal that’s almost magnetic.
  9. Exclaim
    Nov 7, 2016
    70
    Here is empowering at times--it's strong in craft and intent, and will likely perform well--but the hope that Keys will deliver that iconic, instant classic album continues on.
  10. Slant Magazine
    Nov 7, 2016
    70
    At times Here feels like it wants to be What's Going On, the standard-bearer of socially-conscious soul, but it's more akin to Stevie Wonder's Innervisions, mixing the political with the personal.
  11. Rolling Stone
    Nov 7, 2016
    70
    Musically, the way a boom-bap here brushes up against a Latin flourish there while Seventies soul echoes nearby suggests less a fusion of styles than an atmosphere the singer inhabits--these are the sounds New Yorkers overhear blasting from passing cars and seeping from pedestrian earbuds, reimagined as a hectic but coherent symphony.
  12. Consequence
    Nov 14, 2016
    67
    Surprisingly, Here doesn’t struggle to balance this range of topics. Keys sings with authenticity and passion, occasionally delving into frustration, which keeps everything connected. What Here does struggle with is an unfinished commitment to order.
  13. Pitchfork
    Nov 10, 2016
    65
    The rhythms on HERE represent a departure from her previous efforts and indicate a willingness to experiment with her sound but the lyrics, which rarely betray a sense of adventure, cancel out most of this good work.
  14. Clash Music
    Nov 16, 2016
    60
    Keys fails to emulate these peers and instead only succeeds in certain apt production choices and the partial development of her earlier sound. She becomes yet another voice unable to deliver its message.
  15. AllMusic
    Nov 7, 2016
    50
    Pharrell Williams is on the couple's perseverance anthem "Work on It," a wobbly ballad, while Illangelo was involved with "Holy War," where some dulled drums interrupt a mostly acoustic number about backward societal views of war and sex. These songs, like a fair portion of the album's remainder, are not lacking in energy or conviction, but they're raw as in crude.

Awards & Rankings

68
#68 Most Discussed Album of 2016

User Reviews

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User Score
8.5

Universal acclaim- based on 118 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 106 out of 118
  2. Mixed: 5 out of 118
  3. Negative: 7 out of 118
  1. jw1293
    Nov 7, 2016
    10
    Finally, the album that we've been waiting for from Alicia Keys. Insightful, political, raw, vulnerable, and expertly produced. This belongsFinally, the album that we've been waiting for from Alicia Keys. Insightful, political, raw, vulnerable, and expertly produced. This belongs in the canon of great R&B/Hip-Hop albums of this generation.… Full Review »
  2. VinitB
    Nov 7, 2016
    9
    HERE is the kind of album that finally fuses the musician Alicia Keys to the person Alicia Keys. She finally approaches themes that areHERE is the kind of album that finally fuses the musician Alicia Keys to the person Alicia Keys. She finally approaches themes that are important to her and have defined her sense of activism and powerful social image she pursues. The highlights of the album are "Pawn It All" and "She Don't Really Care".

    HERE is also the album which takes her away from the pop anthem and "I love you, I need you" type generic love ballads and efficiently puts her in the zone she is meant to be - Experimental Neo-Soul. Listening to the record, it will take you to a 1980's New York backyard party... it has the nostalgia and the appreciation for the music that we grew up to. It in fact gives you a feel of listening to those Erykah Badu and D'Angelo albums of the 90's and the opening track might even give you a little 'Miseducation' feel too.

    There are some weak strings in the album, especially the overuse of interludes, and some songs that fail to keep up with the power and message of the album as a whole. But they don't hurt the album overall. Even Alicia's songwriting is overshadowed by the powerful themes she is talking about.

    So forget Songs in A minor, forget As I Am, forget Girl on Fire... HERE is Alicia Keys' most important album. It's placing her at the point in the musical landscape where only a few could manage to touch her.    … Full Review »
  3. Hinaria
    Nov 7, 2016
    10
    delivery makes Here her most vital release in years--and a welcome addition to 2016’s rich canon of albums from Beyoncé, Solange, Frank Ocean,delivery makes Here her most vital release in years--and a welcome addition to 2016’s rich canon of albums from Beyoncé, Solange, Frank Ocean, Common, and Dev Hynes that address black life in America.… Full Review »
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