The Diary Of Alicia Keys - Alicia Keys
Metascore
71 out of 100

Generally favorable reviews - based on 17 Critics

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 13 out of 17
  2. Negative: 0 out of 17
  1. A proper soul album which hooks you with the first pneumatic beat and draws you deeper with every heady atmosphere and vivid emotion. [Jan 2004, p.111]
  2. 90
    Brimming with updated old-school joints, original balladry, and classic-sounding R&B, Diary finds Keys more relaxed, confident, and committed to the tunes of the '70s than ever before. [Feb 2004, p.127]
  3. 80
    An enthusiastic album full of masterful strokes and electrifying intensity. [#23, p.98]
  4. With one album, Alicia Keys jumps up from the most overrated R&B artist since Michael Jackson to the best young talent R&B has seen in a very long time.
  5. Those expecting another album where Keys sounds wise beyond her years will bound to be disappointed by The Diary of Alicia Keys, since her writing reveals her age in a way it never did on the debut.
  6. Give Keys' simmering voice and evident instrumental skills... the results are all the more frustrating. [5 Dec 2003, p.94]
  7. Keys, however, proves to be a better singer than songwriter, as most of the latter half of the album slips into sleepy piano numbers.
  8. 70
    An hour of heartful, artful singing enhanced by dense, yet fuss-free arrangements. [Jan 2004, p.106]
  9. The project is clearly laboring to be relevant to the current marketplace and thus suffers from a serious lack of cohesion.
  10. Keys plays it far too safe here: There's nothing that will offend, and the content is patently generic enough that almost anyone, lovelorn or heartbroken, can build a personal soundtrack of romantic woe from its raw materials.
  11. There's "Karma" and "I Don't Know Your Name." You and your iPod know what to do.
  12. There are a handful of great moments, where risks are taken and ground is broken, but too often it opts for the familiar and the bland.
  13. See, there're a good few cracking singles on here, but there are also occasions when her wistful classicism leads her down blind alleys.
  14. 40
    If she's going to make us read her diary entries, she's going to need something more compelling than this litany of cliche and hackneyed need-a-man Bridget Jones-wailing. [Feb 2004, p.72]
  15. The note that truly dooms Diary is thematic, not musical. The disc collapses under the weight of one song about heartbreak after another.
User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 51 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 31 out of 36
  2. Negative: 2 out of 36
  1. LydiaR
    10
    Absolutely brilliant album, its good to hear actual instruments in the background as so many artists don't do this. Everyone can listen to this album despite age..my whole fam loves this album:) Full Review »
  2. é o que se pode chamar de obra perfeita. as músicas tem letras muito bem escritas, o vocal é bem destacado , os arranjos são muito bons. Enfim, é um diamante. Full Review »
  3. izata
    2
    she's so overrated!!!!!!!!!!! diz album's so boring!!! i was literally asleep after hearing 3 songs... i hate this album.. i regret buying this!!! crap!!! Full Review »