37 Stunning Alicia Keys Quotes from More Myself on Living Authentically

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Excerpt: Written in a very warm, vulnerable, and honest way—these Alicia Keys quotes from More Myself are simply stunning and are well worth the read.

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Introduction: Whoever You Are, It’s Alright

“I tend to want every person to embody the best of humanity—for all of us to be givers and builders and dreamers. That’s not reality. At different seasons in life, we each fall into various categories. Even still, every one of us also has a strong behavioral tendency, and that is okay. I’m coming to terms with the fact that so-called perfection—this idea that everything should be beautiful and in order at all times—is just not going to happen.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 254)

And as she says in her song, Authors of Forever, “Wherever you are, it’s alright / Whoever you are, it’s alright.” It’s okay to be who you are, where you are on your journey. None of us are perfect and we all lead imperfect lives. Expect perfection from someone—anyone—and you’ll always end up disappointed. Expect imperfection and you’ll at least be able to meet people where they are. Disappointment leads to emotional distancing and separation. Understanding leads to emotional advancing and connection.

It’s easy to sit back and point out all of the wrong in the world. The wrong actions people are taking; the wrong paths they’re choosing; the wrong words they’re saying; the wrong beliefs they’re believing. But, how many times has it been the case that the wrong actions, paths, words, and beliefs were precisely what led them (you) to the right ones? For, where does good judgement even come from? Bad judgement remembered.

It’s hard—almost impossibly hard—to truly understand why a person thinks, feels, and acts the way they do. But, I suspect if you had to live their life and had their parents, upbringing, characteristics, imperfections, experiences, and predispositions—you would probably end up in a very similar place.

We’re all doing the best we know how with what we’ve been given—I truly believe that. And when we learn how to accept the imperfection that undeniably weaves through each of our lives and strings us all together, maybe we can better embrace the space between us—’cause it’s alright.

The List: 37 Stunning Alicia Keys Quotes from More Myself

Below, you will find our hand-picked selection of Alicia Keys quotes from her book More Myself: A Journey. The collection is broken up into 5 main sections (click to jump):

• Alicia Keys Quotes on Music (7 Quotes)
• Alicia Keys Quotes on Self-Discovery, Beauty, and Individuality (7 Quotes)
• Alicia Keys Quotes on Taking Ownership Of Your Life (7 Quotes)
• Alicia Keys Quotes on Success and Self-Doubt (7 Quotes)
• Alicia Keys Quotes on Relationships and Connection (7 Quotes)
• BONUS: Alicia Keys Picture Quotes to Share (5 Picture Quotes)

Each section contains quotes that were found from throughout her book and each quote is listed with the page number that it was found. This way, if you want to dive deeper into any quote and get more context, background, or explanation—you know where to look.

What I enjoyed most while reading and collecting these quotes was the authenticity and truth that I felt radiated from her words. They felt warm, vulnerable, and honest. And rather than being written in a matter-of-fact kind of way, it felt written in a very personable, authentic kind of way. It made the reading easy to follow, easy to connect with, and easy to learn from.

My hope is that her words find their way into your mind in the same way and with the same kind of light. As always, thank you for reading and without further ado, please enjoy.

7 Alicia Keys Quotes On Music:

“The magic in any art is not only in its technique but in its authenticity. Truth in its rawest form is what resonates most powerfully.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 39)

“In order for the truth to set me free, I must first be brave enough to birth it.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 5)

“I now understand that trying to be the ‘next’ anyone is as foolish as it sounds. The shoes you dream of filling have already been worn ragged through their soles. You’ve gotta step into your own kicks and just do you.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 38)

“I’m not sure how much of identity comes threaded in our genes and how much of it is shaped by our environment, but as far back as I can recall, placing my fingertips on a keyboard felt like coming home to myself. There was no courtship phase, no period of becoming acquainted with the piano; rather, the connection was instantaneous, as comfortable and familiar for me as breathing.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 24)

“For me, the utter elation of this whole period came from the world’s embrace of my creation, my music. No feeling compares to having others love what you love, and then enthusiastically sharing it with others. Fame for the sake of fame had never been the dream. But spreading light is a pleasure I’ll always live for.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 78)

“Music is one of the most potent forms of protest, the gateway to connection. Seldom has there been a more important time to raise consciousness and shift conversations by picking up a mic. A song, at its core, is a testimony. It’s how we tell our stories, both individually and collectively. It’s how we forget our troubles for a time, and how we remember who we are emotionally. It’s how we rally and how we heal. A song, like no other art form, has the ability to curl up inside of our spirits and never move out. I may have become fluent in the language of social justice, but music will always be my mother tongue. My native language. My way of reaching a world that can never have too many songs in it.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 220)

“I’m often asked where my melodies and lyrics come from. I may never fully comprehend how a song sprouts from nothingness into existence, and truthfully, I’m not tempted to decode the mystery. I hope to be constantly surprised, in amazement of how the tiny seed of a possible chord or lyric miraculously springs to life. That unexplainable process, that alchemy, is part of what separates art from logic and reason. I don’t create from a set of rules or formulas. I tap into my true feelings and experiences and allow them to guide me.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 60)

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Browse our complete collection of quotes on music here ↗

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7 Alicia Keys Quotes on Self-Discovery, Beauty, and Individuality:

“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.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 250)

“I now live in woke mode. For me, every moment is a reawakening, a chance to meet myself exactly as I am. I’m finally allowing myself to just be. Be giddy. Be irritable. Be vulnerable. Be silly. Be exhilarated. Be whomever and however I am. That is my practice, my daily meditation. It’s also my daily prayer for all of us—that we allow others the same freedom of expression that we are learning to grant to ourselves.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 216)

“The path to self-discovery is not a straight line. It’s a zigzag. We move in and out of awareness: one step forward, three steps to the left, a baby step back, another leap forward. A lightbulb moment might shine brightly one day, but then flicker the next. It takes work to hold tightly to a certain consciousness, to live in its wisdom. Every day, I have to intentionally maintain an awareness of my value. I know I’m worthy. But you don’t cross over into the Land of Self-Worth and just become a permanent resident. You have to keep your passport current. You have to work to preserve your status.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 246)

“Nothing but uncertainty is certain. Circumstances come together, only to fall apart moments or months later. And then, in a flash, we must rise up and regain our footing. In the rearview mirror, I now see so clearly what escaped me then: It’s not that the ground underneath me was suddenly shifting; it’s that it is never still. That’s part of the work of my journey—getting comfortable with life’s groundlessness.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 66)

“It’s hard not to begin doubting ourself just a little when, with the stroke of an airbrush, someone slims down your thighs or shaves off half your booty. And if I’m doubting myself, imagine what that does for the young people forced to digest these images of so-called beauty.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 174)

“A lot of us are over the fakeness. Much of what we see and consume in our world is so carefully constructed and polished, so highly curated. Like never before, we crave the authentic, not just when it comes to appearance, but also in our narratives. In our conversations. In our work and political spheres. In our friendships and intimate relationships. And as we uncover that truth, as we remove the masks and falsehoods and finally get clear on what’s real, the work of our lives, as I see it, is to stand immovably in that truth.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 211)

“I still wear makeup when I feel like it, though less of it, and I still enjoy experimenting with a new shade of lipstick or eye shadow. The point is that I, and everyone else, have a choice. And we should be able to freely make that choice, from one moment to the next, without society’s ‘standard of beauty’ hovering over us. I am my own standard-bearer. So are you.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 211)

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Browse our complete collection of quotes on self-discovery here ↗

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7 Alicia Keys Quotes on Taking Ownership Of Your Life:

“When life forces you to face yourself, what awaits in the mirror is a gift: vulnerability. Your heart is pierced. You’re broken open. You’re hyperaware of what you’re feeling.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 144)

“Outside input is great, even necessary. It’s smart to receive feedback. But once you’ve heard all the opinions, there comes a point when you have to make your own choice.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 239)

“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.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 144)

“The less others really knew about me, I reasoned, the less ammunition they’d have to make me look foolish. Only if I revealed my tender spots could they wound me. My true self, the one I kept so deeply concealed, only emerged in my diaries. There, I could unveil. On cotton pages scrawled with purple ink, I didn’t have to be tough or brave or capable or strong. I could just be me.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 30)

“We adjust ourselves to fit, to adapt to others’ ideas of who we should be. We shift ourselves not in sweeping pivots, but in movements so tiny that they are hardly perceptible, even in our view. Years can pass before we finally discover that, after handing over our power piece by small piece, we no longer even look like ourselves.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 56)

“It’s hard to pinpoint the precise moment when we internalize others’ assessments; it’s usually not just a single experience but rather a series of moments that bruise the spirit and lead us to distrust ourselves and those around us. And then we wake up at age seventeen or twenty-five or thirty-seven and realize we don’t know the last time we’ve lived life only to please ourselves.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 29)

“I’ve made a lot of decisions from my head. I’ve chosen to go in this direction or that one based on finances. Or because something seems like a great opportunity. Or because I don’t want to hurt people’s feelings or disappoint them. Or because someone is pushing me toward an agenda that serves them. But when I’ve listened to my heart—when I’ve trusted what my spirit is telling me—that yes has always steered me right.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 185)

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Related: 18 Powerful Quotes from Extreme Ownership That Will Help You Lead and Win ↗

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7 Alicia Keys Quotes on Success and Self-Doubt:

“Growth requires movement. And often, the only way forward is through an exit door.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 41)

“I feared that if I shared my experience in its entirety, if I took the lid off my joy, it would push others away or make them feel small. As my career progressed, that tendency took another form in my interactions around the industry. I don’t need much. Nothing has to be too grand. I’m cool with my little piano, my bench, and a cup of water. In a sense, that was true. I’ve never been an over-the-top kind of girl. But what’s also true is this: Some part of my spirit was always signing up for less because that is what I believed I deserved. For many years, I thought I was being modest. I never wanted to come across as self-absorbed, or as someone with a big head. It’s how we women are brought up: Don’t ask for more. Don’t take credit. Don’t outshine others. But there on the couch, it hit me that my alleged modesty was just a disguise—a mask for a lack of self-worth.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 248)

“If the Egyptians had so capably built their temples and pyramids without the benefit of modern architectural tools, then I, the daughter of this great civilization, must be capable of more than I knew. We all are. Anything we can conceive of can be built. Perhaps not through our efforts alone, but also by the generations of dreamers whose feet will rest on our shoulders.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 105)

“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. It’s how we walk into a room. It’s how we communicate, through body language, I don’t deserve to be here. It’s whether we sit up straight or hide out in the back of a meeting. 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. It’s possible to say you want a grand life but then continue to play small.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 249)

Money, like all life, is an energy exchange. You give yourself over to whatever you’re passionate about, and what comes back to you is energy in the form of monetary compensation. You attract more or less of what you want by how you choose to interact with it, as well as what you believe about yourself. Do you truly feel you deserve what you’re asking for? Are you worth it? How you answer impacts what comes your way.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 81)

“What you focus on expands. If you focus on the goodness in your life, you create more of it. And if you live with an open palm rather than a closed fist, you leave room for immeasurable blessings to flow through your hands.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 81)

“Bliss is a beautiful destination, but you can often only reach its shores after a turning point. It’s as if the universe is testing you to be sure you are strong enough to make it through the murky waters, not just the serene ones, so that you can move to a new and unknown place in yourself.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 140)

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Related: 48 Brianna Wiest Quotes from The Mountain Is You on Self-Sabotage and Healing ↗

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7 Alicia Keys Quotes on Relationships and Connection:

“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.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 126)

“I wasted so much energy nursing my bitterness, trying to get back at him and hoping he’d experience as much heartache as I had. But the whole time, I was the one hurting. I was the one who, by living in that negative energy, drew even more of it to myself. It was so backward.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 121)

“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. And then the day finally comes when you no longer recognize the person you first loved.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 124)

“A soul mate connection isn’t just an awareness. It’s a deep sense of knowing, a wave of intuition that permeates your every pore. All the cells in your body rise up on their tiptoes. You don’t see this feeling coming. You can’t prepare for it. You might even try to push it away, as I did. And yet it always surges back, each time with greater force, sweeping you up in its mighty current, thrusting you toward a beautiful shore unknown.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 135)

“We vowed that full freedom would forever live at the center of our union. That we’d never seek to own each other, but rather to love and liberate, like birds always free to fly. In place of a mandate to be together, there stood a choice, one we’d continue making every single day on our journey.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 154)

“For me, motherhood came with a litmus test: Is what I’m doing important enough for me to spend time away from my baby? If the answer was no, the task went the way of the Walkman cassette recorder—phased out. I was intent on doing what was best for my child, which, by default, was best for me.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 158)

“Our family has become the definition of a successful blend. When you love someone, you love their journey—and that path leads you to the family dynamic you were meant to inherit and devote yourself to. Through my own childhood experience, I know how often we’re taught what a family should look like. And if your family doesn’t look like what we’ve been shown, we somehow feel incomplete. But really, families come in all versions, shapes, and sizes, and should be celebrated as part of our collective experience. That is what life has taught me.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 205)

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Read some of Will Smith’s thoughts on love and connection ↗

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Alicia Keys Quote on Death:

“Death is a gift meant to wake up the living, to nudge us toward a life of purpose and intention.”

Alicia Keys, More Myself (Page 106)

BONUS: Alicia Keys Picture Quotes to Share:

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If you enjoyed this list of Alicia Keys quotes from More Myself, you should consider reading her book in full. It comes highly recommended:

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