Alicia Keys had a busy Friday (Nov. 21). Not only did the 17-time Grammy winner release a new holiday song and guest on a single from an Italian vocal legend, but she made a special appearance alongside the cast of her semi-autobiographical Broadway musical, Hell’s Kitchen, at the Shubert Theatre. Keys was in the house to deliver a mini-set as part of an “encore sessions” performance, but she was also there salute to the Broadway debut of Grammy-winning gospel singer Yolanda Adams, who just joined the cast as Miss Liza Jane.
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After belting the “Empire State of Mind” finale with the cast, Keys and Adams took the stage together. “First of all, I’m grateful,” said Adams, hugging Keys. “All that dancing made me feel younger, but my feet say no. I have to thank Alicia for saying, ‘Hey, what do you think about…?’ And I’d already thought about it, and I tried it, and I love it.” When Adams left the stage, Keys was in her element, blissfully relaxed at an upright piano while crooning her cover of Prince’s “How Come U Don’t Call Me Anymore?”, duetting with cast member Durrell “Tank” Babbs on a gorgeous cover of Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me” and singing “Underdog” before sending the ecstatic audience out into the streets of Manhattan (incidentally, not far from Hell’s Kitchen).
Just hours before dazzling Broadway, Keys spoke to Billboard about “Hell’s Kitchen’s a Merry Little Christmas,” which hit DSPs on Friday. She says the idea of a holiday song for her Broadway musical Hell’s Kitchen was broached a year ago. “For different reasons it didn’t come together,” she tells Billboard. “This year we knew we wanted to do it, so we put it together now.”
“Hell’s Kitchen’s a Merry Little Christmas” mashes up the standard “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” with the musical’s opening number, Keys’ “The Gospel.” The recording features Adams along with principal performers including Amanda Reid, Phillip Johnson Richardson and Jessica Vosk.
“I love it so much,” Keys continues. “It’s such a beautiful version. Of course, the holidays are such a beautiful time to celebrate that warm, festive feeling. We wanted to bring some Hell’s Kitchen energy.”
The recording was produced by Adam Blackstone, Keys’ longtime collaborator who also serves as music supervisor and co-orchestrator for the musical. “Our process of bringing the music to life for Hell’s Kitchen has been so thrilling and exciting,” Keys says. “We had no idea that someone as phenomenal as Yolanda Adams would be joining the cast. The life of Hell’s Kitchen has just been such an incredible experience.”
With a book by Kristoffer Diaz, Hell’s Kitchen premiered at the Public Theater in late 2023, moving to the Shubert Theatre in March 2024. It was nominated for 13 Tonys, with Kecia Lewis, who played Miss Liza Jane, wining for best featured actress in a musical and Maleah Joi Moon, as Ali, taking home best actress in a musical at the 2024 Tony Awards. The original Broadway cast recording, featuring the three brand-new songs Keys penned for the musical, came out in 2024 and hit No. 1 on Billboard‘s Cast Albums chart.
The first North American tour, meanwhile, kicked off during October in Cleveland, with 30 cities on the schedule for its first year.
“That’s such a huge accomplishment,” Keys says. “And I’m so excited the country will get to experience it — even if you can’t come to New York — in a city near you. And this cast is unreal. I just can’t believe how good they are.”
The holiday song isn’t Keys’ only new music to drop on Friday. It coincides with the release of her feature on “L’aurora,” a new single by Italian vocalist Eros Ramazzotti. “It’s my first time singing in Italian,” she says. “It’s such a beautiful process to continue to learn and try things that are new and different, so I’m really excited about that.” Keys is also working on new material as she works toward a follow-up to her last studio album, 2021’s Keys, and 2022’s holiday effort Santa Baby.
“I’m writing right now, creating new music,” she says. “It is very, very special. I just feel like I’m getting better and better, so that’s all happening. There’s a lot of phenomenal things bubbling, but I just take my time — just like Hell’s Kitchen, just take my time putting it all together. It’s just a beautiful time of no limits. That’s how I look at everything.”
