Perfect Way to Die

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"Perfect Way to Die"
Single by Alicia Keys
from the album Alicia
ReleasedJune 19, 2020 (2020-06-19)
Length3:31
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Keys
  • Kole
Alicia Keys singles chronology
"Good Job"
(2020) 		"Perfect Way to Die"
(2020) 		"So Done"
(2020)
Music video
"Perfect Way To Die" on YouTube

"Perfect Way to Die" is a song by American singer-songwriter Alicia Keys. It was written and produced by Keys and Sebastian Kole. The song was released on July 19, 2020, through RCA Records as the fifth single from Keys' seventh studio album Alicia (2020).

"Perfect Way to Die" is a piano ballad about police brutality and racism, and was inspired by the deaths of Mike Brown and Sandra Bland.[1] The music video was directed by Chris Robinson, and was premiered at the BET Awards held in June 2020.[2]

Background[edit]

Keys appeared on the Daily Show with Trevor Noah on June 15, 2020, to talk about the song and the killings of Mike Brown and Sandra Bland, where she stated that "you hear their stories in these lyrics and the devastating thing is that it's never not going to be relevant".[3] Keys officially announced the song on Twitter on June 19, 2020, posting the cover art, and a message explaining the inspiration and meaning of the song.[4] The songs release coincided with Juneteenth and amid weeks of civil unrest across the United States in response to police brutality against African Americans.[4] While posting the single on her Twitter account, Keys commented on its relevancy and condemned "the destructive culture of police violence" as senseless as the song's titular phrase. "Sometimes I don't have the words and music is the only thing that can speak", she went on to say.⁣ "I hope this speaks to you."[5]

In an interview with British Vogue, Keys stated that the song is "a musical expression of what we’re seeing every day, this police brutality that is completely out of hand".[6] Keys has stated that the song wasn't going to be on the Alicia album, but decided to include the song on the album "when all that started happening with Breonna [Taylor], and Ahmaud [Arbery], and George".[7]

Composition and lyrics[edit]

The song is written in the key of F♭ major with a 12
8 time signature and a tempo of 86 beats per minute.[8] In the song, Keys discusses killings at the hands of the police, singing about a mother who receives "a call from the coroner" about her son that has been "gunned down".[2] Keys sings about "another king and queen lost", which according to Althea Legaspi of Rolling Stone are references to the deaths of Michael Brown and Sandra Bland.[9]

As noted by Sal Cinquemani from Slant, the "spare arrangements of piano and vocal" on the song are "functionally effective at highlighting the lyrical content".[10] Variety described the song as having "chamber pop vibe" and a "light chorus".[11] According to BBC, "Perfect Way to Die" is a protest song inspired by the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd.[12] Joe Muggs of The Arts Desk stated that the song contains "fearsomely direct lyrics on police violence, street life and protest" while Nick Smith from musicOMH noted its "desolate sense of despair".[13][14] Atwood Magazine's Josh Weiner said that the song's lyrics contain "startling imagery of urban protests" while described the song being a "gentle keyboard number".[15]

Music video[edit]

The video is a tribute to people who lost their lives at the hand of police.[16] The video was directed by Chris Robinson and premiered at the 2020 BET Awards.[2] In the video, Keys sits behind a piano on an empty street and sings the song while images of victims were displayed on buildings.[17][18] At the end of the video Keys stands up and the street is covered in the names of people who lost their lives due to police brutality, including Aiyana Stanley-Jones, Renisha McBride, Korryn Gaines, Reno Owens, Dante Parker, Jack Lamar Roberson Jr., Darius Tarver and Ahmaud Arbery, among others.[18][17] Keys released behind the scenes footage of making of the video on July 5, 2020.[19]

Critical reception[edit]

Konstantinos Pappis from Our Culture Mag singled out the song as one of the album's “most illuminating moments” and wrote that the song is a “somber, heart-wrenching piano ballad tackling police brutality and systemic racism” [20]Vulture called the song "raw and heart-wrenching" while Entertainment Weekly called it "powerful" and "poignant".[21][4] Mike Wass from Idolator noted that "All of the songs from the enduring hitmaker’s upcoming 7th LP have been immaculate, but this is extra special".[22] In Rolling Stone, Jon Dolan wrote of the "powerfully sung" track that it "offers a Black Lives Matter protest ballad in vividly personal terms".[23] In a negative review, Shamira Ibrahim of NPR wrote that "the lyrics, in isolation, technically speak towards the current moment gripping Black America", but concluded that the "end result falls flat".[24]

Live performances[edit]

Keys performed the song during her Verzuz battle with John Legend on June 19, 2020.[25]

Credits and personnel[edit]

Adapted from Alicia album liner notes.[26]

  • Produced by Alicia Keys and Sebastan Kole
  • Piano by Alicia Keys
  • Strings arranged and performed by Davide Rossi
  • Engineered and mixed by Ann Mincieli at Jungle City Studios (NYC) and Record Plant (LA)
  • Assistant engineer: Brendan Morawski

Track listing[edit]

  • Digital download[27]
  1. "Perfect Way to Die" – 3:31

References[edit]

  1. ^ Kaufman, Gil (June 19, 2020). "Alicia Keys' 'Perfect Way to Die' is a Heartbreaking, Moving Tale of a Mother's Grief". Billboard. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Richards, Will (July 2, 2020). "Alicia Keys Debuts Powerful 'Perfect Way To Die' Video at BET Awards". NME. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  3. ^ Kaufman, Gil (June 16, 2020). "Alicia Keys on Speaking Up For Breonna Taylor, 'Verzuz' Battle and New Song 'Perfect Way to Die". Billboard. Retrieved July 18, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c Romano, Nick (June 19, 2020). "Alicia Keys Releases Powerful Ballad 'Perfect Way to Die' in Response to Police Brutality". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  5. ^ Romano, Nick (June 19, 2020). "Alicia Keys Releases Powerful Ballad 'Perfect Way to Die' in Response to Police Brutality". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on January 12, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
  6. ^ Mixon, Imani (July 1, 2020). "Alicia Keys On Her New Song, Blackness, And Fighting Racial Inequality: "Racism Is The Major Pandemic"". British Vogue. Condé Nast.
  7. ^ Robinson, Lisa (September 17, 2020). ""We Started to See Each Other in a Different Way": Alicia Keys Talks Art and Activism in the Time of COVID". Vanity Fair. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  8. ^ "Alicia Keys "Perfect Way to Die" Sheet Music". Musicnotes.com. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  9. ^ Legaspi, Althea (June 19, 2020). "Alicia Keys Addresses Police Brutality in Protest Song 'Perfect Way to Die'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  10. ^ Cinquemani, Sal (September 15, 2020). "Review: Alicia Keys's Alicia Strikes a Careful Balance Between Hope and Despair". Slant Magazine. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  11. ^ Amorosi, A.D. (September 18, 2020). "Alicia Keys Pushes the Limits of Her Voice and Imagination on 'Alicia': Album Review". Variety. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  12. ^ "Alicia Keys, LL Cool J And the New Wave of Protest Songs". BBC. June 19, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  13. ^ Muggs, Joe (September 18, 2020). "Album: Alicia Keys – Alicia". The Arts Desk. Archived from the original on September 20, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  14. ^ Smith, Nick (September 18, 2020). "Alicia Keys – Alicia". musicOMH. Archived from the original on January 14, 2021. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
  15. ^ Weiner, Josh (September 29, 2020). "Our Take: Alicia Keys Keeps Her 20-Year Streak of Greatness Alive & Well on 'Alicia'". Atwood Magazine. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
  16. ^ Drysdale, Jennifer (June 28, 2020). "Alicia Keys' Moving Performance of 'Perfect Way to Die' at 2020 BET Awards Has Fans in Tears". Entertainment Tonight. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  17. ^ a b Hines, Ree (June 29, 2020). "Alicia Keys Gives Moving Performance of New Song 'Perfect Way to Die' at BET Awards". Today. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  18. ^ a b Miller, Korin (June 29, 2020). "Alicia Keys Honors Black Lives Lost To Police Brutality And Racism In New Song 'Perfect Way To Die'". Women's Health. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  19. ^ "Perfect Way to Die (Behind the Scenes)". YouTube. July 5, 2020. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  20. ^ Pappis, Konstantinos (September 22, 2020). "Album Review: Alicia Keys, 'ALICIA'". Our Culture Mag. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  21. ^ Murphy, Chris (June 19, 2020). "Alicia Keys Drops Emotional Ballad 'Perfect Way To Die' Inspired by Police Brutality". Vulture. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  22. ^ Wass, Mike (June 19, 2020). "Alicia Keys Drops Powerful "Perfect Way To Die"". Idolator. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  23. ^ Dolan, Jon (September 21, 2020). "Alicia Keys Gives Us All a Helping Hand on 'Alicia'". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on September 22, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  24. ^ Ibrahim, Shamira (June 19, 2020). "On 'Perfect Way To Die,' Alicia Keys Attempts To Approximate Black Anxiety". NPR. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
  25. ^ Cochrane, Naima (June 20, 2020). "A Look At Alicia Keys And John Legend's 'Verzuz' Juneteenth Celebration". Vibe. Retrieved July 22, 2021.
  26. ^ Alicia (booklet). Alicia Keys. RCA Records. 2020.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  27. ^ "ALICIA by Alicia Keys on Apple Music". Apple Music. Archived from the original on October 18, 2020. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
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