Bob Dylan is a student of music and culture. That being said, he doesn’t close himself off to any genre of music, even if it seems a bit too commercial and trite. Dylan knows where to pay respect where respect is deserved. And one unlikely artist who received Dylan’s blessing and praise was none other than crooner Alicia Keys.
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Alicia Keys and Bob Dylan share little to no similarities on the surface, but that didn’t stop Dylan from being a fan of hers. As a matter of fact, Dylan was such a fan of Keys that he featured her in the lyrics of his 2006 single “Thunder On The Mountain” off of his album Modern Times. The masses were surely surprised by this name drop, and Keys was surprised as well.
Dylan did give a reason as to why he did this. In his typical cryptic fashion, he didn’t divulge too much information about it.
Bob Dylan’s “Reasoning” and Alicia Keys’ Stunned Reaction
Bob Dylan has never been a stagnant songwriter, as he often takes risks and goes the extra mile to throw his listeners off-guard. Hence, even though this name drop is surprising, it’s not as surprising as it would be if it came from another artist. When Dylan sat down with Rolling Stone in 2006, he revealed why he made this decision, but the answer was pretty vague.
“I remember seeing her [at] the Grammys,” Dylan told the publication. “I think I was on the show with her, I didn’t meet her or anything. But I said to myself, ‘There’s nothing about that girl I don’t like.’”
For context, the lyrics Dylan name-dropped Keys in are as follows: “I was thinkin’ ’bout Alicia Keys, couldn’t keep from crying / But she was born in Hell’s Kitchen, I was living down the line / I’m wondering where in the world Alicia Keys could be / I been looking for her even clear through Tennessee.”
Who knows why in the world Dylan made this lyrical decision? He is Bob Dylan, and everything he does demands some type of interpretation. Given the confusing and cryptic decision, Alicia Keys was also fairly confused by Dylan’s words. She told Far Out, “I was shocked when I heard about that. I think somebody was talking about me to him, and I was in his subconscious mind. After he wrote that song, I started feeling like maybe we did meet, but I know we haven’t.”
Per both their responses, Dylan’s lyrical decision seems entirely arbitrary. Though, knowing him, there just might be more to the story. However, also knowing him, we will never know what that “more to the story” is.
Photo courtesy of the 17th Annual Critics’ Choice Movie Awards via Getty Images
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