Alicia Keys gave fans a little insight into her first thoughts about her now-husband Swizz Beatz. The couple has been married for 11 years and they have two children together, Egypt, 11, and Genesis, 6.
We all know Alicia as the smooth, laidback chick that can sing and play the piano. Coming from the flashy rap scene, Swizz Beatz, whose real name is Kasseem Dean, was the complete opposite of the singer and while they say opposites attract, for Alicia it was more so of not judging a book by its cover.
The “You Don’t Know My Name” singer sat down withComplex News 360 with Speedy Morman to discuss her new album Keys, but during that conversation she hilariously shared that at one time the hit producer gave her “the ick.”
For those that don’t know, the term “the ick” means when your attraction to someone you’re dating suddenly turns into repulsion for that person.
“He definitely gave me the ick. I wasn’t with it. He just wasn’t my vibe,” Alicia said. “He’s pretty loud. He’s pretty over the top. He loves a lot of attention. Everywhere [there are] like a bunch of people,” she said.
But she soon realized that that was just her perception of him and when she got to know him better, her feelings changed. “Once I got to know who he actually was, I recognized that I was judging him on someone that I thought he was, not who he actually is. And that’s how the ick tide changed,” she revealed.
Both being from New York and making music, the two have been in each other’s lives since they were teenagers, but rumors about them dating didn’t start until 2008. Alicia recalled their first date in her 2020 memoir More Myself where she revealed the beginnings of their relationship.
“I finally agreed to have lunch,” she wrote, “I made a reservation for noon at an outdoor restaurant in downtown Manhattan. I arrived at twelve on the dot. Swizz was nowhere in sight. He finally came strutting in at 12:20.”
While showing up late can be looked at as a dealbreaker for many, Alicia later found out that Swizz’s reason for being late was actually quite thoughtful.
“As much as I wanted to stay mad at Swizz he lifted the mood with a steady stream of humor and fascinating conversation. Later as we approached my car I noticed something enormous attached to its top. He smiled. ‘That’s why I was late,’ he said.”
“It was a painting of a grand piano with paintbrushes attached to the keys. ‘When I saw this,’" he explained, ‘it seemed like the perfect representation of our friendship. You’re the keys, I’m the brushes.’"
Featured image by Rachel Murray/Getty Images for Netflix