R & B star Alicia Keys says she was forced to hide her femininity growing up in a rough neighborhood just to avoid being attacked.
"I grew up in an area that was pretty rough, so I had to compensate with how I dressed. If I came across as too slutty or sexy or showed too much, it would cause a lot of problems," she said.
Growing up in Hell's Kitchen in New York City, Alicia says her neighborhood was overun by gangs. "That's why I called myself a tomboy, because I was always covered. I had to protect myself."
She says she has found a way to comfortably express her feminine side saying, "I like subtle. Sexy to me now is when you leave something to the imagination. Sexy to me is when you feel so beautiful on the inside that it shines on the outside."
In the February issue of Jane magazine, the singer admitted that Keys isn't her last name either. Her father's last name was Cook, her mother’s was Augello, and Alicia says she almost picked Wilde as her stage name when she was 16. But then her manager had a crazy dream about need to unlock a briefcase and suggest "Keys" to her.
"I was like, ‘Keys? I play the piano keys, and keys unlock doors. Wow, that’s perfect.’"
"It described me, what I loved to do, what I wanted to do," she told the magazine. "I believe in names. I believe your name definitely reflect your future."
