The song “If I Ain’t Got You” by Alicia Keys is a stunning piece of music because it talks straight to the soul. Keys is well-known for her exceptional talents as a singer and pianist. The singer collaborated with her close friend John Mayer on a unique interpretation of the song during a live performance in Times Square in the year 2016. Mayer provided his vocal abilities as well as his capabilities on the guitar to the performance.
The duration of their rendition of the song was extended to about ten minutes as a result of some impromptu jamming and a guitar solo that was provided by Mayer.
The first part of Alicia Keys’ performance takes place on a stage that has been put up in the center of Times Square. She starts by playing the piano and singing the lyrics of If I Ain’t Got You, in a simplified rendition of the song. Simply by using her voice and her abilities to play the piano, Keys is able to create a wonderful sound that demonstrates her capabilities to a great extent; she does not need anything else to convey a song.
Within a short period of time, she starts playing the guitar and interacting with the crowd in the midst of the song. This is not your average rendition of If I Ain’t Got You! She invites the well-known musician and drummer Questlove onto the stage so that he may play the drums for her, and the audience immediately begins to applaud.
However, she is not simply enlisting the assistance of that renowned buddy in order to facilitate the performance of this unique rendition of the song. After that, she addresses the crowd and adds, “And I also have to invite my dear, beautiful friend John Mayer,” which causes the audience to applaud even louder than they did before. As he makes his way onto the stage, he gives Alicia a brief kiss and then proceeds to set up his guitar.
After Alicia has finished addressing the crowd, the three of them, along with the rest of the backing band, continue to play together. After that, they step in to complete the song. On the other hand, John Mayer grabs the microphone instead of Alicia to sing the following stanza! As Alicia sparkles with a large smile to the crowd, it is obvious that she is having a great time as she is performing.
Alicia joins John in his performance of the song, which brings back some of the familiarity of the original. John’s rendition of the song puts an altogether new perspective on the tune. They sync with one another, and it is a great sight to see — two friends having a good time via music, with a large crowd to witness it.
After then, John begins to play a guitar solo that is just as soulful as their singing and is a perfect fit for the song. After that, he transitions into his own song, Gravity, in a fluid manner, giving it the same mood as If I Ain’t Got You so that it flows nicely.
After then, Keys begins to perform Mayer’s song in the same manner as previously, but with the opposite effect! After that, the two of them sing together once again, this time harmonizing, and then, wait for it, they break back into If I Ain’t Got You for a conclusion that is really astounding! Quite the performance; in order to really understand it, it is absolutely necessary to see it.