--- description: The "Blended Family" singer held a surprise concert in Manhattan's busiest square—and even sang "Empire State of Mind" alongside Jay Z. title: Watch Alicia Keys Shut Down Times Square with Jay Z image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Watch Alicia Keys and Jay-Z Put New Yorkers in a New York State of Mind Like Only They Can  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 10, 2016 6:53 PM CUT  by [Raisa Bruner](/author/raisa-bruner/)  ## Raisa Bruner Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Oct 10, 2016 6:53 PM CUT On Sunday night, [R&B icon and _Voice_ coach Alicia Keys](http://time.com/4475023/alicia-keys-new-music-interview/?iid=sr-link3 "undefined") lit up New York City’s own Times Square for a star-studded live show featuring some of her new music—and some of her beloved old hits, too, including the ode to the city itself. For the modern classic rendition of “Empire State of Mind,” she was joined by rapper Jay Z himself in an electrifying performance under the billboards and bright lights. > [](https://twitter.com/TimesSquareNYC/status/785303693709209600) Keys also brought out big names like John Mayer, Nas, and Questlove to duet with her over the course of the evening’s show. > [](https://twitter.com/TimesSquareNYC/status/785277186022510592) > [](https://twitter.com/TimesSquareNYC/status/785304637507248128) Keys’s next album, titled _Here_, drops Nov. 4\. It will be her first new album in four years. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4525432/watch-alicia-keys-and-jay-z-put-new-yorkers-in-a-new-york-state-of-mind-like-only-they-can/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4525432/watch-alicia-keys-and-jay-z-put-new-yorkers-in-a-new-york-state-of-mind-like-only-they-can/"},"headline":"Watch Alicia Keys and Jay-Z Put New Yorkers in a New York State of Mind Like Only They Can","datePublished":"2016-10-10T18:53:15.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:37:29.226Z","description":"They were in that \"Empire State of Mind\" for real","url":"https://time.com/4525432/watch-alicia-keys-and-jay-z-put-new-yorkers-in-a-new-york-state-of-mind-like-only-they-can/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Entertainment","Music"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Raisa Bruner","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/raisa-bruner/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4525432/watch-alicia-keys-and-jay-z-put-new-yorkers-in-a-new-york-state-of-mind-like-only-they-can/","name":"Watch Alicia Keys and Jay-Z Put New Yorkers in a New York State of Mind Like Only They Can"}}]}] ```