The 'Girl on Fire' revisits her difficult childhood when she was estranged from her dad by sharing an emotional note she wrote to him when she was a teenager.
- May 17, 2020
AceShowbiz - Alicia Keys sent her father an emotional "divorce paper" when she was just 14, admitting that his "empty promises affected me deeply."
The "Fallin' " singer's dad, Craig, left the family home when she was just two-years-old, and the hitmaker was subsequently raised by her mother, Teresa.
On Thursday, May 14, 2020, the 39-year-old took to Instagram to share the handwritten note within a montage video of herself and her father, as she recalled penning the letter, revealing that she "never wanted to hear from him again."
Dated July 10, 1994, Alicia opened the note by writing, "It saddens me that most of my heart is bitter towards you. It's only that little part that feels sad that's not bitter. It's been too long for me to avoid this any longer."
"For all the years I've lived, I've watched you take care of everybody, except me. I was your first born (as far as I know) and you treat me as if I was never born," the "Girl on Fire" singer continued. "There is nothing you could ever do to heal these wounds... All I want is for you to mind your own business. I don't want the phone calls. I don't want the letters."
"I don't want the fake acts you pull to try and make me think you care. I don't want anything. That's the only way you can make me happy."
In a caption alongside the clip, she explained the letter features in her new autobiography, "More Myself: A Journey", explaining, "In the early part of my teens I wrote this letter to my father, Craig. I wanted nothing to do with him. My words came from a place of vulnerability and longing... I finally had enough and wrote those words."
Alicia went on to admit she had no idea her father, who she has since made amends with, had kept the letter, but is thankful he did, sharing, "I'm glad he and I can look back at it now as a sign of how far we've come."
"I think it's so powerful that relationships have their own path. And sometimes they are meant to heal.... What are your thoughts? Sending u my love, light and strength. More Myself is available now."
