Alicia Keys Talks "As I Am" & Beyonce

With her third studio album As I Am landing in stores next week, Alicia Keys is poised to regain her reign over R&B. In this SOHH Exclusive Keys opens up about the new album, talks of a possible collaboration with Beyoncé and her thoughts on America's troubling racial divide.

Keys' debut album Songs in A Minor won her five Grammy Awards, while her sophomore album Diary of Alicia Keys picked up another four, but despite her previous award-winning and multi-platinum selling successes, Alicia Keys is keeping cool, calm and collected about how her third studio album will fare.

"I don't feel any pressure at all," Keys told SOHH exclusively. "I think people just want things that make 'em feel something. So I know that when people hear this music they're gonna feel something, they're gonna be moved by it. They're going to feel more of that goodness -- so no pressure."

At 27, Keys is an accomplished actress, film producer, and musician who, despite her many achievements, continues to challenge herself to grow. With As I Am, Alicia says fans can expect to see a side of her that she hasn't revealed before.

"You can definitely expect the unexpected from this album," Keys admitted. "It's different. It has a new energy. It has a new feeling. It has like more of aggression to it. I've learned a lot this year and I've been through a lot. So I think that I've grown as a person. You definitely feel it. You hear it in the sound of it. You hear it in the passion in my voice. You hear it all the way around the board. So I know that you're gonna...It's exciting to be a little bit in a different place."

As I Am follows on the heels of Keys'recent big-screen appearances in Smokin' Aces and The Nanny Diaries, and while she is unparalleled in the music world, Keys says she's often compared to fellow actress Paula Patton (Idlewild, Déjà Vu).

"They said that we look like each other...that we look like sisters. We've gotten that a lot," Keys told SOHH.

Fortunately, Alicia is supportive of her competition. In addition to her easygoing attitude regarding Patton, Keys is also enthusiastic about the possibility of collaborating with another potential rival - Beyoncé.

"I think that would be real fun," she said. "I think that me and B would do something crazy together and be able to kinda stretch in a way that would be unexpected. So I dunno, maybe the next record or her next record. Ya know, whenever we have a second to go in a room and really zone out. I think it would be crazy."

In related news, fans can visit www.power1051fm.com to see Alicia Keys perform "Like You'll Never See Me Again." On November 13th the site will also feature Alicia's full Stripped performance including a cover of Force M.D.'s "Tender Love."

As I Am lands in stores on November 13. [x]

Beyonce and Alicia Keys? That should be an interesting collabo. Anyhow, I'm feeling As I Am and I predict more Grammys and #1 smashes for her with this album.