Alicia Keys

The weekend's NBA all star game gave halftime show junkies a fix after their Super Bowl withdrawl, Danica Patrick ran a fast qualifying lap, and Christoph Waltz shows everyone the lighter side of Hitler. Welcome to the post-weekend edition of your daily trends. The all-star game had by far the most related searches this weekend, with Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and halftime performer Alicia Keys among the big names sought by online readers.  There was also heavy interest in WWE coverage, the roster on SNL and the Walking Dead plotline.

The weekend's NBA all star game gave halftime show junkies a fix after their Super Bowl withdrawl, Danica Patrick ran a fast qualifying lap, and Christoph Waltz shows everyone the lighter side of Hitler. Welcome to the post-weekend edition of your daily trends. The all-star game had by far the most related searches this weekend, with Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and halftime performer Alicia Keys among the big names sought by online readers.  There was also heavy interest in WWE coverage, the roster on SNL and the Walking Dead plotline.

R&B superstar Alicia Keys comes to Baltimore, hot off the success of her new release, As I Am, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album's first single, "No One," peaked at the No. 1 spot on the charts, and Keys has been filling venues with her soulful style at every stop on the tour. R&B star Ne-Yo and 2007 American Idol winner Jordin Sparks will join Keys at 1st Mariner Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St., on Sunday. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $39.50-$100. Call 410-347-2010 or 410-547-7328 or go to ticketmaster.

The English R&B singer Marsha Ambrosius first caught America's attention as Floetry's singing half (remember the single "Say Yes"?). Since then, she's penned songs for Alicia Keys and Jazmine Sullivan. Ambrosius, who plays Rams Head Live Sunday night, struck out on her own this past March with her debut solo album, "Late Nights & Early Mornings. " It's a seductive album with enough surprises to keep things interesting: she covers Portishead's "Sour Times" and first single "Hope She Cheats On You (With a Basketball Player)"

She dropped out of Columbia University to sign a record deal with Columbia Records, and she hasn't looked back. After jumping from Columbia to Clive Davis' J Records, piano prodigy and singer Alicia Keys recorded Songs in A Minor. And the rest is recent history. The 2001 CD was a smash hit -- especially the song "Fallin' " -- and earned the 21-year-old Keys five Grammy Awards this year. At 7:30 tonight, Keys will perform at Merriweather Post Pavilion, 10475 Little Patuxent Parkway in Columbia.

Alicia Keys has aspirations of being a rock star, belting over screaming guitars. She also sees herself as a jazz chanteuse, elegantly dressed while scat-singing and improvising melodies on her beloved piano. Then she wants to do more acting -- some drama, maybe comedy -- and establish more charitable efforts. The list of things she wants to accomplish goes on and on. But it's not as if the pop superstar with the seductive, camera-ready face hasn't done a lot already. At 27, with a career that's barely a decade old, she owns 11 Grammys and four multiplatinum albums.

Behind her the set is brownstone New York. It could pass for any block in the city. It is her home away from home, complete with fire escapes and her neighborhood stoop. And make no mistake, Alicia Keys is at home. Keys is so high-profile nowadays, a media darling, burning up the charts and racking up a bunch of Grammy nominations, that it all seems a bit much. Can she really be all that? The unequivocal answer? Yes, she can. As her tour that included a January gig at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington has proven, Keys is the most slamming thing to emerge from otherwise tired radio waves, and she knows it. At 20, she exudes the confidence of a woman in the prime of her life, knowing that yes, this is the life, and expressing that by the one means she has instantly accessible: her God-given voice.

The music industry kicks off every year with a burning question: Who is most likely to battle it out for the Grammys? We'll find out today, when the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences announces the names in the running for those fetching gold thingamabobs in nearly 100 categories. (The awards will be forked over Feb. 27.) But you needn't own a crystal ball, or commit larceny, to get an early peek at the nominees in this year's top categories. When it comes to its pets, Grammy voters are fairly predictable, in a good way. They go mainly for a sensible mix of prestige and popularity.

With 13 Grammy nominations going to a pair of rookie soul singers, India.Arie and Alicia Keys, soul music is industry-certified as the latest big thing. The fast rise of these two performers and the general acclaim flowing toward their peers -- including Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Angie Stone, D'Angelo and Eric Benet -- have the feel of a movement gathering force and demanding attention. This surge of artists who share ideas and influences even has a name: neo-soul. But let's be real. Of the 100 tunes on Billboard's latest tally of "Hot R&B / Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks," only a handful could be called soul -- the strain of R&B that prizes melody and songcraft as much as rhythm, and brings the fervor of gospel music to matters of the heart as well as wider social concerns.

Singles 1. "Hey Ya!" OutKast 2. "The Way You Move," OutKast featuring Sleepy Brown 3. "Milkshake," Kelis 4. "Stand Up," Ludacris (featuring Shawnna) 5. "You Don't Know My Name," Alicia Keys (From Billboard magazine) Albums 1. Soulful, Ruben Studdard 2. The Diary of Alicia Keys, Alicia Keys 3. Now 14, Various Artists 4. Shock'n Y'all, Toby Keith 5. Closer, Josh Groban (From Billboard magazine) Concert Tours 1. Simon & Garfunkel 2. Eagles 3. Shania Twain 4. Aerosmith-Kiss 5. Fleetwood Mac (From Pollstar)

1. Alicia Keys at 1st Mariner: Robin Thicke (my favorite male singer) and Melanie Fiona (one of my latest favorites) open up for my all-time favorite: Ms. Alicia Keys. (I guess I have lots of favorites.) Anyway, I'm super excited for this! I had my tickets weeks ago. 7:30 Wednesday. Tickets start at $39.50. AUBREY FORNWALT, B 2. She & Him, Volume 2 : I can't get enough of Zooey Deschanel -- in movies or in music. So if She & Him's second album, dropping Tuesday, is anything near as good as the first, I'm sure to be happy with the results.

POP MUSIC 'Element of Freedom': by Alicia Keys: In a music world dominated by the likes of Lady Gaga and Kanye West, class and restraint are in short supply, making this pop pianist's latest album all the more refreshing. While "Freedom" hasn't stood out on the radio so far, don't let that fool you. It flows more as a complete album rather than as a string of splashy singles. In stores Tuesday. DVD 'The Hangover': Yes, the sleeper hit of the summer is disgusting, violent and incredibly stupid.

Alicia Keys has aspirations of being a rock star, belting over screaming guitars. She also sees herself as a jazz chanteuse, elegantly dressed while scat-singing and improvising melodies on her beloved piano. Then she wants to do more acting -- some drama, maybe comedy -- and establish more charitable efforts. The list of things she wants to accomplish goes on and on. But it's not as if the pop superstar with the seductive, camera-ready face hasn't done a lot already. At 27, with a career that's barely a decade old, she owns 11 Grammys and four multiplatinum albums.

R&B superstar Alicia Keys comes to Baltimore, hot off the success of her new release, As I Am, which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. The album's first single, "No One," peaked at the No. 1 spot on the charts, and Keys has been filling venues with her soulful style at every stop on the tour. R&B star Ne-Yo and 2007 American Idol winner Jordin Sparks will join Keys at 1st Mariner Arena, 201 W. Baltimore St., on Sunday. The show starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $39.50-$100. Call 410-347-2010 or 410-547-7328 or go to ticketmaster.

Summer is the best time to experience the transporting power of live music -- especially at outdoor festivals. With the sun above, good food, drinks and fun-loving friends around you, the summer concert experience becomes indelible. This year, there will be plenty of opportunities to indulge your love for live music under the sun (though the offerings in air-conditioned arenas aren't too shabby, either) as some of the hottest names in pop, rock and R&B blow through the area. Here are a few shows you don't want to miss.

Just announced O.A.R. -- Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia on July 26. 410-547-7328 or ticketmaster.com. Rod Stewart -- Nissan Pavilion in Bristow, Va., on Aug. 24. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. tomorrow. Also, Brad Paisley, with Jewel, Chuck Wicks and Julianne Hough, is there July 12. Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Saturday. 410-547-7328 or tick etmaster.com. Alice Smith -- The 9:30 Club in Washington on May 18. 800-955-5566 or tickets.com. Goldfinger, Less Than Jake -- Rams Head Live on June 23. 410-244-1131 or ramsheadlive.

"I just like to go with the flow and let God handle the rest." -- Alicia Keys, saying she's not looking to repeat her five-Grammy win at this year's awards. Keys is nominated for eight Grammys this year.

Beyonce, Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott / MCI Center Beyonce, Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott heat up the MCI Center, 601 F. Street N.W. in D.C. Wednesday night and April 11. Show time is 7, and tickets are $67.50-$77.50 and are available through Ticketmaster at 410-481-SEAT or by visiting www.ticketmaster.com. The Crystal Method / 9:30 Club Electronica and club group The Crystal Method plays the 9:30 Club, 815 V St. N.W. in D.C. tonight at 8. Tickets are $25. For more information, visit www.930.

TELEVISION 1.American Idol (Tuesday), Fox 2.American Idol (Wednesday), Fox 3.American Idol (Thursday), Fox 4.Oprah's Big Give, ABC 5.Deal or No Deal (Monday), NBC FILMS 1.Semi-Pro, New Line Cinema 2.Vantage Point, Columbia Pictures 3.The Spiderwick Chronicles, Paramount Pictures 4.The Other Boleyn Girl, Columbia Pictures 5.Jumper, 20th Century Fox SINGLES 1.Low, Flo Rida featuring T-Pain 2.With You, Chris Brown 3.Don't Stop the Music, Rihanna 4.Love Song, Sara Bareilles 5.No One, Alicia Keys ALBUMS 1.Sleep Through the Static, Jack Johnson 2.As I Am, Alicia Keys 3.Back to Black, Amy Winehouse 4.Kidz Bop 13, Kidz Bop Kidz 5.Step Up 2 the Streets soundtrack, various artists DVDS (SALES)