Good Job

Album: Alicia (2020)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Alicia Keys wrote "Good Job" months before the 2020 coronavirus outbreak. She penned it as a tribute to her mom, who she watched struggle as a single woman in New York's Hell's Kitchen, and to other overlooked heroes in her life.

    "It has always been such a personal song and such a poignant song," Keys told CNN. "And every time I play it, I want to cry because I'm thinking of my mother, I'm thinking of my grandmother, I'm thinking of friends of mine who can't make ends meet."

    In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, Keys realized her song had taken on a different meaning, and the words became a salute to all who had stepped up during the public health crisis. She released the track on April 22, 2020 as an anthem of thanks to healthcare professionals, frontline workers, parents, teachers and many others.

    "A lot of times people don't feel like they're doing a good job. They feel underwater and like there's never going to be a brighter days," said Keys. "Fast forward to now, with where we are now, and it's almost like the song was written for this and I didn't know it."
  • Keys wrote the song with her husband Swiss Beatz, his protégé Avenue Beatz, and the singer-songwriter The-Dream.

Comments: 1

  • Zarah from Gladstone This song is so good job Alicia KEys
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Cheerleaders In Music Videos

Cheerleaders In Music VideosSong Writing

It started with a bouncy MTV classic. Nirvana and MCR made them scary, then Gwen, Avril and Madonna put on the pom poms.

Shaun Morgan of Seether

Shaun Morgan of SeetherSongwriter Interviews

Shaun breaks down the Seether songs, including the one about his brother, the one about Ozzy, and the one that may or may not be about his ex-girlfriend Amy Lee.

Real or Spinal Tap

Real or Spinal TapMusic Quiz

They sang about pink torpedoes and rocking you tonight tonight, but some real lyrics are just as ridiculous. See if you can tell which lyrics are real and which are Spinal Tap in this lyrics quiz.

Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull

Ian Anderson of Jethro TullSongwriter Interviews

The flautist frontman talks about touring with Led Zeppelin, his contribution to "Hotel California", and how he may have done the first MTV Unplugged.

Stan Ridgway

Stan RidgwaySongwriter Interviews

Go beyond the Wall of Voodoo with this cinematic songwriter.

Dar Williams

Dar WilliamsSongwriter Interviews

A popular contemporary folk singer, Williams still remembers the sticky note that changed her life in college.