The Element of Freedom is the fourth studio album by American singer and songwriter Alicia Keys, released on December 11, 2009, by J Records.

Departing from the classicist soul music of Keys' previous albums, The Element of Freedom has a mid-tempo, low-key sound and features mostly love songs.

Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from music critics, who complimented its low-key style, cohesiveness, and Keys' singing, while some were ambivalent towards the lyrics.

[4] The album includes production by Kerry "Krucial" Brothers, Jeff Bhasker, Noah "40" Shebib and Swizz Beatz.

[8][13] Keys revealed to The Times that in the period she was recording the album, she listened to artists such as Genesis, Tears for Fears, Fleetwood Mac and The Police.

[17] The Washington Post's Allison Stewart wrote that the album "relies unusually heavily upon mid-tempo, carefully layered lovesick ballads".

[17][21][22] Slant Magazine's Matthew Cole wrote that "some retro synth work lends a funky backdrop" to Keys' "breathy vamping, alternating disco-diva choruses with Prince-worthy verses".

[22] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic pointed out the "always apparent" influence of Prince, as Keys "swapped the retro-soul instrumentation of her earliest music for electronics".

However, some of the songs feature different lyrical themes: "Wait Til You See My Smile" is about one not allowing negative people to defeat them, "How It Feels to Fly" is about taking risks just to experience their positive side, and "Empire State of Mind (Part II) Broken Down" contains references to various locations in New York City and its famous residents, while describing the city's essence.

[2] On September 14, 2009, the day after the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Keys posted the audio to the album's lead single "Doesn't Mean Anything" on her YouTube channel.

[30] On October 21, Keys held "The Element of Freedom Lecture & Performance Series" at the New York University, free for students at the Tisch School of the Arts.

[32] Keys performed a benefit concert at the Nokia Theater in New York City on December 1, where all the proceeds went to the Keep a Child Alive program.

[15][35] According to the senior vice president of urban marketing for J Records, Keys "had a couple of more things in the oven and she wants this to be right [...] So we gave her the additional time she needed."

[39] On March 3, Keys embarked on the North American leg of the Freedom Tour at the Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Illinois.

Its accompanying music video was due to be released in March 2010[58] but was cancelled so "Un-Thinkable (I'm Ready)" could be pushed forward as a single instead.

[48] Following the album's release, Keys' version of "Empire State of Mind" charted due to digital sales.

[65] Following the birth of her first child on October 16, Keys revealed that "Wait Til You See My Smile" would be released as the next single in the UK on November 28.

[78] Los Angeles Times writer Randy Lewis wrote favorably of Keys' thematic approach, stating that she "digs deep into the multitude of implications of independence".

[72] Leah Greenblatt of Entertainment Weekly said that Keys has "established herself as an increasingly rare thing in pop music: the class act", noting that the "often-banal lyrics" were carried by her "quicksilver" voice.

[21] USA Today's Steve Jones called its songs "consistently strong and thematically cohesive", and found the album "more nuanced and intimate" than Keys' previous work.

[76] In a mixed review for The Independent, Simon Price found the songs monotonous and said that they "drift by disappointingly, anodyne and indistinguishable".

[24] Rob Sheffield, writing in Rolling Stone, felt that the production "compresses [Keys'] voice, making it sound a lot less like her, especially on the ballads".

[74] Mikael Wood of Spin accused Keys of being "uninterested in breaking new ground, snooze-controlling her way through a series of familiar piano-soul platitudes".

[75] Tyler Lewis of PopMatters pointed out in his review "uninspiring, trendy electronica production, strident lead vocal performances, and banal lyricism".

[79] Chicago Sun-Times writer Jim DeRogatis panned its lyrics as "empty cliches" and found the music pretentious.

[80] Robert Christgau, writing for MSN Music, named it "dud of the month",[73] indicating "a bad record whose details rarely merit further thought".

[81] He interpreted Keys' attempt at "melismatic pain" to be "formal ploy merely, a diva-by-default's privilege", and found it "far from a shock but definitely a disappointment to watch Ms.

[106] On July 22, 2013, the album was certified triple platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales of over 900,000 copies in the UK.