Keys takes it higher with MTV Unplugged

Alicia Keys performed and taped her installment of the MTV Unplugged series in July 2005 at the Brooklyn Academy of Music. During this live session, Keys added brand-new arrangements to her original songs such as "A Woman's Worth" and "Heartburn", and performed a few choice covers. Part of Keys' audience also included her guest performers; she collaborated with rappers Common and Mos Def for "Love It or Leave It Alone", reggae artist Damian Marley for "Welcome to Jam Rock" and Maroon 5 lead singer Adam Levine for a cover of the Rolling Stones' "Wild Horses".
In addition to a cover of "Every Little Bit Hurts", previously performed by singers such as Aretha Franklin and Brenda Holloway, Keys also premiered two new original songs: "Stolen Moments", which she co-wrote with soul singer Al Green, and "Unbreakable". The session was released on CD and DVD on October 11, 2005. Known simply as Unplugged, the album opened at number one on the U.S. Billboard Top 200 chart with 196,000 units sold in first week of release. The debut of Keys' Unplugged was the highest debut for an MTV Unplugged album since MTV Unplugged in New York (1994) by Nirvana, and the first Unplugged by a female artist to debut at number one. Keys also became the first female R&B artist to have three consecutive number one debuts on the Billboard 200 album chart in as many releases. Her performance was similar to Stevie Wonder, Nina Simone and James Brown in one. This girl has soul!