Alicia Keys is preparing to release her seventh studio album, Alicia, this fall and for the latest single, “So Done,” she teams up with Khalid and Ludwig Göransson (the composer for Atlanta, Black Panther, and The Mandalorian) to speak on reaching one’s limit in a compromising situation. It’s one of those songs that evokes a specific mood just vaguely enough to be applicable to any situation: Personal, professional, racial, or romantic.
The Andy Hines-directed video casts Alicia and Khalid as the lead singers of a prom band as the storyline of one outsider plays out between performance shots. As the video’s misfit lead wanders the party, her discomfort is visible on her face while she watches her classmates take selfies (or Instagram Stories? What are the kids on these days?) and laugh it up without really interacting with her.
But then a gang of kids on dirtbikes invade the prom, popping wheelies and driving over the punch bowl, livening the main character’s spirits. One of the bikers in particular catches her eye and the subtext is clear: She’s found her people. In the end, she joins them as they drive off into the night while Alicia and Khalid sing, “I’m livin’ the way that I want.”
Keys is fresh off the release of the ballad “Perfect Way To Die” and a well-received Tiny Desk Concert, while Khalid most recently collaborated with Kane Brown and Swae Lee on the former’s “Be Like That.”
Watch Alicia Keys’ “So Done” video featuring Khalid above.