It was hard to miss Alicia Keys and Swizz Beatz at the MTV Video Music Awards with their 23-month-old son Egypt Daoud. The little guy had a perch on Daddy’s lap while Mommy was onstage performing her new song, “Girl on Fire” with Nicki Minaj, and he was soaking up plenty of camera time.
Keys revealed in an interview that she approached potty training Egypt like he was in the military. She joked that she had to be tough on him to make the lessons stick.
“I took him to the military!” she said. “No, it’s really just consistency and love and support and it was just amazing.”
Keys got a bunch of reaction from fans to her decision to bring Egypt to the decidedly adult-oriented VMAs.
“Alicia Keys is bringing her son to the award show with a pacifier in his mouth? Errr ever heard of a nanny?” tweeted @siSipELebe during the show.
Another tweet said, “Alicia Keys and Swizz Beats son is addddooorrable but ya couldn’t spring for a sitter??”
But even more fans were touched by the little one. “The best thing about Alicia Keys performance was seeing her son!” posted @Mitchell Rossee.
After the show ended, Beatz tweeted a photo of Egypt onstage with the caption, “Yaaaaaaa my mommy Rocked it. and if you don’t like it kiss my old pamper.”
As for her music, Keys told People.com that she is “in love” with her new album.
“It really talks about each part of our lives as human beings, and it has a ton of variety [and] takes you on all these different journeys,” she said. “It’s powerful stuff, and I think you’re going to really love it.”
She said the new songs pay homage to her career, marriage and parenthood experiences.
“It’s a new world for me, it’s a new life for me,” she said. “I’m more in control of myself as a woman, as a businesswoman, as a mum, as a wife. Everything is new.”
