Alicia Keys' Go-To Self-Care Practice Costs Exactly $0 To Do

Beauty routines can feel like a chore, or they can be viewed as an opportunity to give yourself some TLC. For Alicia Keys, whose newly launched Keys Soulcare lifestyle beauty brand embodies the latter philosophy on self-care, her regimen is all about rituals that boost her entire mindset. Specifically: practicing mantras.

"I really believe in this idea of mantras, which is why we put them on every bottle [of Keys Soulcare]," Keys tells Bustle over Zoom. "This way for your inner dialogue to be able to lift you up through very difficult or challenging times, or just regular times, and help you to just maintain and keep finding the strength to go forward and be connected to yourself — that's super important for our wellness and our mental health, especially now."

Each Keys Soulcare product has an affirmation, like "I shine at full wattage" and "I am strong, capable, and unstoppable," to encourage users to incorporate positive self-talk in their self-care practices. But Keys stresses that your personal mantras can be anything, as long as it's motivating to you. It's a practice the musician has been leaning on since she was a teenager.

"I really believe in this idea of mantras... for your inner dialogue to be able to lift you up through challenging times."

"I learned pep talks really young, because when I had to perform, I got terrified," says Keys. "When I was 14 and 15, in the very beginning of my performance life, I started shaking and freaking out. So in order to get out there, my first manager would talk to me like a boxer — 'Alright champ, you're going to go out there and you're going to get 'em and show them what you got.' And something about that where you pump yourself up really worked for me."

Since then, Keys says she uses mantras regularly to stay positive and motivated. "Doing things like that when you're not feeling great, just looking in the mirror and telling yourself that you're powerful, you're unstoppable, and nothing's going to get in your way, and that your dreams are achievable — these are things that I need."

The star adds that her beauty ritual and affirmation practice have been particularly helpful during quarantine. "I've found it to be essential with where we are right now and how we're feeling — we're all juggling a myriad of emotions," she says. "I'd just love for us to have conversations about how valuable we are as individuals, and valuing ourselves more." Through her skin care-meets-wellness line, Keys is doing exactly that.