Alicia Augello Cook

Alicia Cook (known for her stage name Alicia Keys) is a recording artist, musician, and actress born in Manhattan, New York. She is also  many other things such as a composer, record producer, poet, and author. At the age of seven, Keys began playing the piano. She attended Professional Performing Arts School and graduated at the age of 16 as class valedictorian. Later, she attended Columbia University, but dropped out to pursue her career in music. Keys released her first album Songs in A Minor. It sold 12 million copies worldwide and she became best new artist and best R&B artist of 2001. Keys also won 5 Grammy Awards in 2002. In 2005, she released her first live album Unplugged. She became the first female artist to have an MTV Unplugged album and hers was the highest since Nirvana in 1994. In 2007 Keys released her third studio album As I Am and sold six million copies worldwide and earned her three Grammy Awards. The next year, she appeared in the film The Secret Life of Bees. Keys released her next album The Element of Freedom in December of 2009. The album was Key's first chart topping album in the United Kingdom. In June of 2011, Keys released another album Songs in A Minor: 10th Anniversary. Throughout Key's career, she has earned many awards and sold many albums. Keys is now married to rapper Swizz Beatz and together they have an eight month old son named Egypt Daoud Ibarr Dean.

Jaden Smith: Son of actor Will Smith. Will he rise to the top?

Jaden Smith is a 13 year old child actor, rapper, dancer, and other things born to Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith. He had his breakthrough role in 2006 in the film The Pursuit of Happyness. Some of his other known films that he starred in are The Day the Earth Stood Still and The Karate Kid. In The Pursuit of Happyness, Smith played the role of Will Smith's son. In 2007, Jaden Smith won the Academy Award for the Best Breakthrough Performance. He along with his sister, was home-schooled. They now attend the New Leadership Village Academy which was co-founded by his parents. Jaden is currently filming another movie, Amulet, which will be released sometime in 2012. Smith is also currently on tour with teen star, Justin Beiber.

Arab and American teenagers open their bedroom doors

  

"More than two decades later, her experience as a teenager and young woman in both countries has inspired her to photograph more than 300 American and Middle Eastern girls in their bedrooms.

The result, an exhibition called 'A Girl and her Room' opening Friday at The Mosaic Rooms in London, shows American, Lebanese and Palestinian teenage girls in their most personal spaces. It includes girls in Palestinian refugee camps.

Matar said: 'Some of the girls you wouldn't know where they were from unless you read the captions.'"

I think that this exhibition is a nice, creative idea. Matar decided to photograph teenagers in their bedrooms and that little idea grew into something spectacular. This idea consist of taking pictures of female teens' room. This bring girls from around the world together and unites. At the same time, it shows differences between how different people live and what their room may mean to everyone. 

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The Proust Questionnaire

• What is your greatest strength or virtue? I am understanding
• The quality you most like in a man? Sense of humor and understanding
• The quality you most like in a woman? Mental Strength
• What do you most value in your friends? Trust, Honesty
• What is your principle defect? I get confused and distracted a lot and I have trouble organizing my thoughts
• What is your favorite thing to do? Play instruments or listen to music, surf the internet, sleep
• What is your dream of happiness? Achieving my personal goals and having self satisfaction
• What to your mind would be the greatest of misfortunes? Becoming poor and failing at life
• What would you like to be? A dermatologist
• In what country would you like to live? Dominican Republic
• What is your favorite color? Blue and Purple
• What is your favorite flower? White Roses
• What is your favorite bird? I don't like birds
• Who are your favorite writers? I don't have one
• Who are your favorite actors? Will Smith
• Who is your favorite fictional hero? I don't have one
• Who is your favorite heroine? Michelle Obama
• Who are your favorite musicians? Alicia Keys, Ne-Yo
• Who are your favorite painters? Frida Khalo
• Who are your heroes in real life? My mother
• Who are your favorite heroines of history? Rosa Parks
• What are your favorite names? Kris
• What is it you most dislike? When people don't display the correct candor
• What historical figures do you most despise? The person who killed MLK Jr., Hitler
• What event in military history do you most admire? Victory of the Revolution
• What social reform do you most admire? Health Care Reform
• What natural gift would you most like to possess? To be gifted with a natural voice
• How would you like to die? I don't want to die, but peacefully
• What is your present state of mind? Calm, Content
• What is your motto? "You are only as happy as you make up your mind to be."

Amusing Story:)

Essay Three:

Tell us an interesting or amusing story about yourself that you haven’t currently shared in your application.


When I was in sixth grade, I was in my school’s orchestra. Every year around summer time, in orchestra we would go on field trips, and in that year, we went to Florida. Of the whole trip, my friends, and I always seems to remember one memory. It was when we all fell together in the middle of Universal Studios in front of what seemed like tons of people. I remember my friends (Katie and Kathy) and I wanting to get on the teacup ride. We got so excited, that the three of us linked arms and took off running. Out of nowhere, from what I remember, Katie tripped on one of her untied laces. Kathy fell also simply because her arm was linked to Katie’s. I let go of Kathy’s arm to avoid falling also, but I ended up tripping over the both of them. The worst part of it all was that the ground was scorching! The heat from the ground caused us pain as well as falling. We were also laughing really hard at the same time.
When we got up, Katie had scratches on her arms, knee, and torn jeans. Kathy had a scratch or two also, but not as bad as Katie’s. I had a very minor scratch, yet I was still in pain. When we looked around, we realized that so many people were looking at us. We were embarrassed, but at the same time, we weren’t. We had a lot of memories, but that is one of the main ones that remain with us. It was a great vacation.

September

Of all the things I still remember, summer’s never looked the same/

Years go by and time just seems to fly, but the memories remain .

--Daughtry, “September”

Most of the lyrics that stand out in this song remind me of a relationship that I have or have had with different people. This line of the song makes me think of the relationship with my best friend. She moved to California two years ago and time has flown by. We do not get to speak to each other as often as we’d like, but when we do speak, we do a lot of reminiscing. I think it is also saying that no matter how long it will be, the memories will always be there. That’s something my friend and I always remember and rely on.

Reflecting now on how things could’ve been, it was worth it in the end

This lyric reminds me of the relationship between my dad and I. We used to be pretty close until about two years ago. Ever since then, I have seen many different sides of him. I have also grown up more and can different sides of him compared to what I could see when I was younger. Now looking at it from a more mature perspective, sometimes I think that maybe it was better that we aren’t as close as used to be.