" In Common " was written by Alicia Keys , Carlo " Illangelo " Montagnese , Taylor Parks and Billy Walsh , and produced by Illangelo . The song is heavily influenced by tropical music , as well as dancehall , having a Latin beat . It is also marked by clipped phrasing over a minimal beat with trendy Caribbean vibes , Afrobeat instrumental and icy drum patterns . The instrumentation also features collage of electronic beats and tropicalia-infused rhythms . Its sounds were compared to Rihanna 's " Work " , Drake 's " One Dance " , as well as their duet on Drake 's " Take Care " - songs heavily influenced by dancehall . Keys uses a hushed tone during the lines , " We used to talk 'til midnight/All those days that you stayed at my house/We were just passing the time/When we were young and we ai n't had no vows . " A writer of the website American Top 40 compared her vocal styling to that of Dawn Richard . During the chorus , she sings : " If you could love somebody like me , you must be messed up too . " Lyrically , " In Common " talks about the similarities between two lovers , with the lyrics " paint ing a picture of a couple who mirror one another in ways never before experienced with past lovers . " Brittany Spanos of '' Rolling Stone '' called it an " hypnotic , catchy single . " A writer of '' Fact '' described it as a " chart-ready polish , hitting the sweet spot between Jamie xx ’s bass-heavy pop and the post-Popcaan trend for featherlight dancehall a la Bieber , Drake and Rihanna . " Jessica Goodman of '' Entertainment Weekly '' named it a " hazy and club-ready track . " Rachel Sonis of '' Idolator '' opined that the song is " subtle but infectious . It shows off the 35-year-old singer ’s vocal restraint and still manages to keep things light and feisty . " Lewis Corner of Digital Spy was also positive , noting that it is " a pretty decent effort " ... subtly infectious with its tropical electronics and buoyant beats . " Katie Rife of '' The A.V. Club '' praised its tropical vibe , saying that it " suggest s you ’ll be hearing this song on outdoor patios and mall PAs alike this summer . " Rife also compared Keys to Rihanna and Ellie Goulding , a sentiment echoed by Maeve McDermott of '' USA Today '' , who noted that " the singer 's new look sounds good on her , " calling it " a song clearly positioned for a big summer . " Jamieson Cox of '' The Verge '' labelled it " humid and subdued , and Keys turns in a vocal take that impresses with subtlety rather than firepower . " Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine was very positive , writing : " With its sensual , forward-minded production and more mature themes , the song recalls Keys 's under-appreciated 2009 single ' Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart . ' " '' Pitchfork '' would later list " In Common " on their ranking of the 100 best songs of 2016 at number 87 : “ If you follow Alicia Keys on Instagram , you already know she ’s drawn to Nigerian pop acts like Wizkid and Davido , part of the ascendant Afrobeats sound . Part UK funky , part soca , part dancehall , part soda pop bubble , this Nigerian/Ghanaian hybrid became the sound of the year , so it made sense that Ms. Keys and producer Illangelo wove those vibrant tropical patterns into “ In Common . ” It ’s a rare , welcome instance of Keys moving out of her musical comfort zone and riding the humid groove , and she took it all the way to the DNC stage . It would have been easy enough to pair that genre ’s bubbling rhythm with a lyrical bauble , but Keys instead twists the love song trope of “ opposites attract . ” “ If you could love somebody like me/You must be messed up too ” simultaneously indicts and embraces the dysfunction , insecurity , and maddening laws of attraction that undergird modern love . ” On May 20 , 2016 Keys uploaded the music video for " In Common " on her YouTube and Vevo account . The music video was directed by Pierre Debusschere and Keeley Gould . The video of the single was shot in black-and-white and , as stated by Dylan Kickham of Entertainment Weekly , " it features various dancers freestyling contortionist body movements in front of a bare , grey backdrop , with only a few urban mainstays ( a fire escape , a chain link fence , a fire hydrant ) as props . As the video progresses into the song ’s bridge , the dancers form into couples who embrace each other , echoing the song ’s loving sentiments . Afterwards , the video erupts into an all-out dance party . " In a statement , Keys wrote about the video : " This video is about celebrating our individuality , and how in the brilliance of our uniqueness , the magic of it all is at the core , we are all the same . We want the same things . We all want to experience love , the freedom to be our truest selves , to love whomever we want and to be accepted and celebrated for all of our nuances and so called imperfections that make us , us . " " In Common " was performed for the first time at Tribeca Film Festival on April 21 , 2016 . Keys perform the song for the first time live on television on '' Saturday Night Live '' episode of May 7 , 2016 , along with a new track , " Hallelujah " . For " In Common " , she " delivered a simmering , sensual rendition of the song bolstered by a locked-in backing band , " as described by Daniel Kreps of '' Rolling Stone '' . Dennis Perkins of '' The A.V. Club '' added that she was " standing in silhouette at her piano on the darkened stage , " while praising her " striking stage presence . " On May 17 , 2016 , Keys also appeared on '' The Voice '' finale to perform the track . She performed the song at the UEFA Champions League Final in Milan on May 28 , 2016 . She performed the song at BET Awards 2016 on June 26 , 2016 and later at the 2016 Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania on July 26 , 2016
2016 Democratic National Convention
2016 Democratic National Convention
In Common