There were two pregnant performers showing their support at the Global Citizen Festival yesterday in Central Park. Alicia Keys and Carrie Underwood both brushed aside maternity leave to put on stellar shows in the star-studded lineup.
Keys, who revealed she and her husband Swizz Beatz are expecting on July 31st, gave a powerful performance of “We Are Here” early in the festival. In honor of the global movement, the song featured multilingual accompaniments from several international stars. Israeli vocalist Idan Raichel and Palestinian artist Ali Amr joined the expectant mother in an inspiring trio, bringing many issues into the spotlight with forthright lines like “Let’s talk about Chi town / Let’s talk about Gaza / Let’s talk about, let’s talk about Israel / Cause right now it is real / Let’s talk about, let’s talk Nigeria / In a mass hysteria.” Keys is due in December of 2014, and showed off her far-along figure in an elegant white button-down.
Carrie Underwood, who just made the announcement with NHL husband Mike Fisher on September 1st, looked radiant as she performed a full set for the crowd of 60,000. Busting out all the hits for the occasion, she sang fan favorites like “Good Girl,” “Two Black Cadillacs,” “Cowboy Casanova,” “Blown Away,” “Jesus, Take the Wheel,” and “Before He Cheats” with passion. She also surprised the audience with a cover of R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts.” The country star is hardly showing yet, and could have easily kept the news a secret in the fitted black minidress she wore.
Based on the rumors that have been circulating lately, Beyoncé may not have been the only one to make a surprise appearance at the end of the show. She and Jay Z are rumored to be expecting another, with everything from body language to song lyrics under close scrutiny as of late. Of course, the rumors are far from certain. But perhaps there were three pregnant performers powering through the Global Citizen Festival.