Alicia Keys believes the rise of internet trolls is a "sickness" that has gripped society

Speaking in the new issue of Allure - of which she is the cover star - Alica mused: "You know what would be really cool? If we stopped offering our opinion unless asked. If nobody asked you, keep your mouth shut! Like with the internet? That's just too much opinion. People are mean. It's a sickness."

The 'Girl On Fire' hitmaker - who stopped wearing makeup in 2016 - released her sixth album 'Here' last November and she began the writing process by making a "list of things that I am sick of".

Alicia - who has sons Egypt, six, and two-year-old Genesis with her husband Swizz Beats - wanted in particular to address society's problems of making boys "fake strong" and forcing women to "feel inadequate".

Discussing the inspiration behind her LP, she explained: "It started with a list of things that I am sick of. One of the big ones is that I was so sick of the way women were forced to feel inadequate in many different circumstances or forced to feel insecure by the way we're portrayed or the way we look. Another one: I am so annoyed at the way we force boys to be fake strong - don't cry, don't be soft. Let a boy be able to dance! Let a boy paint his nails. So a boy wants to paint his nails. Who cares! All these strange, oppressive ideas."