Alicia Keys and poster child for The Southern Regional Sickle Cell Association DeAnna Holt, photographed during the “Verizon Ladies First Tour” backstage of the Hartford Civic Center (currently the XL Center) in downtown Hartford, Connecticut on April 9, 2004.

The “Verizon Ladies First Tour” came to Connecticut, with Alicia, Beyoncé, Missy Elliott, special opening guest Tamia and a surprise appearance from Jay-Z who accompanied Bey for “Crazy In Love.”

Tickets were priced from $67.50 to $77.50, with an added $1.50 state surcharge and another 50 cents to be donated to the artists’ charity of choice.

In the audience of the show was Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez, speaking over the Verizon Wireless commercials that played on the jumbo screens between performances. Perez had accompanied ten outstanding students from area high schools as a reward for their academic achievements. 

The Day newspaper positively reported that Alicia “gave a performance that highlighted the breadth of her vocal and instrumental talent,” and that “the audience was enthralled throughout Keys’s tenure on stage, and would cheer uproariously at the climaxes of each song.”