St Pancras State of Mind: Alicia Keys becomes the latest big-name musician to play the public piano at London station

Alicia Keys has become the latest musician to play the public piano at St Pancras Station in London. 

Gifted to the railway station by Elton John in 2016, the piano has since been played by not only the Rocket Man himself, but also the likes of John Legend, Tom Odell and Jeff Goldblum.

Keys’ set included her hits Empire State of Mind, If I Ain’t Got You and No One. She also played Lifeline, a recent release that comes from the soundtrack to the forthcoming film remake of The Color Purple.

Public pianos have exploded in popularity in recent years, so much so that they’ve inspired a TV talent series in the UK (called, reasonably enough, The Piano). One of the judges on the show was Lang Lang, and guess what? He’s played the St Pancras instrument, too.

Keys’ performance follows that of Jools Holland and Rod Stewart, who hit the St Pancras platform just last week in the company of Holland’s big band.