Following her speech at the ‘2011 Keep A Child Alive Black Ball’ at London's Roundhouse Theatre on Tuesday (June 15), Alicia Keys has spoken out about how her mother taught her to balance parenting with work.

Mother to Egypt, 8 months old, and wife of Swizz Beatz, Keys has talked about how inspirational her mother was as she grew up as she juggled her personal and professional lives as a single mother.

Keys explained to BANG Showbiz: "Being a mother myself has made me think about all the children in the world who are motherless or parentless. It breaks my heart because I'm like, 'What do they do with nobody there to support them and be with them?"

Keys said, "I'm a singer, an activist and a mother. I love all three very much and all three of them feed each other. Now becoming a mother makes me understand more about activism and being a mother makes me understand how dreadful it can be to never have a voice to speak to people."

Alicia Keys talks to the Today programme about her musical influences and the Keep A Child Alive programme, in the video below: