On her third gig in the country—the first two were in 2004 and 2008—American R&B superstar Alicia Keys did more than just bring her “Set the World on Fire” tour to Manila. Hours before her concert, the metro was abuzz with news of her visit to Villamor Air Base, where she talked with Supertyphoon “Yolanda” evacuees and distributed crayons and coloring books to the kids.

The sweet gesture came as no surprise. The Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, actress and producer is known to actively engage in philanthropic pursuits; she co-founded the charity organization Keep a Child Alive, which provides medicine for HIV/AIDS-afflicted children in Africa and India.

More recently, she contributed “New Day,” a track from 2012’s “Girl on Fire,” to the all-star iTunes compilation album “Songs for the Philippines,” whose proceeds will go to the Philippine Red Cross.

Soulful moments

Her efforts were greeted by appreciative cheers from fans at her show in the SM Mall of Asia Arena.

In a sparkly outfit and sleek cropped hair, Keys opened with “Karma” and “You Don’t Know My Name” from her second album “The Diary of Alicia Keys.” This was followed by a mix of early and recent hits, including the current single “Tears Always Win” from “Girl on Fire” and “Try Sleeping with a Broken Heart” from 2009’s “The Element of Freedom.”

Backed by her touring band, including two amazing backup vocalists and a bevy of hunky dancers, Keys kept it slow and steady in the first half, shifting between soulful piano moments (“Like You’ll Never See Me Again”) and sensual numbers (“A Woman’s Worth,” “Un-Thinkable (I’m Ready)”).

Her smoky vocals were soft and intimate for the most part, yet strong and passionate especially in “Diary.” Any reservations we had about her difficulty in hitting the high notes disappeared when, halfway through her set, she did the famous intro runs in “Fallin,” her debut single that topped the Billboard chart 12 years ago.

‘Purposeful’

In between songs, Keys told her audience how happy she was to be back and how Manila felt like home. “Every time we come together, it’s like this incredible mixture of music and people,” she said, adding that when Yolanda hit the country, it made her trip even more “purposeful.”

After the feel-good anthem “Unbreakable” and a stirring performance of her second “Girl on Fire” single, “Brand New Me,” Keys came up with a couple of surprises. Midway through the megahit “If I Ain’t Got You,” Regine Velasquez stepped in to belt out the chorus. Despite hitting a tiny snag in the lyrics, Velasquez delivered a powerful duet with Keys, earning a standing ovation from the stunned audience (and a huge hug from Keys herself).

The night’s emotional highlight was a poignant, stripped-down version of “No One”— Keys solo on piano, inviting everyone to celebrate love and believe that things will get better. “You and me together through the days and nights/I don’t worry ’cause everything’s gonna be all right,” she sang. And then the tempo segued into a high-energy hip-hop mashup with the Black Eyed Peas’ “Where Is the Love?”—Apl.de.ap himself hopping onstage to rap out the verses.

Keys gave a rousing two-track encore starting with “New Day,” her voice soaring as she went on to play the drums in “Girl on Fire.”

Changing into a glittering black halter gown, she indulged the audience with a second encore: “Empire State of Mind Part II: Broken Down,” with a recording of Jay-Z rapping his parts on the video screen, and Keys substituting “New York” with “Manila” in the lyrics.

Timely

After nearly two hours and 20 songs, Keys’ concert served as a timely pick-me-up for the crowd. It was hard not be moved by her heartfelt messages of self-empowerment.

We loved how the smile never left her face even when she was singing, and how each number seemed so sincere and never felt rushed. She even took her time giving her farewell speech after the second encore.

“I’m so grateful I was able to come to the Philippines and spend some time with some of the most resilient and beautiful spirits I’ve ever met,” she tweeted that day, adding, “Today was next level. Thank you for your inspiration!”