Alicia Keys says fame has taken its toll on her

Alicia Keys says her fame can make you "a ghost of yourself."

The 27-year-old singer says her gruelling tour schedule and long years of musical training have taken their toll on her life.

Despite selling over 23 million albums and winning over 80 major awards – including 11 Grammys – Alicia says her fame has a huge downside.

She told Britain's Daily Mail newspaper: "Fame can bring a lot of emptiness. You are so driven that you work 20 hours a day, you get four hours of sleep, you do all that for 10 years straight.

"Then, all of a sudden, you think, 'I'm a singer and, yes, I'm a songwriter and, yes, I perform, but what else is in my life? Do I have a family? Am I growing inside? Am I always too busy to see my mother and the people I love?'

"You have to numb yourself because you are away so long. It can change you and that is not the type of person I want to be. People always want something from you - you become like a ghost of yourself or of the person you could be."

Alicia - who is to perform the theme tune to the next James Bond film 'Quantum of Solace' with White Stripes singer Jack White - says her soul searching began when she gave up work to look after her dying grandmother last year.

She added: "Losing her made me realise how close I came to the edge. It took a while before I could even say the word 'grandmother' because I was so upset."

Despite vowing to cut back on her workload, Alicia will release her latest single 'Superwoman' on September 1.