Watch Paparazzi

Singer Alicia Keys spotted wearing De Bethune

Alicia Keys has long cultivated a reputation for intellectual curiosity, and her wrist game reflects exactly that. Spotted here in what appears to be a casual editorial or personal moment, the Grammy-winning singer and songwriter is wearing the De Bethune Dream Watch 5 — one of the most respected pieces in independent horology — on her left wrist, paired incongruously and brilliantly with a denim vest and light turtleneck. This is not a watch you stumble into; it is a watch you seek out.

The De Bethune Dream Watch 5, reference DB25, is built around the manufacture's in-house DB2019 movement — a hand-wound calibre beating at 28,800 vph with a power reserve of approximately five days. The movement features De Bethune's signature silicon balance wheel with white gold inserts, a titanium and platinum balance spring, and the brand's own escapement innovations. The spherical moon phase — accurate to one day's deviation every 1,112 years — is the centrepiece, a blued gold sphere nestled at 6 o'clock that rotates to display lunar phases with almost uncomfortable precision.

The case, typically executed in titanium, measures around 44mm and carries De Bethune's signature floating lugs and polished/brushed finishing that catches light in a way few cases manage. The blue strap visible here is entirely consistent with known De Bethune factory configurations for the DW5. The dark, galvanic-treated dial and deep case profile are hallmarks of this reference.

For collectors, De Bethune occupies a rarefied tier alongside F.P. Journe and Philippe Dufour — technically serious, aesthetically uncompromising, produced in tiny quantities. The Dream Watch 5 is among the manufacture's most celebrated complications, attracting serious horological attention at auction. Its appearance on Alicia Keys' wrist is a genuine statement: this is someone who did the research.

On the secondary market, the DB25 trades well above retail, with examples appearing at Christie's and Phillips in the $80,000–$120,000 USD range depending on configuration and provenance. Retail pricing, where available through authorised dealers, sits above $100,000. For a watch this rare and this technically accomplished, Alicia Keys has made one of the more impressive watch choices in recent celebrity sighting history.