John Legend was born John Roger Stephens on December 28, 1978 in Springfield, Ohio. Growing up, Legend’s grandmother taught him how to play piano and he participated in the church choir. He attended the University of Pennsylvania where he directed a coed a cappella group. He switched gears after graduation and started working for Boston Consulting Group, but continued to perform at nightclubs in New York City. Legend became an in demand singer/songwriter after performing with famous artists including Alicia Keys, Twista, and Janet Jackson.
He was soon introduced to hip-hop artist, Kanye West and the two collaborated on each others demos. John Legend’s album Get Lifted went platinum in 2004 thanks to his hit single “Ordinary People,” a song that he originally wrote for the Black Eyed Peas.
Get Lifted won Legend three Grammy Awards: Best R&B album, best R&B male vocal performances and best new artist. His second album Once Again was released in 2006 and included songs like “Where Did My Baby Go” and “Each Day Gets Better.” Legend’s musical talent made him a huge star.
He performed at the 2006 Super Bowl in Detroit, the NBA All-Star game, and the Major League Baseball All Star game. He released his album Evolver in 2008 and the album featured “Green Light,” a collaboration with Andre 3000. The album reached the top of the R&B/hip-hop charts. That same year, John Legend stepped in front of the camera with his supporting role in the comedy Soul Men. In 2010, the singer released his album Wake Up!.
He recorded this album with the Roots. The album tackled tunes made famous by the likes of Marvin Gaye and Nina Simone. “Hard Times” by Curtis Mayfield was one of the album’s main singles along with “Shine,” one of Legend’s own compositions. “Shine” earned Legend a Grammy Award in 2011. Legend decided to try to expand his talents and tried his hand at reality TV with the singing competition Duets during the summer of 2012. He worked with Kelly Clarkson, Robin Thicke, and Jennifer Nettles. The musical stars coached and performed with the contestants.
In 2013, Legend released his next album, Love In The Future which featured the No.1 ballad “All of Me.” The album also featured the tracks “Made to Love” and “You and I.” Two years later in 2015, Legend recorded the song “Glory” along with rapper Common. The two singers recorded the song for the movie Selma and the tune won a Golden Globe and an Academy Award. Both Legend and Common used their acceptance speech as a chance to highlight contemporary issues that connect to the Civil Rights Movement. Outside music, Legend is involved in numerous social and charitable causes. He is a supporter of the New York City organization Harlem Village Academies. The organization runs several charter schools, schools that are publicly funded and established by teachers, parents, or community groups under the terms of a charter, or contract, with a local or national authority.
Legend explained to Black Enterprise magazine that education is so important to him because where he grew up, 40 to 50 percent of kids dropped out of high school. He said that he did well in school and then went to an Ivy League school but that he was an exception. Legend says that we as a nation needs to do more to make sure every kid has quality education. To continue his commitment to education reform, John Legend lent his song “Shine” to the 2010 documentary Waiting For Superman. The film takes a critical look at the nation’s public school system. While on vacation in Maldives in 2011, Legend proposed to model Chrissy Teigen and the two tied the knot in September 2013 in Italy.
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