John Legend

From a child prodigy to an award-winning musician, John Legend truly lives up to his name. Beyond music, he has explored television, film, theater, and married a supermodel, cementing his legendary status.

Born John Roger Stephens on December 28, 1978, in Springfield, Ohio, Legend came from a musical family - his father was a drummer, his mother sang, and his grandmother played the organ. He began playing the piano at age four and joined the church choir at seven. Academically gifted, he skipped two grades in elementary school and attended Springfield’s North High School at 12, later graduating magna cum laude from the University of Pennsylvania in 1999. At Penn, he got his first music gig after being introduced to Lauryn Hill, resulting in him playing piano on her 1998 single "Everything is Everything."

In 2000, Legend started making demos, and in 2001, he met producer Devo Springsteen, who introduced him to Kanye West. Legend was signed to Kanye’s G.O.O.D. Music and given the name “John Legend” by poet J. Ivy, who noted his resemblance to old school legends like Nat King Cole. After contributing to songs by artists like Jay-Z, Twista, and the Black Eyed Peas, Legend released his debut album, Get Lifted, on December 28, 2004. The critically acclaimed album won the Best R&B Album Grammy in 2006, while “Ordinary People” won Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Legend took home the Best New Artist award.

Legend’s second album, Once Again, released on October 24, 2006, earned him another Grammy for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance in 2007 for “Heaven.” The platinum-selling album peaked at #3 on the Billboard 200 and #1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. He followed it with 2008’s Evolver, featuring André 3000 on “Green Light,” and 2010’s Wake Up, a collaboration with The Roots, clinching a Grammy for Best R&B Album, Best R&B Song for “Shine,” and Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance for “Hang On in There.” Legend has released numerous albums and singles, including 2013’s Love in the Future with the hit “All of Me,” dedicated to his wife Chrissy Teigen, an international chart success. In 2014, he and Common released “Glory” for the film Selma, winning a Golden Globe and Oscar for Best Original Song.

John Legend has appeared in films and TV shows and served as a judge on NBC’s The Voice. He is among the exclusive group of EGOT winners, the first Black man to achieve this status, with an Emmy for his role in NBC’s Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert in 2018, over 10 Grammy wins, a Best Original Song Oscar for “Glory” in 2015, and a Tony for Best Revival of a Play as a co-producer for August Wilson’s Jitney in 2017.