John Legend<\/strong> (born December 28, 1978, Springfield<\/a>, Ohio<\/a>, U.S.) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist who achieved success in the early 21st century with his fusion of R&B<\/a> and soul music<\/a>. He also was a sought-after session musician. Legend<\/a> was the first African American man to win all four major North American entertainment awards (EGOT<\/a>: Emmy<\/a>, Grammy<\/a>, Oscar<\/a>, and Tony<\/a>).<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Stephens was born into a musically gifted working-class family. His mother directed a church choir, while his grandmother played organ and his father and brother played drums at the church. He took piano lessons and sang in the church choir as a child. His parents homeschooled him for several of his elementary-school years. After he graduated from high school<\/a>, he attended the University of Pennsylvania<\/a> (B.A., 1999). He then moved to New York City<\/a>, working for the Boston Consulting Group by day and playing piano and singing<\/a> in nightclubs; he sold self-produced CDs (John Stephens [2000] and Live at Jimmy\u2019s Uptown [2001]) at those appearances. In 2001 he was introduced to the up-and-coming producer Kanye West<\/a> and began contributing keyboard music<\/a> and backing vocals to tracks by other artists, among them Alicia Keys<\/a>, Talib Kweli, and the Black-Eyed Peas<\/a>. During that time he adopted the stage name John Legend.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Legend worked on West\u2019s debut<\/a> album as a rap musician, The College Dropout (2004). After West formed his own label (G.O.O.D. Records) with Sony Music, the first album he produced was Legend\u2019s major-label debut, Get Lifted, released in the final week of 2004. Buoyed by the ballad \u201cOrdinary People,\u201d the album rose up European and American popular-music and rhythm-and-blues charts. It garnered eight Grammy Award<\/a> nominations and won for best R&B album and best male R&B vocal performance. In addition, Legend took the award for best new artist. His sophomore effort, Once Again (2006), won plaudits as well as Legend\u2019s second Grammy for best male R&B vocal performance (for the single \u201cHeaven\u201d). Legend was a cowinner (with Joss Stone and Van Hunt) of the award for best R&B performance by a duo or group with vocals for their rendition of the Sly and the Family Stone<\/a> song<\/a> \u201cFamily Affair<\/a>\u201d on the tribute album Different Strokes by Different Folks.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Britannica Quiz<\/p>\n Oscar-Worthy Movie Trivia<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n <\/a><\/p>\n Legend\u2019s popularity continued with his 2008 studio release, Evolver. His 2010 collaboration with the Roots<\/a>, Wake Up!, won three Grammys\u2014best R&B album, best traditional R&B vocal performance (\u201cHang On in There\u201d), and best R&B song (\u201cShine\u201d). In 2013 his album Love in the Future yielded the smash hit single \u201cAll of Me.\u201d The following year Legend and rapper Common<\/a> recorded the gospel-influenced song \u201cGlory<\/a>,\u201d written by them for the film Selma<\/a> (2014). The song, which invokes<\/a> a call to end racial injustice, won both a Golden Globe Award<\/a> and an Academy Award<\/a> for best original song.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Legend\u2019s fifth studio album, Darkness and Light (2016), yielded the hit song \u201cLove Me Now\u201d and featured collaborations with Chance the Rapper<\/a>, Miguel, and Brittany Howard<\/a> of Alabama Shakes<\/a>. Bigger Love appeared in 2020, and it later won a Grammy for best R&B album. Two years later he released Legend, a double album that drew particular praise for its uptempo tracks.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n In 2017 Legend coproduced August Wilson<\/a>\u2019s Jitney<\/a> on Broadway, and he received a Tony Award<\/a> when the drama was named best play revival. The following year Legend played the title role in a well-received live telecast of the 1970 rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar<\/a>. As a coproducer, he garnered a Creative Arts Emmy Award<\/a> when the show won for best live variety special. With that honor, he completed his EGOT. In 2019 Legend became a coach on the televised singing competition The Voice<\/a>.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\t\tQuick Facts<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t(Show\u00a0more)<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n <\/p>\n Legend also won praise for his philanthropic efforts, in particular his work to improve educational opportunities in poor communities<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"Empty](\"https:\/\/cdn.britannica.com\/23\/114923-131-785286EA\/projection-screen-movie-theater-cinema.jpg\")
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