MANILA, Philippines – Legend. His name says it all, and it’s quite a name to live up to. But while pop stars come and go, John Legend has been able to sustain a successful music career for over 13 years. 

While Legend’s career began to soar after his collaborations with popular rapper Kanye West, where he sang the hooks on many of West’s popular hits, his story begins long before they met.

Like many soul veterans, Legend got his start in church. “I helped pay my way through college by working as a music director at a church,” Legend said during an interview on his official YouTube account. It was the first type of music he was exposed to. 

“Many soul singers in American history got their start singing in a black church,” he said. But Legend has come a long way from his church days, while remaining loyal to his gospel beginnings.

He makes no attempts to hide his rough, deep, raspy soulful voice – the one that he honed so early on in his musical career.

This is in sharp contrast to many of his contemporaries, mainstream R&B performers with a crisp and cleaner sound, and this goes without mentioning performers who rely on auto-tune to pump out a Billboard Hot 100 hit. And he’s been able to make 7 of those so far. 

Among his most popular hits are “Used to Love You,” “Save Room,” and more recently, “Everybody Knows” and “You and I.” 

His latest single “All of Me,” from his 4th studio album Love in the Future, is currently at number 23 on the Billboard charts. 

Growing up in Ohio, USA, John Roger Stephens (Legend’s birth name) excelled in both academics and music. He graduated salutatorian in high school and was accepted to top universities in the United States including Georgetown, Morehouse College, and the University of Pennsylvania, where he received his undergraduate degree.  

He was a management consultant for the Boston Consulting Group in the early 2000s, while working on producing, writing and recording his own music. While he began working behind the scenes for top-selling artists like Lauryn Hill, Britney Spears, Jay-Z and Kanye West, his solo career began to take off in 2004 with the release of his first album Get Lifted. 

The singer also doesn’t shy away from politics and controversial issues. In 2008, Legend sang in a campaign video for current United States President Barack Obama called “Yes We can.” And just this year, he made his voice heard when he commented on the civil unrest in Ferguson, Missouri, in the United States, saying police in Ferguson were “intentionally trying to inflame the situation” and “wanted an excuse” to use excessive force. 

Social awareness is also reflected in his music. He recorded an album with The Roots called “Wake Up!” in 2010, named after the title track on the album Wake Up Everybody, originally by 70s group Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes. The songs on the album looks at social issues among poor and other marginalized Americans in the United States.

Legend was recently seen as one of the headlining acts at the Singapore Grand Prix Season 2014, which Jennifer Lopez, Robbie Williams, the Pet Shop Boys, among others.  

Last time he was in the Philippines was in 2009 for the Revolver tour at the Smart Araneta Coliseum. The 9-time Grammy award-winner is back again and returns to the same venue for the Asian leg of this tour. He arrived in the country on Wednesday, September 24, two days prior to the show.  – Rappler.com