John Legend on Trump, family, forays into the film world, and new music about the darker side of love and life
It's been a bittersweet few weeks for Legend, fresh off the disappointment of having backed Hillary Clinton, and current tensions and troubles are reflected in his new work
IT has been a bittersweet few weeks for John Legend when I meet him in LA.
He’s on a high with the release of his new album Darkness and Light, but there’s no denying the Grammy-winning singer is also feeling a little low after Donald Trump became President-elect.
The singer is a friend and huge supporter of President Obama and he also joined Hillary Clinton on her campaign trail, playing a benefit concert in his home state of Ohio.
So after he finishes rehearsing for an award ceremony at the city’s famous Staples Center, it’s back to his hotel suite to talk.
“I was shocked,” he says of the election news. “I genuinely thought Hillary was going to win.
“The fact that she did win the popular vote by two million makes this result even more f***ed up. It shows how antiquated the electoral system is and how undemocratic it is.
“It’s crazy that our leader has been picked by the minority and is proposing to do so many dangerous things to the country and, in particular, to certain minority groups. These are scary times.”
For album number five, Legend, 37, wanted to “get more philosophical about what life means and what our time on earth means”.
He married model and TV presenter wife Chrissy Teigen in 2013 and in April, they welcomed their first child, a daughter.
He gushes: “Luna has changed us completely. We have a new object for our love.
“It’s beautiful, as a couple, to see something you created together. It’s a special bond when you have a child together.
“With my job we are planning to travel together as much as we can. I’m off to the UK for the BBC Awards and then I’ll be home for Christmas.
“Our first Christmas is going to be so much fun — although Luna won’t be aware of presents enough to even care.”
Legend says it was having a child that made him think about the darker side of love and life, a theme throughout his new album.
“Not to be morbid, but fatherhood makes you think about your mortality a bit more,” he smiles.
“You think about the future and the world you want to leave for your kid.
“There’s tension and trouble all around us and then there’s the conflicts we face individually in relationships.”
Two songs in particular on Darkness and Light deal with this.
Legend says Love Me Now is about making the most of time with the person you love because soon, one of you may be gone.
Similarly, Surefire was written with the idea that we can make it through and survive.
He says: “The lyrics are, ‘The world is a nightmare/Wake up and stay here/Let me be on your side/ We’ll make this our kingdom/Somewhere where good love conquers and not divide’.
“I think the whole album is about how purist love can withstand the darkness and trouble that is around us.”
The whole album is about how purist love can withstand the darkness and trouble that is around us.
Legend regards Darkness and Light as his best body of work — even better than its predecessor, 2013’s Love In The Future, which produced the ten-time Grammy winning musician’s mega-hit, All Of Me.
So how does he follow up a record which includes a hit so huge?
“You can’t think about one particular song,” he tells me. “And it’s never about making a slightly better version of the same song either.
“I’m just always trying to improve as a songwriter and an artist — it’s about making the best music wherever I am in my life right now and trying to get better.
“It’s going to be almost impossible to beat All Of Me when it comes to commercial success, but I’m so proud of this album and the quality of the songwriting which is the best of my career.”
Darkness And Light ★★★★
1. I Know Better
2. Penthouse Floor
3. Darkness and Light
4. Overload
5. Love Me Now
6. What You Do To Me
7. Surefire
8. Right By You (for Luna)
9. Temporarily Painless
10. How Can I Blame You
11. Same Old Story
12. Marching Into The Dark
This is a collaborative album for Legend with guest appearances from Alabama Shakes’ Brittany Howard on the outstanding title track, Miguel on Overload and Chance the Rapper on the album’s second single, Penthouse Floor.
Legend says: “It was great to work with people who are at the top of their field.
“I was very fortunate to be able to call on such gifted people to be a part of the record.
“Brittany is awesome. I loved her band’s album Sound & Color and that’s why I chose to work with producer Blake Mills, who produced that album.
“I reached out to Brittany through him and she brought a lot of energy and light into the studio. She’s an incredible vocalist.
“Then with Miguel, we are friends and Chance . . . well, he does remind me of Kanye.
“They are both from Chicago and have such a strong vision for who they are and who they want to be.
“They are also really great at making their career into a story and making their shows visually compliment the music.
“Kanye and I are both big fans of Chance’s and I feel he is the next big guy.”
A close friend of the troubled rapper, it was Kanye West who gave Legend his break when he was hired to sing on a number of West’s tracks. Legend says West has been a friend and mentor for the past 15 years.
He refuses to speculate on West since he was recently in hospital for a spell and then released following treatment for exhaustion and sleep deprivation after an onstage meltdown in Sacramento.
Legend says: “I don’t really want to talk about it right now because I feel like every time I say something, it goes too far.
“I don’t want to make people think I know a bunch of information that is not out there, so I will just let it be.”
Twitter can bring out the worst in people. They feel like they can say what they wouldn’t say in real life.
He will, however, say how pleased he’s been to see people supporting his good friend on social media.
Legend says: “Twitter can bring out the worst in people because they feel like they can say things they wouldn’t say in real life. But people are humans and they recognise human emotion and pain.
“When someone is going through a rough time, angels will surface and they won’t be mean about it.”
As well as his music, Legend has seen his work in movies take a step up recently, with his family relocating from New York to Los Angeles so he can be closer to his work in the city.
In 2015, he won a Best Original Song Oscar for Glory, the theme to Selma — a film about the 1965 voting rights marches, led by Martin Luther King.
He’s now trying his hand at acting with a starring role in La La Land, the forthcoming musical starring Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone which was directed by Whiplash director Damien Chazelle.
He plays Keith, a band mate of Gosling’s character.
“Damien approached me about the music and potentially to play the Keith,” says Legend proudly.
“He said he saw some similarities between the two of us so he thought it might be interesting for me to try and play him.
“I’d only acted in high school and didn’t have a lot of experience coming in to it.
“But I worked with a coach for a bit and really prepared for the role though I was a little nervous.”
Another movie Legend has been involved with through his production company Get Lifted is Southside With You — a film that tells the love story between Barack and Michelle Obama from their first date.
“It’s just a love story, it’s not political really,” explains Legend.
“I also wrote a song for it in the end credits called Start, which I am really proud of. I hope people see it because it is a really beautiful film.”
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And on his friendship with the Obamas and their legacy, Legend says just having a small role in supporting them makes him immensely proud.
“Their strength is in who they are and what they’ve achieved and done for the country,” he says. “For me to have a tiny role in supporting them and helping them get elected, I was so honoured.
“We’ve gotten to spend time with them over the years and we look forward to doing that when they are out of office.
“I think the nation should be grateful for what they’ve done.
“When they came into office, the economy was falling apart and 20million fewer people had health care.
“People were genuinely worried the world was falling apart and through Barack’s leadership, he’s been able to bring the country back from the abyss. But we’ve got comfortable enough that we elected a mad man to be President.”
And in the future, what does he think Obama will do next?
Legend says: “Obama is pretty young for an ex-President and so he will have the opportunity to do a lot in his life.
“He is also a really caring person and someone who has the power to inspire a lot of people.
“Hopefully he will be able to do that quite a bit and help galvanise people who are expressive and want the country to go in a positive direction.”
I don’t want to be in politics. I just want to help how I can with my music and use my position.
With a degree in English, focusing in African American Literature and Culture from the University of Pennsylvania, does Legend ever see a time when he might venture into politics?
“No,” he says decisively. “I feel like I am in politics now to the extent that I want to be.
“I don’t want to be a government official, I just want to help how I can with my music and use my position.
“Now, with Trump, I am just hoping for the best and preparing to speak out whenever there are issues we need to speak out about.
“We need to hold him accountable and hopefully we will get through these next four years unscathed.”
Darkness and Light is out now. John Legend performs at the BBC Music Awards on Monday, live on BBC1 from 8.30pm. For more information and tickets, visit bbc.co.uk/music.