A Brief Biography of John Roger Stephens

THE HISTORY

The artist I have chosen for this project is John Roger Stephens, also known as John Legend. Born on December 28, 1978 in Springfield Ohio, John showed musical potential at an early age. His grandmother taught him to play his first instrument, which was the piano. He grew up playing and singing in his church’s choir. His talent at that age was amazing, labelling him a child prodigy. Growing up, he listened to music from Michael Jackson, LL Cool J, Boyz II Men, and MC Hammer, very influential African American artists. They were able to change the way people viewed African Americans with their music, and make the world a more accepting place. John knew that he wanted to become a vocalist, and was determined to make his dream possible. Throughout his early life he attended numerous talent contests, joined an acapella group called the Counterparts, and became choir director at Philadelphia’s University of Pennsylvania. His passion for music was very clear. Deciding to take matters into his own hands, he held small shows at nightclubs, bars, etc. expanding into New York, Boston, Atlanta, and more. He produced two self-titled CD demo’s which were sold at his shows. As he was getting ready to confront any musical producer that would accept him, a huge opportunity came. A former classmate of his introduced him to a cousin who was a new and upcoming artist/producer, Kanye West. John assisted Kanye West on his debut album, and has also worked with Alicia Keys, the Black Eyed Peas, and Janet Jackson. He was signed under Kanye West’s G.O.O.D. music, before securing a deal with Sony/Columbia Records in 2003. He released a few more live CDs leading up to the release of his debut album ‘Get Lifted’ on December 28, 2004, which consis...

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...why he is considerate. This song was written for one of the special ladies in his life, his wife Christine Teignen. The music video was shot weeks before their wedding, and features his fiancée (at the time) as the lead female. The video ends with a scene from their actual wedding. The lyrics “All of me, loves all of you. All your curves and your edges, all your perfect imperfections,” tell his love of his wife and everything about her, inside and out. In his eyes, she is perfect. “You’re my end and my beginning” is meant as a declaration that she means the world to him, and they will be together forever. Not many show their love for another in a way like this. It shows who John truly is; a loving, caring, and thoughtful individual with a huge heart. These reasons and more are why John Legend is my favourite artist, and will continue to be for a very long time