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FunTranscript
00:01Sex.
00:02The normal tragedy waiting to happen.
00:06A well-made song will take you places that you would never expect to go.
00:10We have become pop stars.
00:14You are saving the world.
00:15This is our mission.
00:16What the?
00:17Mercer!
00:30The End
00:43I'm John Legend.
00:57This show is called Words and Music.
01:22Come on and go.
01:27With me.
01:31There's something new for you.
01:36To see.
01:39Come on and go.
01:44With me.
01:47Yeah, yeah.
01:49There's something new for you.
01:54To see.
01:56Just relax.
01:58Just relax.
02:00Just relax.
02:02Just relax.
02:03Just relax.
02:05Just relax.
02:07Oh.
02:08Oh.
02:09Oh.
02:10Oh.
02:11Oh.
02:12Oh.
02:13Oh.
02:14Oh.
02:15Oh.
02:16Oh.
02:17Oh.
02:18Oh.
02:19Oh.
02:20Oh.
02:22I've got something new for you.
02:24When it hits you.
02:25When it hits you.
02:26Wonder what to do.
02:27Relax.
02:28Let me move you.
02:29Don't resistance in the air.
02:30Just one taste will take you there.
02:31Let it flow right through you.
02:32I know you're getting tired of the same old thing.
02:35Why I'ma break the rules when I change the game.
02:37You'll be screaming my name.
02:39I'ma take your places you've never seen.
02:42You could picture this in your wildest dreams.
02:44But don't fear.
02:45Cause you're here.
02:46You're here.
02:47You're here.
02:48With me.
02:49And your dreams.
02:50Oh.
02:51Oh.
02:52Oh.
02:53Oh.
02:54Oh.
02:55Oh.
02:56Oh.
02:57Oh.
02:58Oh.
02:59Oh.
03:00Oh.
03:01Oh.
03:02Oh.
03:03Oh.
03:04Oh.
03:05With me
03:06Let's get lifted
03:09I'm gonna get you high
03:16I'm really gonna blow your mind
03:18We'll get lifted
03:20You're gonna feel it in your soul
03:27Maybe you will lose control
03:30We'll get lifted
03:31Once you take a hit with this
03:44You won't ever wanna quit
03:47You'll be so addicted
03:51Or have you been spinning round and round
03:56Crazy, baking, freaky sounds
03:58You won't want to come down
04:03But I'll be seeing things and hallucinating
04:07Even walking funny cause your legs are shaking
04:10All night we'll be blazing
04:14I'll take you four to the other side
04:18We can get high and enjoy the ride
04:21Hold tight
04:23We'll be alright
04:25We'll get lifted
04:28I'm gonna get you high
04:35I'm really gonna blow your mind
04:37We'll get lifted
04:39We're gonna feel it in your soul
04:46Maybe you will lose control
04:49We'll get lifted
04:50Hey
04:53Oh
04:55Oh
04:58Come on
05:01Come on and go with me
05:03I'll take you high
05:07High
05:10I
05:12I will show you
05:14I'll take you high
05:20High
05:22I
05:24I
05:24I
05:24I
05:24I
05:24I
05:24I
05:24I
05:24I
05:26I
05:28I
05:30I
05:31I'll take you there
05:32Come on let me take you there
05:35Yeah
05:37Yeah
05:39Words
06:00And music
06:01Now people always ask me
06:04Which comes first
06:05The lyrics or the melody
06:07I usually start
06:09With the musical chords
06:11And
06:11Then I start singing
06:13A vocal melody
06:14And
06:14I see where those things lead me
06:16I
06:17Mumble
06:18Nonsense
06:19Syllables that make no sense
06:22Over the melody
06:24Until the lyrics sing themselves
06:27To me
06:28And when the words
06:29And the music
06:32Are a perfect match
06:34The combination
06:35Feels
06:37Inevitable
06:38Kind of like a good marriage
06:41My first album
06:43Came out on December 28th
06:462004
06:47On my 26th birthday
06:50A day my life changed forever
06:53The album was called
06:55Get Lifted
06:56Tonight I would like to share
06:59With you the story
07:00Of how I became the man
07:03The artist
07:04Who wrote those songs
07:06And made that record
07:08It was quite a journey
07:09I started the album
07:12And tonight's show
07:13With the album's title track
07:15When I decided to call the album
07:18Get Lifted
07:18I was borrowing
07:19A phrase from Sunday morning church service
07:22A phrase that could mean
07:24Spiritual
07:25Elevation
07:27But of course
07:29I was creating a secular album
07:31An album of soul music
07:33And I'm not the first to do that
07:34Soul music has a rich tradition
07:36Of artists who straddled that line
07:38Between the sacred
07:39And the secular
07:41Artists like
07:42Sam Cooke
07:44Who took gospel music
07:46And changed the lyrics
07:47From the sacred
07:48To the secular
07:49Ray Charles
07:51Took a church song
07:52Called It Must Beat Jesus
07:54And turned it into
07:54I Got a Woman
07:56Aretha Franklin
07:58The daughter of a popular preacher
08:01Took her gospel singing
08:02And musical style
08:04And infused it
08:05Into soul music
08:06That shot to the top
08:08Of the pop charts
08:09Marvin Gaye
08:11Was another preacher's kid
08:13He made sensual music
08:15Infused with the spiritual
08:18So to understand me
08:20And where
08:21My music comes from
08:22You have to go back
08:24To the church
08:25I was born
08:26And raised
08:27In Springfield, Ohio
08:29I was born as
08:30John Roger Stevens
08:32To Phyllis
08:33And Ronald Stevens
08:34My family belonged
08:36To the Pentecostal church
08:37And I was there
08:38From the womb
08:39We weren't just
08:40Part of the church
08:41We were the first
08:42Family of the church
08:43My grandfather
08:44Was our pastor
08:45My grandmother
08:46Was our church organist
08:47My mother was the choir director
08:48And my father was a deacon
08:50Who taught Sunday school
08:51Played the drums
08:51Sing in the choir
08:52And drove the church band
08:53So I grew up
08:54Going to a lot of church
08:56A lot of church
08:58Bible study
09:00Revival service
09:02Choir rehearsal
09:03It shaped every aspect
09:05Of my world
09:06It was the foundation
09:06For my music
09:08My family
09:09And my education
09:10Now if you know anything
09:12About the Pentecostal church
09:13Our services are not
09:15Boring
09:16It's one of the more
09:17Charismatic and energetic
09:19Denominations within
09:20The Protestant tradition
09:22We shout
09:24We dance
09:25We speak in tongues
09:27And the music serves
09:29As the catalyst
09:30And the soundtrack
09:31For all of that
09:32So my childhood
09:34Was steeped
09:35In that music
09:36Steeped in the church
09:38And that was the foundation
09:39For everything I did
09:40After that
09:40When I got to college
09:41I tried to make
09:42As much music
09:43As I could
09:44I sang in an acapella group
09:46I started writing
09:47My own solo music
09:48And I still found a way
09:50To keep playing in church
09:52I was hired to lead
09:54The music
09:54At an African Methodist
09:56Episcopal church
09:57In Scranton, Pennsylvania
09:58It was at that church
10:00In Scranton
10:01That I met a young lady
10:02In my choir
10:03Her name was
10:03Tara Michelle
10:04Now Tara loved
10:06To sing in the choir
10:07She also loved my music
10:09And she believed in me
10:10And she also happened
10:11To be very close
10:13With a woman
10:13Named Miss Lauren Hill
10:16Yes
10:17Now Miss Hill
10:18Had already taken off
10:19With the Fugees
10:20By that time
10:21Killing Me Softly
10:23Was a massive song
10:24The score
10:25Was a massive album
10:27She was beautiful
10:28Stylish
10:29Phenomenally gifted
10:30As a singer
10:31And rapper
10:32And actor
10:33And she was working
10:34On her
10:35Highly anticipated
10:36Solo debut
10:37So Tara wanted me
10:39To meet her
10:40And she said
10:41Johnny
10:41Why don't you drive me
10:43Over to Lauren's studio
10:44In New Jersey
10:45It's just a couple
10:46Hours away
10:46So we drove to a house
10:48Just outside of
10:49Newark, New Jersey
10:50The house had a studio
10:51In the basement
10:52And there was this
10:53Incredible collective
10:54Of musicians in the room
10:56Several gifted
10:57Writers and producers
10:59And instrumentalists
11:00Who helped her make
11:01The album were all there
11:03And they were writing
11:04A song
11:04And I was trying
11:06My best to stay
11:07Out of the way
11:08Just witness the magic
11:10Stay in the cut
11:11But when they were
11:13Taking a break
11:14From writing
11:15My friend Tara said
11:17Johnny
11:17This is your opportunity
11:19Why don't you sit down
11:20At that piano
11:21And play and sing
11:22A couple songs
11:23For Lauren
11:24So she can hear
11:25What you can do
11:26So I sit down
11:27At the piano
11:28And I start
11:28Singing for her
11:30And I sang
11:31An original song
11:32That I'd written
11:32In school
11:33Called Too Late
11:34And then I sang
11:35A Stevie Wonder song
11:37Called Love's in Need
11:38And I guess she liked
11:40What she heard
11:40And she asked me
11:41To play piano
11:43On the track
11:43They were working on
11:45There
11:45You remember that one
11:53Everything is everything
11:54Well that was me
12:03On the piano
12:03Now I didn't know
12:05If they were going
12:05To use the track
12:06I didn't know
12:07If they were going
12:07To use my piano parts
12:09For the track
12:09But a few months later
12:10I get a call
12:11From a woman
12:12Named Suzette Williams
12:13She was an A&R
12:15At Columbia Records
12:17Now she was
12:18Lauryn Hill's A&R
12:19She wanted to know
12:20How to spell my name
12:23For the album credit
12:24So I said
12:24Oh
12:25You want to know
12:27How to spell my name
12:28I said it's
12:30John R. Stevens
12:32For some reason
12:33I thought I should include
12:34My middle initial R
12:35John R. Stevens
12:38Sounds like
12:38Great lawyer
12:39Somebody who could
12:41Do your taxes
12:42Not the best stage name
12:43John R. Stevens
12:44But then they asked me
12:46How much I wanted
12:47To get paid
12:47And I said
12:48I don't know
12:50I'll call you back
12:51So I reached out
12:55To my friend
12:55Who had some
12:57Experience interning
12:58In the music business
12:59And I said
13:00How much should I ask for
13:01He said
13:02Ask for $500
13:04I was like
13:06Alright
13:07That was a lot of money
13:08For me back then
13:09So I called
13:09Suzette Williams
13:10Back up
13:11And I said
13:11I would like
13:13$500
13:14Suzette quickly agreed
13:20Quickly
13:20No negotiation necessary
13:24I told you
13:27That was a lot of money
13:28For me
13:28So it was all good
13:29A couple months later
13:30The miseducation
13:31Of Lauryn Hill
13:32Comes out
13:33And it just takes
13:34The world by storm
13:35You remember
13:36What it was like
13:37It was the most
13:38Talked about
13:39Most acclaimed
13:40Album of the moment
13:41She wins
13:42All the Grammys
13:43She's on top
13:44Of the world
13:44And for a while
13:45That's my
13:46Claim to fame
13:47I went back to school
13:49For my senior year
13:50I told everybody
13:51That's me
13:52Playing piano
13:53On track 13
13:54Everything is everything
13:55Look at my name
13:56John R. Stevens
13:57I said it so much
13:58They started calling me
13:59Track 13
14:00Meeting Lauryn Hill
14:04At that point
14:04In my life
14:05Was an amazing
14:06Stroke of luck
14:08They say
14:09Luck is when
14:10Opportunity
14:11Meets preparation
14:12And I'm so glad
14:15I was ready
14:16To make the most
14:17Of that opportunity
14:18Another lucky break
14:20Happened a few years
14:21Later when I was
14:21Living in New York
14:23City
14:23I had graduated
14:24One of my roommates
14:26Was a fellow
14:27Penn alum
14:28Name was
14:29Devo Harris
14:30Devo introduced me
14:32To his cousin
14:33An up and coming
14:35Rapper and producer
14:36From Chicago
14:37His name was
14:38Kanye West
14:39Yes
14:40Kanye West
14:41Now Kanye and I
14:42Began to work together
14:43Writing songs
14:44And making demos
14:45When Kanye's first album
14:47The College Dropout
14:48Became a huge hit
14:49I was all over it
14:50My profile was rising
14:52Kanye was producing me
14:55He really elevated my sound
14:56And made it feel more urgent
14:58And more ready for prime time
15:00He brought his hip-hop production
15:02And sensibility together
15:04With my musicality
15:05And my roots
15:06And gospel
15:06And soul
15:07And we made something
15:09Together
15:10That was fresh
15:11And beautiful
15:13Get Lifted
15:14Became what it was
15:16Because we worked together
15:17Because of our connection
15:19The merging
15:19Of our sounds
15:20And I also had a pretty
15:22Significant impact
15:23On the College Dropout
15:24As well
15:25You hear my voice
15:26And musicianship
15:27On a lot of his records
15:28Too
15:29Even when you don't know
15:30It's me
15:30I'm the one who sang
15:32That high-pitched
15:33Exotic sounding instrument
15:35On Jesus Walks
15:36I said
15:37That was me
15:48And my music kept evolving
15:51Kept getting better
15:53And I could feel
15:53That I was getting closer
15:54And closer to where
15:55I wanted to be
15:55In fact
15:56During this time
15:57Before I got a record deal
15:58I wrote most of what
16:00Became
16:01Get Lifted
16:02Songs like
16:03Used to Love You
16:04And Let's Get Lifted
16:06And So High
16:07And more
16:08And speaking of
16:10Used to Love You
16:10Shall we sing that song
16:12Together everybody?
16:14That was my very first single
16:16Some of you might be shy
16:18But I want you to sing
16:19Like nobody's paying attention
16:21Are you ready?
16:22Your part's really simple
16:27You say
16:27Holla, holla, holla
16:30Are you ready?
16:37One
16:37Two
16:38Three
16:38Sing it
16:39Come on
16:45Maybe
16:51It's me
16:53Maybe
16:54I bore you
16:55No, no
16:57It's my fault
16:58Cause I can't afford you
17:00Maybe
17:02Baby
17:03Puffy
17:05Or Jay-Z
17:06Would all be better for you
17:08Cause all I could do
17:10Was love you
17:11Baby
17:12When I used to love you
17:14There's nothing that I wouldn't do
17:16I went through the fire for you
17:19Anything you ask me
17:21But I'm tired
17:23Of living this life
17:24It's getting harder
17:25To justify
17:27Realize
17:28That I just don't love you
17:30Not like I used to
17:34Come on
17:39Maybe
17:45I should rob somebody
17:48So we could live like Whitney and Bobby
17:54It's probably my fault
17:57My bad
17:59My loss
18:00That you are a bobcast
18:03All I could do
18:04All I could do
18:04Is love you
18:05Baby
18:06When I used to love you
18:08There's nothing that I wouldn't do
18:10I went through the fire for you
18:13Anything you ask me to
18:15But I'm tired
18:17Of living this life
18:18It's getting harder
18:19To justify
18:20Realize
18:22That I just don't love you
18:24Not like I used to
18:27Come on
18:33Come on
18:33Come on
18:33Come on
18:35Come on
18:36Come on
18:36Come on
18:37Come on
18:37Come on
18:37Come on
18:38Come on
18:47Come on
18:48Come on
18:49Oh baby
18:49When I used to love you
18:51There's nothing that I wouldn't do
18:53I went through the fire for you
18:56But I'm not gonna play the fool
18:58No, I can't live this life
19:01And I can't justify
19:03And I can't make it my right
19:06Cause I don't love you
19:08Not like I used to
19:10Come on
19:15Come on
19:16Come on
19:17Come on
19:18Come on
19:23Give it up for yourself
19:27You sound good
19:28Now if you remember
19:31The music video
19:32For used to love you
19:34You'll remember
19:34We set it out of church
19:37With a choir in the background
19:39Singing the holla holla hollas
19:41And some of my earliest
19:43Memories are being
19:45In choir rehearsal
19:46With my mother
19:48With my maternal grandmother
19:50I wasn't allowed to sing in the choir
19:52Just yet
19:53But I was young
19:54And I was hungry
19:55And I kept
19:56Begging for them
19:57To let me sing
19:59Let me join the choir
20:01They finally let me join the choir
20:02When I was
20:03Seven years old
20:04And I was the only young kid
20:06In the choir
20:06And they had to make a
20:07Special custom choir rope
20:09For seven year old Johnny
20:10I was singing in the church
20:12And that gave me
20:13That first taste
20:14Of the joy
20:15And the thrill
20:16That I still feel
20:18Right now
20:20When I'm with you
20:22The feeling of making
20:23A crowd happy
20:24From connecting with them
20:27And feeding off
20:28Each other's energy
20:29And when you hear me
20:30Playing the piano today
20:31You're hearing my maternal
20:33Grandmother's influence
20:34I would go to her house
20:35On Sundays after church
20:37And she would teach me
20:39How to play gospel piano
20:40And my parents were
20:42Prominent in the community
20:43My dad was a factory worker
20:46Built trucks for a living
20:47But he's also an artist
20:49A painter and a tailor
20:51And my mother was this
20:52Brilliant bright light
20:54A gorgeous talented woman
20:56With a beautiful singing voice
20:57And she was beloved
20:59In our community
20:59A sort of local celebrity
21:01She sang at a lot of the
21:03Churches in our area
21:04And when I got a little older
21:06My mom would bring me along
21:07To sing and play with her too
21:09So you would look at all that
21:11And say
21:11What a wonderful family
21:13They're raising their kids
21:14In a healthy environment
21:15And giving them
21:16A good solid foundation
21:18But in the middle of all that
21:21A major trauma
21:22Shook our family to the core
21:25And it caused a rupture
21:28That was lasting
21:31And really affected
21:31My entire adolescence
21:33When I was 10
21:35My maternal grandmother
21:38The one who taught me
21:39To play piano
21:40Died suddenly
21:41From heart failure
21:44She was only 58 years old
21:47I was heartbroken
21:50Our whole family
21:51And community were
21:52But nobody was more lost
21:55Than my mother
21:57They were so close
21:59They'd led the choir together
22:01Spent a lot of time together
22:02And after her mother died
22:03My mother spiraled into
22:05Depression
22:06And addiction
22:08And for a decade
22:09She was out of our lives
22:12In losing my grandmother
22:15Then my mother for a time
22:17I lost the two people
22:19Who were most influential
22:20In my music
22:21And education
22:22They had disappeared
22:23These losses
22:26Forced all of us
22:28To step up
22:29But it especially
22:31Forced me to step up
22:33As a musician
22:34I had lost my mother
22:37And my grandmother
22:37But our church
22:38Had lost their organist
22:40And their choir director
22:41So suddenly
22:43I had to play
22:44The keyboard
22:45Direct the choir
22:46Assuming musical
22:48And leadership responsibilities
22:50At the age of about
22:5212 or 13
22:52That were very far
22:54Beyond my years
22:55But all of that
22:56Helped me prepare
22:58For what was to come
23:00Because
23:01When you're leading
23:02The music in the church
23:04You're arranging vocals
23:05You're coming up
23:05With ideas for what to sing
23:07You're in charge
23:08Of making the service
23:09Move
23:09Turns out to be
23:11Perfect training
23:12For what I do now
23:14And as I was moving
23:16Into adolescence
23:17I kept growing
23:18As a musician
23:19My musical horizon
23:21Started to broaden
23:22Beyond gospel music
23:23As well
23:24This is the early 90s
23:26So I got into
23:27R&B from the 90s
23:29Remember the 90s?
23:30Some of y'all do
23:31I love music
23:33Like Jodeci
23:35And
23:35Boys to men
23:37Whitney Houston
23:38Anita Baker
23:39Luther Vandross
23:40Guy
23:41Tony, Tony, Tony
23:43And then my dad
23:45Would play us music
23:46From his era too
23:47He loved Motown
23:48He loved the
23:50Smokey Robinson classics
23:52And
23:52Temptations
23:53He would
23:54Walk around the house
23:55Singing
23:55I've got sunshine
23:57On a cloudy day
24:01So many great soul artists
24:04A lot of those same artists
24:06Who bridge the sacred
24:08And the secular
24:09And those artists
24:10Are still with me
24:12They're still in my head
24:14And you can hear them
24:16In my music
24:17You can hear them
24:19In songs like
24:20This one
24:21From Get Lifted
24:23It's the oldest song
24:25I wrote
24:25On Get Lifted
24:27A song
24:28Called
24:29Stay With You
24:30We've been together for a while now
24:48Growing stronger every day now
24:52Feels so good and there is no doubt
24:56I will stay with you
25:00As each morning brings a sunrise
25:03And the flowers bloom in springtime
25:07On my love and you can rely
25:11And I'll stay with you
25:14And I'll stay with you
25:15I will stay with you
25:18Through the yars and the downs
25:22I will stay with you
25:26When no one else is around
25:29When the dark clouds arrive
25:33I will stay by your side
25:37I know it will be alright
25:40I will stay with you
25:45Though relationships can get old
25:55Have the tendency to grow cold
25:59We have something like a miracle
26:02Yeah
26:03And I'll stay with you
26:06I will stay with you
26:10Through the yars and the downs
26:14I will stay with you
26:17When no one else is around
26:21When the dark clouds arrive
26:25I will stay by your side
26:28And I know it will be alright
26:32I will stay with you
26:36And I'll be here
26:39Heartaches and pain
26:41Through it all
26:46We will remain
26:48Yeah
26:50In this life
26:53We all know
26:54Friends may come
26:57And they may go
26:58But through the yars I know
27:01I will stay
27:03In the end I know
27:07That we'll find
27:08Love so beautiful and divine
27:12We'll be lovers for a lifetime
27:16But I'll stay with you
27:19I will stay with you
27:21I will stay with you
27:23Through the yars and the downs
27:27I will stay with you
27:30When no one else is around
27:34When the dark clouds arrive
27:37I will stay with you
27:39I will stay by your side
27:42And I know it will be alright
27:45And I'll stay with you
27:49Everything will be fine
27:52And I'll stay with you
27:56Through the end of all time
28:00I will stay with you
28:06Let's talk about ordinary people
28:21Ordinary people was almost a black eyed pea song
28:29One day in 2004
28:34Will.i.am invited me to a session
28:37To write with him
28:38And he asked me to come
28:39And write some hooks
28:40For the black eyed peas
28:41And he would just play me
28:43Musical ideas and beats
28:44And I would sing
28:45Whatever ideas came to my head
28:47So he starts playing this beat for me
28:49I'm listening
28:55And eventually
28:56I start singing a little bit
28:59I said
29:00We love all the memories we've all
29:03We love all the memories we've all
29:09I told you my songs start out as
29:14Gibberish first
29:16I just sing melodies
29:19Until I figure out what I want to say
29:20And I finally figured out that night
29:23What the lyric for the chorus
29:25For that song would be
29:26And I recorded the chorus
29:29For ordinary people that night
29:31And it was supposed to be
29:34A black eyed peas chorus
29:36With a hip hop beat
29:38But after a few days
29:40I told Will.i.am
29:41You know what?
29:43You can keep all the other ideas we wrote
29:45But I want to keep ordinary people for myself
29:48I'm glad I kept it for myself
29:51Aren't you glad I kept ordinary people for myself?
29:53The song really connected with people in 2005
30:03That stark, simple arrangement
30:06Didn't sound like anything else on R&B radio
30:09And I think people connected with the honesty
30:13The heart and the lyrics
30:16And that became my signature
30:19I wrote the songs that helped people
30:24Voice their most intimate thoughts on love
30:27The ballads that helped them profess their commitment
30:30And grapple with the complexities of their relationships
30:33And honestly
30:36I didn't know what I was talking about
30:39I wasn't in a serious relationship at the time
30:41But my family inspired me
30:46I told you the story of my mother getting caught up in addiction
30:50She was even incarcerated for a time
30:54And I've learned through experience
30:58That people going through those mental health and addiction struggles
31:02Don't need more punishment
31:04And more brutality
31:05They need more help
31:09They need more love
31:10You'll be happy to know
31:13My mother's been sober for decades now
31:15She's in good health
31:19She's a wonderful grandmother
31:21We love having her back in our lives
31:23And she's been one of my inspirations
31:25When I put myself out there
31:27For a more just and merciful criminal justice system
31:31For ending mass incarceration
31:34Around the year 2000
31:37My mother started to return to our family
31:41She literally had a come to Jesus moment
31:44Where she re-embraced her faith
31:47And started to surround herself with people who could support her
31:50Help her get off drugs and stay off drugs
31:53She even reconciled with my father
31:57Yes, my parents remarried
32:00A fairy tale ending
32:06Until it wasn't
32:09Right around the time
32:13I was writing this song, Ordinary People
32:15My parents had been remarried for a few years
32:19And they decided they didn't want to be remarried anymore
32:21They got divorced for a second time
32:24So they were my inspiration
32:31When I wrote that song
32:33We're just ordinary people
32:36We don't know which way to go
32:38Girl, I'm in love with you
32:44But this ain't the honeymoon
32:47We're past the infatuation phase
32:51Right in the thick of love
32:54Right in the thick of love
32:56At times we get sick of love
32:59It seems like we argue everyday
33:02I know I misbehave
33:07You've made your mistakes
33:10We boast
33:11We boast
33:13I'm left to grow
33:14Though love sometimes hurts
33:19I steal
33:20But you first
33:22And we'll make this thing work
33:25But I think
33:26We should take it slow
33:29Which is ordinary people
33:32We don't know which way to go
33:35We don't know which way to go
33:38Cause we're ordinary people
33:43Maybe we should take it slow
33:49Take it slow
33:50Take it slow
33:52Oh, oh, oh
33:56This time we'll take it slow
34:01Take it slow
34:04Oh, oh, oh
34:07This time we'll take it slow
34:13This ain't a movie, no
34:18No fairytale conclusion, y'all
34:21It gets more confusing everyday
34:24Oh, oh
34:26Sometimes it's heaven sent
34:29Then we head back to hell again
34:32We kiss, then we make them on the way
34:36I hang up, you call
34:40We rise and we fall
34:43And we feel like you're just walking away
34:48But as our love advances
34:52We take second chances
34:55Though it's not a fantasy
34:58I still want you to stay
35:03We're just ordinary people
35:06We don't know which way to go
35:10We don't know which way to go
35:11Cause we're ordinary people
35:17Maybe we should take it slow
35:23Oh, oh
35:25We're just ordinary people
35:28Maybe we should take it slow
35:46Take it slow
35:49Oh, oh, oh
35:52This time we'll take it slow
35:58Take it slow
36:01Oh, oh, oh
36:04This time we'll take it slow
36:10Take it slow
36:12Take it slow
36:13Take it slow
36:14Take it slow
36:17Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh
36:19This time we'll take it slow
36:20This time we'll take it slow
36:22Take it slow
36:24Take it slow
36:26Take it slow
36:29Baby, we'll take it slow This time we'll take
36:59Oh, we'll take, hey, yeah We'll take, hey, yeah
37:19Oh, it's slow
37:49So I told you about my unfortunate stage name, John R. Stephens
37:54So you may be wondering, how did John R. Stephens become John Legend?
38:03Take you back to the early 2000s during those sessions with Kanye
38:09And we were working with a spoken word artist from Chicago named Jay Ivey
38:14Now Jay heard me singing, playing and doing all I was doing on those college dropout tracks
38:22And he was impressed
38:24He said, man, we're going to have to call you the legend
38:28Okay, obviously I'm an old soul
38:33I've got this throwback voice, this throwback style
38:36And he thought I should be called John Legend
38:40And he started calling me that, Kanye started calling me that
38:44And I laughed it off at first
38:46But after a while, a bunch of people in our crew started calling me John Legend
38:49Then Kanye's putting out mixtapes and referring to me as John Legend
38:53He put out another mixtape, put it in the credits
38:56Song by John Legend
38:58All right, all right
39:01So this name I hadn't officially chosen was starting to gather some momentum
39:07I was gently being nudged in that direction
39:09And I had to make a decision
39:12I'm starting to think about it
39:14Should I make it official or not?
39:17I'd been performing as John Stevens for my entire life
39:20But more and more people began to know me as John Legend
39:23So I had to decide whether or not I was going to assume this stage name
39:26Now part of me is saying
39:27How are you going to call yourself Legend?
39:30You don't even have a record deal yet
39:32There
39:34But maybe the better part of me said
39:37You know what?
39:39We're going to make this work
39:41This name is going to announce my presence
39:44It's going to make people pay attention
39:47And then I just got to go and live up to it
39:49And I believed in myself enough as a musician, as an artist
39:53To believe that I had the ability within me
39:56To live up to this name
39:58And I didn't want to doubt myself so much
40:00That I wouldn't take the name
40:01Because I was afraid of the name
40:04It was time for me to stop hedging my bets
40:09Stop worrying about my backup plan
40:12Start to bet on myself and on my future
40:17Have faith in myself and my purpose
40:20So I was like, fuck it
40:22I'm going to call myself John Legend
40:28Okay
40:30So I'm in the studio calling myself John Legend
40:33I'm introducing myself to record labels
40:35It's John Legend
40:36And that's when my lawyer told me
40:39We had to trademark the name John Legend
40:44And lo and behold
40:47There's a porn producer
40:50I kid you not
40:53A porn producer
40:54Who dabbled in rockabilly music
40:56And he went by the name
40:58Johnny Legend
41:00Now the key with trademark laws
41:04Is if you're in the same business
41:06You can't have a name
41:08That confuses the marketplace
41:09So the fact that he made music
41:11Made rockabilly music
41:13And his name was Johnny Legend
41:15There was a possible trademark infringement case
41:18So we had to figure this out
41:19We had to find Johnny Legend
41:22Negotiate with him
41:25Cut a mutually exclusive deal
41:27Stating that he was Johnny Legend
41:30And I was John Legend
41:32He wouldn't sue me
41:33I wouldn't sue him
41:35He wouldn't try to get into the soul music business
41:37Pretending to be John Legend
41:39And I'm happy to make clear
41:41That I kept my side of the agreement
41:43I didn't produce any porn
41:48Didn't make any rockabilly music
41:51Pretending to be Johnny Legend
41:54We worked it out
41:55So John Legend
41:58Signed to Columbia Records
42:01In May of 2004
42:03Get Lifted
42:05Came out
42:06Like I said
42:07On my 26th birthday
42:08December 28th
42:102004
42:11And you know what?
42:12It really did feel like
42:14A new birth
42:15That's why so much of the mood
42:18Of the album
42:18Is one
42:19Of optimism
42:21And celebration
42:23That's why I wrote
42:25Songs
42:26Like so high
42:28Baby since the day
42:48You came into my life
42:51You made me realize
42:57That we were born to fly
43:00You showed me everyday
43:05New possibility
43:07And you proved my fantasies
43:13Of love could really be
43:16Let's go
43:18To a place
43:20Only lovers go
43:22To a spot
43:24That we've never known
43:27To the top
43:28Of the clouds
43:29We're floating away
43:33Ooh
43:35This feels so crazy
43:37Oh
43:39This love is blazing
43:41Baby
43:43Maybe we're so high
43:45Walking on cloud nine
43:50So high
43:54So high
43:59Oh
44:01Maybe later we
44:08Could go
44:09Up to the moon
44:11We'll sail
44:15Among the stars
44:17Before
44:17The night is through
44:20And when morning comes
44:24We'll see the sun
44:25Is not so far
44:28And we can't get much closer
44:32To God
44:34Than where we are
44:35Oh we'll go
44:37To a place
44:39Only lovers go
44:41To a spot
44:43That we never know
44:46To the top
44:47Of the clouds
44:48We're floating away
44:51Ooh
44:54This feels so great
44:56Oh
44:58This love is blazing
44:59Baby
45:02When we're so high
45:04Walking on cloud nine
45:09So high
45:12So high
45:17And we're so high
45:18And we're so high
45:19Oh
45:20Oh
45:20Oh
45:20This feels so crazy
45:42Oh this love is blazing
45:46Baby
45:48Baby
45:48Baby we're so high
45:49Walking on cloud nine
45:55You got me up so high
45:58You got me up so high
46:02You got me up so high
46:06My shoes are scraping
46:08My shoes are scraping
46:11You got me up so high
46:13You got me up so high
46:17You got me up so high
46:21My shoes are scraping
46:23From the sky
46:25Yeah
46:31Yeah
46:33Yeah
46:36Let's go to the moon
46:42Let's go
46:46Let's go
46:48To the moon
46:50Let's go
46:59Go
47:01To the moon
47:06Baby
47:07So
47:15So
47:15So
47:19So
47:20So
47:24We're so high
47:33Oh
47:55You know I played you a couple beautiful songs about
48:00being deeply in love
48:03On get lifted
48:05But I was a fraud. I didn't know what I was talking about
48:10It wasn't until after that album that I actually
48:13Was able to know for myself what it felt like to be
48:17deeply in love
48:19Started in 2006 my second album
48:23Once again was about to come out. I had a photographer friend named Nabil Eldakin
48:28And he had the idea to make a music video for a song
48:31That he loved from once again a song called stereo and his video treatment would feature me and a love interest
48:39Who to cast?
48:41Well
48:42He had recently worked with this up-and-coming
48:45He was a performing model at a billabong photo shoot and he thought
48:49Maybe he should cast her so he showed me a picture of her and
48:54Asked me if I wanted her to play my love interest in the video and I I said yes
49:00I looked at those pictures and I was like yes, absolutely
49:05Please do cast her in the video and that's how I met my future wife Chrissy Teigen
49:11We shot that video in mid-september
49:192006
49:20We had instant chemistry and I
49:24Fell in love with her
49:28I fell in love with her sense of humor and how dynamic and spontaneous she is
49:33She's the fire to my ice she makes my life a lot more exciting and she can cook oh, yes
49:42She can cook lord. She can cook
49:45Make you want to write a song?
49:48So I proposed to her in 2011
49:51We got married in Italy on September 14th of 2013 our rehearsal dinner the night before our wedding was the exact
49:58Seven-year anniversary of the day we met and in another full circle moment on that day. We finished
50:06shooting the music video
50:08Directed by that same director and introduced us the bill out again
50:14For a very special song that I had written for Chrissy a song called all of me
50:21I was excited about it when I finished and I
50:24Wanted Chrissy to hear it, but I didn't play her the record. I sang it for her
50:28I whispered it in her ear
50:32And she cried I
50:35Don't want to embarrass her but she did cry the first time she heard this song
50:38She doesn't cry like every time she hears this song. She's heard it like a billion times now
50:43She cried the first time and she knew it was for her from the first lyric
50:49What would I do without your smart mouth?
50:52And for our wedding reception? I got to sing it live for the very first time and of course
51:00It's been a part of some of people's weddings and celebrations since then
51:04But the first time I sang it live was at our own
51:07wedding in the presence of our family and
51:11Friends and I want to sing it for you tonight. Is that all right?
51:14What would I do without your smart mouth?
51:32Drawing me in and you kicking me out
51:36You've got my head spinning
51:38No kidding, I can't pin you down
51:44What's going on in that beautiful mind?
51:48I'm on your magical mystery ride
51:52And I'm so dizzy
51:54And I'm so dizzy
51:55Don't know what hit me
51:57But I'll be all right
52:00My head's under water
52:04But I'm breathing fine
52:07You're crazy and I'm out of my mind
52:13Cause all of me loves all of you
52:20Love your curves and all your edges
52:24All your perfect end affections
52:28Give your all to me
52:31I'll give my all to you
52:35You're my end and my beginning
52:39Even when I lose, I'm winning
52:42Cause I give you all of me
52:50And you give me all of you
53:00How many times do I have to tell you
53:04Even when you cry and you're beautiful too
53:06The world is beating down
53:10I'm around through every move
53:14You're my downfall
53:17You're my muse
53:18My worst distraction
53:20My rhythm and blues
53:22I can't stop singing
53:24It's ringing in my head for you
53:30My head's under water
53:34But I'm breathing fine
53:37You're crazy and I'm out of my mind
53:42Cause all of me loves all of you
53:49Love your curves and all your edges
53:53Or your perfect imperfections
53:57Give your all to me
54:00I'll give my all to you
54:04You're my end and my beginning
54:07Even when I lose, I'm winning
54:11Cause I give you all of me
54:16Cause I give you all of me
54:18And you give me all of you
54:24Oh
54:26Oh
54:26Cries on the table
54:32We're both showing hearts
54:35We're risking it all
54:39Though it's hard
54:40Cause all of me
54:44Loves all of you
54:48Love your curves and all your edges
54:52All your perfect imperfections
54:56Give your all to me
54:59I'll give my all to you
55:03You're my end and my beginning
55:06Even when I lose, I'm winning
55:10Cause I give you all of me
55:16And you give me all of you
55:23Oh, I give you all of me
55:32And you give me all of you
55:41Oh
55:46Thank you so much
56:03I began my life as a musician in the church
56:12And music has always been about elevation for me
56:18Bringing us closer to God
56:21Helping us experience our humanity
56:25And our spirituality
56:26At their highest heights
56:29Helping us feel more love
56:34Making our world more beautiful
56:38And as we celebrate the album that began my career
56:44I'm so grateful
56:47I'm grateful for the legacy I'm building
56:52And for the soul music tradition
56:56That I'm continuing
56:59I'm so honored
57:02That my music has been a part of your lives
57:07And that you've been such a huge part of mine
57:13That we've been getting lifted together for all these years
57:18Here's to many more
57:23Thank you so much
57:26I give you all of me
57:37And you give me all of you
57:46Thank you
57:57Thank you
57:57Thank you
58:00Thank you
58:30Thank you
58:50Thank you
58:55Thank you
58:57Thank you
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