How John Legend and Sufjan Stevens found the ’emotional wisdom’ in children’s music
As a music lover and an observer of the evolving landscape of pop culture, I find John Legend’s latest project particularly captivating. Having been a parent myself for many years now, I can appreciate the timeless quality he aims to achieve with his children’s album, ensuring it resonates with future generations.
Twenty years following the launch of his first album, it seemed that creating music for kids was an almost certain next step for John Legend.
The accomplished EGOT winner had expanded beyond his well-known R&B genre, releasing a Christmas album and writing his first musical. He had also spent several years as a coach on “The Voice” and landed a role portraying the son of God in a live television production of “Jesus Christ Superstar.”
Additionally, he shares a family life with his wife, renowned model and cookbook author Chrissy Teigen, along with their four children who are all younger than 9 years old.
“He began, chuckling, by sharing that it all originated from him playing a tune from his daughter’s Fisher-Price play mat.”
It’s quite apparent that Legend’s personal life and professional journey culminated in the creation of “My Favorite Dream”, especially considering the significant role his family plays in Teigen’s lifestyle empire, with her boasting 42 million Instagram followers. What might surprise many is that he collaborated on this LP with Sufjan Stevens, a renowned indie-folk artist who is often reclusive and is recognized for his soft vocal style and intricate concept albums centered around U.S. states.
45-year-old Legend agrees with the common sentiment. “However, I’ve admired him for two decades as a fan,” he adds.
On Friday, the outcome of their unexpected musical collaboration will be released – a lush and soothing assortment of tracks featuring abundant choral harmonies and peculiar chamber orchestra nuances. This collection is segmented into two categories: upbeat dance numbers ideal for parties and calming bedtime lullabies. Alongside Legend’s original compositions, the album includes renditions of “You Are My Sunshine” and Bob Marley’s “Three Little Birds.”
It came as quite a surprise when Legend was brought onto the Legend team, but in hindsight, it was just another intriguing decision by an artist who rose to fame in the late ’90s and early 2000s by contributing to albums by Lauryn Hill and Kanye West. In 2014, he scored his first No. 1 pop hit with the poignant piano ballad “All of Me,” a rarity on the charts at the time. Since then, he’s worked with producers like Blake Mills and Raphael Saadiq to create albums that offer diverse perspectives on his polished vocal style. As a devoted cinema-goer, I find his career choices as captivating as the most intriguing plot twists in my favorite films.
Says Stevens: “He’s a shape-shifter. I could feel the curiosity behind what he does.”
× Legend views each new project as “an exploration,” he shares, comfortably seated on a sofa in a West Hollywood home they share with Teigen as their creative hub. Above them lies Legend’s recording studio, while below, a spacious kitchen where his wife concocts recipes. Right by the front door stands an arcade game featuring a motorized claw to snag a stuffed toy.
“Legend explains that the results aren’t always predictable with his method. Instead, he aims for experiences that challenge him in various directions.”
“The concept I affectionately call ‘My Favorite Dream’ originated from a video Lena Dunham shared on the internet featuring John Legend singing ‘Maybe’, a playful Fisher-Price tune about a purple monkey in a bubblegum tree, for their toddler, Esti.”
He reminisces, “People would often ask me, ‘John, why don’t you produce more of these songs?'” To which he would respond, “Well, why shouldn’t I?” As Legend considers himself equally a songwriter and a performer, he began composing his own melodies inspired by “all the topics we frequently discuss with children”: love, family, animals, and nature. (He mentions that this is the first album he has created without any co-writers.)
After finding his stride, Legend eventually connected with Stevens, whose music he had encountered while serving as a judge for an industry award that honored Stevens’ expansive 2005 “Illinois” album. In essence, their careers have run parallel over the ensuing years: In 2006, Stevens put out a cherished Christmas record, and in 2018 he was nominated for an Oscar for the haunting “Mystery of Love,” from Luca Guadagnino’s “Call Me By Your Name”; most recently, a Broadway musical adaptation of “Illinois” premiered this past spring.
Legend remarks, “Sufjan’s music has a calming yet invigorating effect on me.” Interestingly enough, his genuine surname is Stephens. He desired the composition to convey an atmosphere that was fantastical, playful, exciting, and enjoyable.
Originally, Legend emailed piano-and-vocal demos he recorded at home to Stevens who resides in New York’s Catskill Mountains. According to Stevens, Legend granted him complete creative autonomy to design the song arrangements, which sparked ideas reminiscent of “Sesame Street” and the Muppets, yet also evoked thoughts of Stevie Wonder, Henry Mancini, the Beatles, and Serge Gainsbourg.
“Stevens shares with The Times in a seldom phone conversation that since he doesn’t have any children, I’m not overly familiar with all the kid-related items such as toys and entertainment. However, his inspiration came from music that tends to attract kids, including music that would appeal to younger versions of himself.”
As a passionate film aficionado, I can’t help but reminisce about the vibrant and animated era that was the ’80s in pop culture history. There was an undeniable brilliance and raw energy that permeated much of the content from this decade. I distinctly remember being just five years old, utterly captivated by the charismatic Michael Jackson.
In Legend’s perspective, the approach resonated perfectly since he aimed for the music on “My Favorite Dream” to maintain the same level of quality as any other song he writes. He pursued an “evergreen quality,” a term he uses, not only because it could expand the songs’ appeal but also because he recognizes that such enduring quality might attract new listeners as each generation matures and grows into the album.
It turns out that Luna, Legend’s 8-year-old child, has ventured beyond kids’ music and started appreciating pop star Tate McRae. This shift was influenced by a recent visit from an older cousin who introduced them to the rivalry between Drake and Kendrick Lamar. As John Legend humorously notes, “It seems that one of their other cousins was educating them about the Drake-Kendrick beef.” In addition, Luna even joined her mom and younger brother Miles in providing backing vocals for the album’s catchy lead single, “L-O-V-E.”
Despite this, Stevens finds a “emotional understanding” in the song “Safe”, where Legend promises shelter from danger “within my arms”. This is something that an adult might resonate with. Interestingly, Stevens himself did: Just last September, not long after the passing of his partner, Evans Richardson, Stevens disclosed that he had Guillain-Barré syndrome, an autoimmune condition that temporarily paralyzed him.
One reason I chose to collaborate on John’s album was because I hadn’t had a chance to focus on anything else apart from self-care and recovery, he explains. “I was eager to return to work, but my mind wasn’t ready for composing my own music yet. This project felt sincere, uncontaminated, and secure.”
As a fellow enthusiast, I can’t help but agree with Stevens’ perspective. There seems to be an underlying sense of apocalyptic unease that saturates much of our contemporary culture today. What draws me to these songs is their ability to encapsulate the very phrases that resonate with our concerns and apprehensions. Age doesn’t seem to matter when it comes to understanding what he’s expressing through his music.
Legend shares Stevens’ cultural apprehension, given the upcoming presidential election where Donald Trump, a figure Stevens calls detrimental to both the U.S. and the world, could potentially win. However, with Vice President Kamala Harris now taking the Democratic nomination instead of President Biden, Legend feels a renewed sense of optimism.
He praises Kamala, stating that she’s doing an exceptional job. They have been acquainted with her since her political days in California, and he observes that she’s infusing energy, happiness, and wit into her role, which is resonating positively everywhere.
Is Legend confident about America’s willingness to put a Black woman in the Oval Office?
He expresses his belief that it’s imminent, stating, “I believe it’s about to occur.” Earlier, there were only two elderly men in contention, and despite the significant policy contrasts between Biden and Trump, people found it challenging to discern the differences. Now, however, the distinctions have become crystal clear, and I think the comparison significantly favors Kamala.
Last week, Legend took the stage at the Democratic National Convention to perform Prince’s “Let’s Go Crazy.” In the coming month, he plans to embark on a series of concerts where he will play his popular songs with an orchestra backing him up. He is also completing work on a second musical, although he remains tight-lipped about its subject matter other than to reveal it features a highly recognized figure and includes rapping. In addition, there are discussions underway for a tour commemorating the 20th anniversary of his 2004 debut album “Get Lifted,” which earned him his first three Grammy Awards. Following our conversation, he will head to Saadiq’s recording studio to begin work on his upcoming R&B album.
He explains, “I’m currently going along with the flow of life, whether it’s about music, politics, work, or being a parent. At this moment, I’m deeply immersed in the role of being a father.”
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2024-08-28 13:33