In America we have big issues with education - in impoverished communities especially. I work with Teach For All, and so we're encouraging more people to get into teaching.
John LegendRead
I always saw myself as a singer-songwriter, a solo-artist, that's why working with other artists was never satisfying for me.
Interpretation
John Legend expresses a strong preference for individual artistry over collaboration.
In this quote, John Legend reflects on his identity as a singer-songwriter and solo artist. He indicates that his artistic vision and personal fulfillment are rooted in creating music independently, implying that collaborating with others does not provide him with the same level of satisfaction or expression of his unique voice.
In practice
In a personal statement about artistic direction.
In America we have big issues with education - in impoverished communities especially. I work with Teach For All, and so we're encouraging more people to get into teaching.
Hip-hop is one of the most free art forms there is. There's so many sounds you can use, so many things you can bring in. You never know, man. I bet years ago people would've never said they would hear me with Rick Ross, and we did four classic songs together.
For me as a songwriter, I love when other people cover my songs.
To have the chance to see your music be elevated and to have almost universally positive response to that music, makes me feel better every day. I feel more confident and inspired, and that's fun.
Why wouldn't I help? What good reason do I have as a human being with power and a sense of empathy and morality, why wouldn't I do something?
I wrote the song "Show Me" as a prayer to God asking simple, honest questions about life and death and why there is so much suffering in the world. As I grew with the song I realized I shouldn't limit these questions solely to God; I should ask those questions of others and of myself.
When you hear the music ringin' in your soul_x000D_ And you feel it in your heart and it grows and grows_x000D_ And it comes from the backstreet rock & roll and the healing has begun...
I've had experiences where people say, 'I hated jazz before I heard you guys!' I'm like, 'You didn't hate jazz before you heard us; you hated the idea of jazz.'
I don't really look at the charts at all. If anything, I try to out-do what I've done before. I try to make music that I like and I trust my own judgement with what will work with a wider audience. If you compare yourself to the charts, you lose perspective on what you're doing and why you're doing it.
My other family is Fleetwood Mac. I don't need the money, but there's an emotional need for me to go on the road again. There's a love there; we're a band of brothers.
I'm the keeper of the flame for Whitney Houston. She was the greatest... and I don't want the world to forget that.
I always say that the problem with jazz accessibility is not the content of the music, it's people's ability to access it.
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