About John Legend

John Legend wins Golden Globe, Critics Choice Award

John Legend is having some kind of 2015. He just scored his very first Academy Award nomination for his "Selma" song "Glory," featuring Common, which is up for original song. He also recently earned both a Golden Globe and a Critics Choice Award for the same track, helped kick off this year's Sundance Film Festival, and announced he will perform at the Grammys on February 8.

The music video for "Glory" helped the song to enter the Billboard + Twitter Top Tracks chart. It garnered more than 291,000 U.S. views on Vevo on YouTube, which was 63 percent of its overall weekly streams.

In the midst of what has suddenly become a super busy awards season for the crooner, he's also taking time to focus on his new role as an artist ambassador for Unilever's Axe White Label Collective. The new program will follow Legend as he encourages five musicians to "#TakeTheLeap," per the campaign's hashtag, to be selected for a music-mentorship program that will be led by Legend himself. It also includes a showcase performance during South by Southwest (SXSW) in March.

Legend recently took part in a bit of a risque Valentine's Day shoot for GQ Magazine with his supermodel wife Chrissy Teigen. The couple are seen in various scenarios captured the fashion magazine, one of which prompted the headline "Forget Your Table Manners?" It was a reference to a photo in which Teigen lies provocatively on a restaurant table in nothing but a black leotard while Legend leans over her with his hands on his hips.

11/24/13: At 34 years old, John Legend is practically already an R&B legend. After all, he's claimed a hull of Grammys, has a list of awards and nominations too long to include here, and fans have clamored for new music from the superstar since his last album was released in 2008.

Ask and he shall deliver. Legend released "Love in the Future" on September 3, 2013, debuting at No. 4 on the Billboard 200 while selling close to 70,000 copies in its first week. The project was executive produced (in part) by Kanye West, and features guest appearances from Kimbra, Rick Ross, Stacy Barthe and Seal. The lead single, "Who Do We Think We Are" was followed by "Made to Love" and "All of Me," which peaked at number 89 on the Billboard Hot 100 – the highest charting song from the album.

If there's one thing you didn't know about Legend, it's probably that he and West have actually been working together since 2001. Only the album's other executive producer – Dave Tozer – has worked with Legend for that stretch of time, and Legend recently told NPR it's because West is a generous collaborator and "really is obsessed with making great art."

Legend is currently out on the road on the "Made to Love Tour" with Tamar Fraxton. Two dates in New York City recently caused a buzz, and the trek won't wrap it's current North American run until early December. Legend will then head overseas, and has a run of dates in Australia and New Zealand that take him right into the holiday season.

Collaborations make John Legend a household name (Updated December 26, 2012)

Imagine becoming a successful singer-songwriter known not only for your own music, but for lending your voice and talent to other established artists. The path is tried and true for John Roger Stephens, better known by his stage name John Legend, whose career took off thanks to a series of collaborations with some of music's most well-known names.

Kanye West. Lauryn Hill. Jay-Z. Alicia Keys. They're just a few of the people who have worked with Legend to create chart-topping hits like "All of the Lights," "Everything is Everything," "Encore" and "You Don't Know My Name." It was a climb to the top that began when Legend was just a young man who played piano at age four and performed with his church choir by age seven. And by the time he finished college, he had a following from Boston all the way to Atlanta, his music touching most major cities along the northeast corridor.

Legend has three studio albums to his name, including his 2004 debut "Get Lifted," which reached the Top Five of the Billboard 200 and led to three Grammy Awards: Best R&B Album, Best R&B Male Vocal Performance, and Best New Artist. "Once Again," which peaked at No. 3 on the Billbaord 200 and No. 1 on the R&B/hip-hop Albums chart, followed in 2006. Two years later came "Evolver," which featured West, Brandy, Estelle and Andre 3000, among others.

Beyond his music career, Legend is known for his television appearances and commercials, plus a multitude of charitable endeavors. He was among the celebrities demanding change in U.S. gun laws in late 2012, and in 2013 will perform at the National Portrait Gallery as part of activities for the presidential inauguration. His next album is due in May.