A ‘Legend-ary’ evening in Manila set for Sept. 26

MANILA, Philippines - Come Sept. 26, John Legend brings to Manila his All Of Me World Tour. Fans can expect a repertoire laden with his hits, including All of Me that peaked No. 1 on the iTunes and Billboard Hot 100. With its saccharine lyrics and catchy melody, delivered in Legend’s magnetic voice, All of Me has become the anthem of many romantics everywhere.

The platinum-selling R&B/soul artist has sold seven million albums worldwide to date and his works garnered him nine Grammy Awards, three Soul Train Awards, the BET Award for Best New Artist and the special Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Legend, a graduate of University of Pennsylvania who studied English and African American literature, showed his versatility by engaging in a wide variety of musical activities while in college. It was also when he was in college when the singer/songwriter and rapper Lauryn Hill hired Legend to play the piano on her track called Everything Is Everything. Soon, he performed in shows around the Philadelphia area and eventually expanded his audience base to Washington D.C., New York, Boston and Atlanta. After college, he was introduced to then rising hip-hop artist Kanye West, who immediately signed him to his G.O.O.D. Music imprint and appointed him to sing the vocal hooks on some of his music. Through a series of similar collaborations with established artists, Legend’s career grew in momentum. He contributed his talent and vocals to such chart-topping hits as West’s All of the Lights, Jay-Z’s Encore and Alicia Keys’ You Don’t Know My Name. Legend also worked with the likes of Sergio Mendes, Mary J. Blige and The Black Eyed Peas.

Get Lifted, his debut album, was released in December of 2004 through Columbia Records. The critically-acclaimed album spawned Legend’s first hit, Ordinary People, and attained multiple Grammys in 2006, including Best R&B Album, Best New Artist and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. Once Again, the follow-up album in 2006, was a platinum seller, which earned him another Grammy, Best Male R&B Performance for his single Heaven.

Green Light (feat. Andre 3000) was the frontrunner of his next album, Evolver, in 2008. In the same year, he sang in a video for Barack Obama titled Yes We Can, produced by will.i.am. In 2010, he collaborated with the Roots for an album titled Wake Up!, which won the Grammy for Best R&B Album a year later. 

Making soulful music laced with prodigious piano playing and poignant songwriting does not encompass what Legend does. In 2007, he launched the Show Me Campaign, an initiative that focuses on education as a key to break the cycle of poverty. Legend’s efforts were recognized through the 2010 BET Humanitarian of the Year award, the 2009 CARE Humanitarian Award for Global Change, the 2009 Bishop John T. Walker Distinguished Humanitarian Service Award from Africare and the 2011 Harvard Foundation Artist of the Year Award. Legend also sits on the boards of The Education Equality Project, Teach for America, Stand for Children and the Harlem Village Academies, and co-chairs the Harlem Village Academies’ National Leadership Board.

(Legend’s All Of Me Tour in Manila on Sept. 26, 8 p.m. at the Araneta Coliseum, is presented by Wilbros Live. Tickets will be available at www.ticketnet.com.ph or call 911-5555.)