Preview
  • Living Legend

  • Words + Music, Vol. 31
  • By: John Legend
  • Narrated by: John Legend
  • Length: 1 hr and 53 mins
  • 4.8 out of 5 stars (2,069 ratings)

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Living Legend

By: John Legend
Narrated by: John Legend
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Publisher's summary

This is the story of how a nerdy, homeschooled kid in the church choir named John Stephens became the Grammy-winning, platinum-selling, genre-pushing pop star we know as John Legend. For a long time, he led a double life—excelling as a star student while his home life was in shambles, working in corporate America as a financial consultant while moonlighting as a musician in nightclubs, always straddling a line between the person he was and the person he wanted to be.

These are his Words + Music.

Performing live at the legendary jazz club Ronnie Scott’s in London, John Legend explores his history, presenting a combination of music and stories that reflect on the way themes like faith, freedom, and love have followed him throughout his life.

Listeners of John Legend’s Living Legend should expect an intimate, joyous, and thoughtful evening with one of the most talented and engaging performing artists of our time. Songs include covers of Paul Simon’s “Bridge over Troubled Water” and Stevie Wonder’s “Ribbon in the Sky” as well as his own megahits “Glory”, “Used to Love U”, and “All of Me”, among others. It’s full of celebrity name-drops, inspiring stories of hard work and perseverance, and thoughtful reflections on creativity, faith, and freedom.

©2022 John Legend (P)2022 Audible Originals, LLC.
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Go Behind the Scenes of Living Legend

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About the Creator and Performer

Multiplatinum artist John Legend has garnered twelve Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award, and an Emmy Award, making Legend the first African-American man to earn an EGOT.
Legend has released eight celebrated albums over the course of his career, including, Get Lifted(2004), Once Again (2006), Evolver (2008), Love in the Future (2013), Darkness and Light (2016), A Legendary Christmas Deluxe (2019), Bigger Love (2020) and most recently, LEGEND (2022).
Earlier this year, Legend launched his critically acclaimed Las Vegas Residency entitled, "Love In Las Vegas" which began in April 2022 at Zappos Theater at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino.
Legend starred in NBC's Jesus Christ Superstar Live in Concert in 2018, winning an Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special and nominated for Outstanding Lead Actor (Limited Series). Legend joined The Voice for Season 16 (2019) and will continue as a coach on Season 22 (2022). John is also a Co-Founder and Partner of Get Lifted Film Co., a Los Angeles based production company which has developed projects with major networks including ABC, NBC, FOX, HBO, Showtime, Netflix, and FX and brings elevated multi-cultural content across film, television, and books to global audiences alongside award-winning producers Mike Jackson and Ty Stiklorius. They recently inked a first-look deal with Universal Studio Group’s UCP for unscripted series and an exclusive multi-year overall deal for scripted content, and partnered with Zando to form Get Lifted Books.
As a philanthropist, Legend initiated the #FREEAMERICA campaign in 2015 and most recently, founded the initiative, HUMANLEVEL, which is igniting systematic change and building racial equity across American cities and communities.

Featured Article: Best of the Year—The 14 Best Celebrity Memoirs of 2022


Despite their status and acclaim, celebrities are not immune to the many banes and boons of human existence. They fall in and out of love, they ache with insecurity and grief, they grapple toward recovery, and they work diligently to find success, whatever their passion may be. Featuring authors ranging from Academy Award winners to burgeoning pop sensations, these are the best celebrity memoirs of 2022.

John Legend Answers the Audible Questionnaire

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What listeners say about Living Legend

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Inspirational

much love for you, a voice of an angel, I could listen to you 24/7 John Legend...love & light always

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Well Done

I've listened to John Legend's music in passing before but to hear it in this platform gave me a whole new appreciation for the music and his talent.

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wonderfully uplifting

John Legend is surprisingly authentic and intimate in the telling of his own life. He pairs it beautifully with his music.

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Personal Connection with the Legend

This was a very well organized piece. It provided a very personal almost private discussion with John Legend in only the way could have led the discussion.. Through his brilliant articulation and powerful artistry, he shares his most personal thoughts and feelings with the listener. I listened to this in the wee hours of the morning and it felt like when you first start dating and you could talk and listen for hours getting to know each other.. I now have an intimate understanding of the Legend.

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Great Listen

This was so well done. I have been neither a fan nor a critic of John Legend. I've just never listened to much of his music, and known nothing of his beginning and rise to fame. I can say that after listening to this audio presentation, as a musician and person, I have a ton of respect for him, and what he brings to the culture and world.

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Thoroughly enjoyed this experience

I truly enjoyed learning about the backdrop of Legends music journey. Nice job it all

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John Stephens, The Legend

Great and beautifully presented. I loved every minute and wished it lasted longer. Thank you John Legend for sharing your story and your voice

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Story of the Legend

It is very fascinating to see where he began and how far he’s come. He grew up in church singing in the choir, went to high school as a preteen, and he even tells how he met his wife, amongst his other professional connections. Hearing the story directly from the source brings a lot of depth to the story.

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fabulous

This was beautiful. Autobiographical, very interesting, and illustrated by beautiful music. It feels like he's talking just to you.

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Boundless talent!

It’s a great almost two hours contemplative moment. Just sit back and relax to his smooth calming voice. The stories, the music, the nostalgia is all ripe for the picking!

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