For the last 20 years, John Legend has built a legacy on love. The EGOT winner has several classic romantic ballads and wedding-worthy songs, but nowadays, he’s taking cues from the love of his family, as evidenced by his new album, “My Favorite Dream.”
The father of four’s new project, his first children’s offering, was spurred last November after he posted a viral Instagram video of him performing a cover of “Maybe,” his 1-year-old daughter Esti’s favorite Fisher-Price song. With a nudge from the Mattel kids brand and fan comments demanding a full children’s album, Legend told HuffPost he was inspired to take the idea and run with it — bringing his wife, Chrissy Teigen, and their kids along for the ride, too.
“My family’s so, so intrinsically involved in it because they’re the inspiration for it,” Legend, 45, explained of the family affair on “My Favorite Dream,” which was released on Friday, a few days after the singer held an intimate listening session at his Beverly Hills home.
The soothing collection of kids’ sing-alongs and lullabies includes nine original tracks, three bonus Fisher-Price covers (“Maybe,” “Friendship” and “Great, Great Day”), and two other covers, all of which Legend tested on his family as his “first focus group.” Regarding subject matter, the 12-time Grammy-winning artist looked no further than the principles he and Teigen have instilled in their children.
John Legend playing with his 1-year-old son, Wren Alexander Stephens, at their family home.
“I wrote songs based on a lot of the messages that we give our kids anyway,” Legend said. “Then, of course, Chrissy was the one that encouraged me in the first place to record the cover to ‘Maybe.’”
Legend was moved to use his family as inspiration for “My Favorite Dream,” but he also recruited them as musical collaborators. Take his album’s lead single, “L-O-V-E”: It features vocals from Teigen; their 6-year-old son, Miles; and 8-year-old daughter Luna, the latter of whom also designed the song’s cover artwork. Then there’s the album cover, which features a throwback photo of a toddler Legend, captured by his aunt, Patricia Lloyd.
Family ties are woven throughout “My Favorite Dream” as a testament to music’s role in the Legend household and the R&B crooner being “right in the thick of fatherhood.” However, an unlikely source also played a big part in bringing his children’s music vision to life: indie-folk musician and producer Sufjan Stevens.
“Once I sat down to start writing, I started to think about who I wanted to produce the album, and my first and only choice was Sufjan Stevens,” Legend recalled. “I was hopeful that he would be interested in doing it with me ’cause I felt like he would have a great creative vision for the album, create some beautiful soundscapes, and make it very dreamy and whimsical and fantastical in the right moments. So I reached out, he said, ‘Yeah,’ and I was so glad he did because I’m really proud of what we created together.”
John Legend and his 1-year-old daughter, Esti Maxine Stephens.
In his decades-long music-making career, Legend never ventured to make a full-length children’s project before “My Favorite Dream.” He did, however, dabble a bit with selections for “Sesame Street” and “SpongeBob SquarePants: The Broadway Musical.” He particularly loved that his new album was “something different” to reinvigorate his musical spirit.
“I like to keep things interesting and challenging, and keep pushing myself to try new things,” the songwriter noted from his piano bar. “I hadn’t done anything like this before, and so I think it was cool for me to try something new. I made a challenge for myself to try to write original children’s songs that I thought were beautiful and special and worthy of being put on the album. And so I just sat in this room and started writing songs, and this is what came.”
Legend found the genre change from his usual soulful R&B signature a bit challenging: “You never know if the skills and the songwriting that you’ve been doing your entire career will translate all the way sometimes.” He seems confident, however, that his new album balanced sunny songs and tranquilizing tracks to still capture his trademark sound.
“I set the standard for myself that I wanted it to be something I would want to listen to as well,” Legend explained about his album’s expectations. “Even though it’s intended for children and families, I wanted it to be like something parents would love listening to, too, so I set that standard for myself musically. I didn’t lower the bar at all. I just said, ‘I’m going to make great music.’”
With “My Favorite Dream,” Legend sought to show the world how music can be a beacon of joy in children’s lives, the same way it was for him growing up. From the power of love, friendship and imagination to the exploration of humanity, Legend believes his children’s album has “something for every kid and all the things that they go through.” He hopes the 15-track project fits perfectly into his multi-platinum catalog, too, as he gears up to celebrate another major milestone later this year.
Dec. 28 marks the 20th anniversary of Legend’s “Get Lifted,” the double-platinum debut album that launched him to superstardom in 2004. The “Ordinary People” singer said he has big plans to commemorate his first LP — which won best R&B album at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards — as it also falls on his 46th birthday. Looking back on it, he gives much credit for how the album set up his career trajectory and solidified his skills as a then-burgeoning force in music.
“I wouldn’t be where I am without the success of that first album,” Legend remarked. “‘Ordinary People’ was the biggest hit from it, but the entire album made a huge impact. I won three Grammys and was nominated for eight, so it set my career up really well to do a lot of other things after that.”
Specifically, he wanted to test his newfound freedom as a recording artist after being rejected by most big record labels during his early days.
“Having that success on the first album gives you a lot of freedom,” said the singer. “It makes it so you don’t have to compromise creatively. The label allows you to kind of do your thing, and I never felt undue pressure from them because they trusted me. That success allowed me to experiment, try new things, grow as an artist, and know that I had fans who really supported me and were ready to go on the journey with me.”
Legend’s journey resumes this fall as he continues a string of piano shows across the country entitled “An Evening with John Legend: A Night of Songs and Stories.” On the solo tour, fans will see him reimagine some of his greatest hits (including “All of Me,” “Tonight,” and more), and share unexpected stories from his life and career.
“I talk about all of it, the whole journey,” he said. “And so at 20 years in, I’m just grateful and reflective and celebrating all the things that have happened.”
Even as he approaches the 10th album mark in his discography, Legend sounds as motivated as ever to continue making music. And for as long as he can, he plans to make more records the best way he knows: ageless.
“We are fortunate when we make music that’s timeless. People can go back and listen and remember the first time they heard it and what it meant to them,” he said. “And, hopefully, I’ll continue to make that kind of music for people. Hopefully, ‘My Favorite Dream’ will be that kind of album for the kids and families who love them.”
