#ManCrushMonday: John Legend

#ManCrushMonday: John Legend

All of him

Text: Adibah Isa

Image: Instagram | @terrell_101

John Legend's sixth album, Darkness and Light — his first record since marrying Chrissy Teigen and being a father — speaks of hope and caution in America's post-election world. Here are some highlights from Legend himself

Darkness and Light with Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes
"I don't even see the kind of music that she does and what I do as so distant from each other. I grew up with gospel and soul, and I feel like the roots of rock music are blues and gospel. The idea of us working together doesn't feel like an unexpected thing to me; it feels like a natural thing."

Right by You (for Luna)
"The cool thing about the song for Luna is that it has a lot of questions, not a lot of answers. It's wondering who she'll be and hoping she becomes the kind of person that we can be proud of, but you never know."

Penthouse Floor with Chance The Rapper
"Part of the song is about escaping from your problems [without] ignoring the problems. It's saying, 'Hey, these communities are being ignored and should be paid attention to.' It shouldn't only be when something blows up and the TV cameras are all there. A lot of times there's suffering in silence."

Marching Into The Dark
"It's about the idea of struggle and the idea of putting your life on the line for an important cause. The metaphor we use is that they're chasing a fading star into the dark. They're struggling for an end they may never see."

Listen to John Legend's Darkness and Light here. For last week's #ManCrushMonday, click here.