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John Legend
John Legend
01:28

John Legend

New York, NY USA

"I think success has a lot to do with finding something you love and putting everything you have into it."

Career Roadmap

John's work combines: Entrepreneurship, Music, and Accomplishing Goals

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Day In The Life

Singer/Songwriter

I'm a Grammy Award winning recording artist, concert performer, philanthropist, and social activist.

Skills & Education

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    English Language and Literature, General

    University of Pennsylvania

Life & Career Milestones

My path in life has been direct

  • 1.

    Grew up playing music on his family's rickety piano and in his church in Springfield, Ohio.

  • 2.

    Fell in love with music at a young age; loved performing and getting to create something new.

  • 3.

    The first in his family to go to college, he attended the University of Pennsylvania.

  • 4.

    Being first to go to college, his parents' divorce and his mother's drug problem were all obstacles.

  • 5.

    Worked as a management consultant after school, but spent his nights performing and recording.

  • 6.

    Says that what defines successful people is not that they don't fail, but how they bounce back.

Defining Moments

Experiences and challenges that shaped me

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  • I was definitely a fish out of water when I first arrived in Philadelphia, and my parents didn't have all the tools that they needed to give me great advice.

  • One of them was when my parents got divorced. It was very difficult for me and my family. We lost our mother for several years, she had a drug problem and was really depressed for a long time.