Growing up in a small-town musical family.

John Legend:  My name is John Legend. I’m a musician. I’m a philanthropist, an activist, and just all around creative person that’s trying to do good things.

I grew up in Springfield, Ohio; a small town in, you know, the middle of America. I grew up in a family that was very close knit. I had a lot of family members around, and I think that made a big difference in my life.

I also grew up in the Pentecostal church, and my family was very involved in the running of the church, the music of the church.

Music was a very critical part of everything we did; from my house, to my church, to family gatherings with extended family, music was really central to what we did and how we interacted with each other. And so music has always been a defining characteristic of where I’m from and how I grew up. And that’s why I am what I am. That’s why I became a musician. That’s why music has always been central to my life. It’s because of my family.

Recorded on: Jan 29, 2008