Meet John Legend.

Three-time Grammy Award winner John Legend came to work today and performed a sixty-minute set. This was the third time I've seen him live- the other two times being at Duke LDOC '04 (when he played the keys for Kanye West) and UNC Homecoming '05 (where my a cappella group Harmonyx opened for him). His performance included breaks where he entertained questions from our host and from the audience. Although I wish he performed several other songs (like "So High"), I really enjoyed the set.

Overall, it was awesome to have him come to work. I'm always amazed whenever I see him perform, and personally, I'm really glad to see him rise in recognition and success. The first time I saw him at Duke, he was literally an unknown star and I knew he was going to become somebody someday. And the following year, he performed at Carolina literally two weeks before dropping his first album "Get Lifted." Although he was still somewhat unknown, those in the college scene and the music scene definitely knew who he was at the time. So yeah, to see him evolve from a no-name artist to a superstar was awesome.


We arrived at the venue about an hour prior to the performance to get good seats. We were literally sitting in the very front, and it was just a great atmosphere for him to play in front of a packed crowd. During the Q&A session, I decided to ask him who his favorite artists were to collaborate with, to which he responded Will.I.Am from the Black Eyed Peas and Kanye West. He also mentioned that he's played with greats such as Tony Bennett, Stevie Wonder, and Elton John. To see him come so long and have to pay his dues for six years after leaving Boston Consulting Group and the typical business track to pursue his passion in music was truly inspiring.

After his performance, he spent time shaking hands and taking pictures. I wound up telling him then that I saw him perform at Duke and UNC several years before that, and for a brief second, I noticed him smile as he recalled those performances.

"Wow, that was a while back, before 'Get Lifted,' right?" he asked.

Something about his response made me really appreciate him more. I know that so much has happened since then, yet him remembering his early performances and the audiences that embraced him back then made him seem that much more down to earth. I left main campus thinking, "Dang. I can't believe I work here..."