John Legend on the creative process and "mumbling" his way to a hit

Worklife with Adam Grant

TED

Management, Worklife Podcast, Worklife With Adam Grant, Work Life Balance, Ted Talks, Podcast About Work Life, Ted Adam Grant, Adam Grant Podcasts, Ted Podcasts, Adam Grant, Organizational Psychologist, Business

4.8 • 9.4K Ratings

🗓️ 27 September 2024

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Before John Legend was coaching The Voice and winning Emmys, Grammys, Oscars and Tonys, he was a twenty-something consultant living in Boston. In this episode, John sits down with Adam to share how he hustled from the boardroom to the studio and crafted the creative career that led him to the top of the entertainment industry. John also talks about how he maintains creative vision at the core of his business, and why family and advocacy work are vital to his artistic mission.

Available transcripts for ReThinking can be found at go.ted.com/RWAGscripts

Transcript

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0:00.0	Ted Audio Collective.
0:05.0	You're really starting a small business when you are trying to launch a career as a successful artist.
0:15.0	Hey everyone, it's Adam Graham.
0:19.0	Welcome back to Rethinking, my podcast on the science of what makes us tick with the Ted
0:23.8	audio collective. I'm an organizational psychologist and I'm taking you inside the
0:28.0	minds of fascinating people to explore new thoughts and new ways of
0:31.8	thinking.
0:35.0	My guest today is Musician John Legend.
0:38.0	He's won 12 Grammy Awards, an Oscar, an Emmy, and a Tony,
0:42.0	making him the first black man and second youngest person ever to attain
0:46.3	coveted egot status.
0:48.8	In his spare time, John is the senior coach on the hit show The Voice and he campaigns against injustice
0:54.0	and he recently released his first children's album My Favorite Dream.
0:58.5	I think kids want to feel that safety and I think as parents that's part of what we want to give them.
1:06.0	We also want to give them challenge and enable them to take risks and allow them to take risks and all of that, but I think doing it from a place of safety
1:15.8	and knowing that you've got people to have your back, I think is a good combination.
1:20.4	John didn't start his career as a musician. He worked first as a management consultant.
1:25.0	I was excited to hear his take on career pivots, as well as to understand his creative process, which is fascinating.
1:32.0	I mumble nonsense melody so they have very little
1:35.8	lyrical content so ordinary people I would just say Little bit of love, let me be more.
1:45.0	John Legend,
1:50.0	Welcome to Rethinking.
	...

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