John Legend, a full-throated supporter of the Democratic Party and presidential candidate Kamala Harris, was invited to play an after-party gig for Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker on Aug. 20 during the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
But just a few days before the start of the convention, he was offered an even bigger gig: an opportunity to play a Prince song Aug. 21, before vice presidential candidate and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was scheduled to speak at the United Center in front of delegates and millions of viewers.
Legend, in an interview Aug. 23 with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, said he had leeway to pick which Prince song. “Let’s Go Crazy” quickly rose to the top.
“We wanted to have something fun to get the room electrified and excited,” said Legend, who will be at Ameris Bank Amphitheatre in Alpharetta on Sept. 9 with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. (Tickets are available, starting at $61.35 at livenation.com.) “We wanted to capture the theme of joy that so many candidates had been talking about.”
Legend had little time to put together a group, but he knew he had to have Prince protégé Sheila E, who happened to be available. He and Sheila E. had performed in 2020 during a CBS special honoring the Minnesota musical legend, who died in 2016.
“I had so much fun working with Sheila E.,” he said. “She’s such a beautiful, generous spirit so connected to Prince’s legacy.”
Legend’s creative director also tracked down guitarist Ariel “Ari” O’Neal, who has worked with Beyoncé, Jay-Z and Ariana Grande. “She really stole the show,” he said. “She’s talented, beautiful and charismatic.”
He said he enjoyed the challenge of putting together something so important so quickly: “It’s thrilling. The stakes being so high, it makes it more satisfying when you can pull it off.”
He was thrilled to have his dressing room in the Chicago Bulls’ locker room, next to Stevie Wonder. “This is the home of Michael Jordan and Steve Kerr and Scottie Pippen,” he said. “This place is historic.”
Speaking two days after the event from his home in Los Angeles, Legend said he was “still floating. It felt so good to be in that room and to be part of something so inspiring. We now have quite a bit of work to do post-convention to help get Vice President Harris elected president.”
Legend this year has been doing a mix of solo concerts and those with various orchestras around the country. “We tried it out once at the Hollywood Bowl last year,” he said. “It went so beautifully, we decided to do more.”
A gospel choir also will join him at Ameris. “The orchestra lifts you up and creates this soundscape that is beautiful and elegant,” he said. “The choir takes me back to growing up in the church and arranging vocals for the church. It really connects me to my roots as a musician.”
He said the choir and orchestra truly enhance his cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” “It’s just striking,” he said. “It’s the highlight of the night.”
After one season off, Legend will return to “The Voice” in early 2025, which will be his 10th time as a coach. He said the blind auditions already have been taped; theyfeature the return of Adam Levine, an original judge who left in 2019 after 16 seasons.
“We have a friendly rivalry,” Legend said. “We are definitely going after some of the same artists. Adam and I have been friends since I was an unsigned artist working with Kanye (West). Kanye was doing a remix of ‘This Love’ and I was working with him on it. So the guys came by the studio and I met Adam back then.
“Since then, we’ve played at a lot of shows, some of the same events and stayed in touch.”
IF YOU GO
John Legend and the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra
8 p.m. Monday, Sept. 9 $61.35 and up. Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, 2200 Encore Parkway, Alpharetta. livenation.com
