How Did John Legend Transition from Music to Film Production?

The Grammy and Oscar (Original Song, for Selma) winner, 37, is more than a singer and songwriter. John Legend’s a film producer who has now helped bring the 10-episode series Underground to entertainment network WGN America. The gripping historical drama, premiering March 9, will chronicle the story of slaves attempting a daring escape to freedom via the Underground Railroad.

Recent movie and TV projects about slavery include 12 Years a Slave, The Book of Negroes and an upcoming remake of Roots. Why are these stories important? 

When we see what’s happening in the streets, it’s important that we understand history and see things in context, so that the larger community remembers what happens when we stop seeing each other as human and start seeing each other as a stereotype, or as someone to oppress or exclude.

Did you meet any descendants of people who had been involved in or used the Underground Railroad?

I haven’t personally, but I have stories in my family of slaves who had been freed by their master, and later the children of the master came back and reclaimed them into slavery. So I’ve always felt a personal connection to these stories.

You and your wife, Sports Illustrated model Chrissy Teigen, are going to become parents. How are you preparing for fatherhood? 

We just moved into a new house, so we’ve got to get our nursery set up. That’s got to happen over the next few months. We’ve wanted to have kids for a while, and now we’re getting close to the finish line—which is really just the starting line.

Will you write a lullaby for your baby?

Probably. I sing all the time. My dad used to sing all the time to us, so that’s probably why I’m a musician now. My mom too.

How did you make the transition from music to producing films? 

It all feels connected to me. A lot of the shows and films I produced, I contributed music to as well. But also, I was an English major; I really appreciate great stories and understand how important telling great stories is for great films, and given that I have some influence and a lot of connections in Hollywood, we felt like it was the right time to start our production company. We started it a few years ago, and we’ve been fortunate to have some really cool projects—and this is one of them.

Did you start working on Underground before you began work on Selma, or did that inspire you to do this?

[Creators] Joe Pokaski and Misha Green had been working on this idea for three years, but I wasn’t involved until the last year or so. They reached out to me right after I won the award for Selma, and they asked me to come on as an executive producer with my team, particularly to focus on the music side of things.

You studied black history in college, so did this series teach you anything new? 

I’d probably come into it with more understanding than the average person does because it was something I chose to study when I was younger, but this show has a great way of making it all feel alive and vivid and not just a museum version of history. You can really feel the suspense and the intrigue of how complicated and difficult it would be to make a bid for freedom.

I think of you as serious and then I turned on the TV and there you were on Hollywood Game Night showing that you have a playful side.

Of course! My wife brings more of it out in me too. We balance each other out. I’ve always had a playful side, but I think we bring out different things in each other, and I have more fun when I’m with her.