Legend also played the piano on Lauryn Hill's 1998 song "Everything is Everything" and sang background vocals on Jay-Z's "Encore" and Alicia Keys' "You Don't Know My Name". Legend frequently cites gospel, R&B, and hip hop music as his main musical influences.
Legend released his critically acclaimed and Billboard Top Ten second album, Once Again, in October 2006. Produced by Raphael Saadiq, Kanye West and will.i.am, it is again a mixture of gospel and classic soul showcasing his extraordinary voice, particularly on "Show Me".
Grammy Award Wins:
*2005 Best New Artist
*2005 Best Male R&B Vocal Performance: "Ordinary People"
*2005 Best R&B Album- Get Lifted
*2007 Best Male R&B Vocal Performance: Heaven
*2007 Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group: Family Affair
Neo-soul singer and pianist John Legend combined the raw fervor of contemporaries Cody ChesnuTT and the burning precision of D'Angelo. Born John Stephens, Legend was a child prodigy who grew up in Ohio, where he began singing gospel and playing piano at the tender age of five. Legend left Ohio at 16 to attend college in Philadelphia, and it was there that he first found a larger audience. Not yet out of his teens, Legend was tapped to play piano on Lauryn Hill's "Everything Is Everything" in 1998. After completing college, he moved to New York, where he began to build a loyal following playing in nightclubs and releasing CDs that he would sell at shows. He also became an in-demand session musician, playing and occasionally writing for a wide array of artists, including Alicia Keys, Twista, Janet Jackson, and Kanye West. It wasn't until West signed the young talent to his new label that he adopted the Legend name with 2004's Solo Sessions Vol. 1: Live at the Knitting Factory. Get Lifted, his first studio album, was released later in the year. On the strength of enduring single "Ordinary People," the album reached the Top Five of the Billboard 200. This led to three Grammy Awards: Best R&B Album, Best R&B Male Vocal Performance, and Best New Artist. Once Again, which peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and number one on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, followed in October 2006. Live from Philadelphia, sold exclusively at Target stores, was a successful stopgap release that predated October 2008's Evolver.
Live It Up
John Legend Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Working here and there just to get by
It's finally time for me to get mine
No more robbing Peter so we can pay Paul (oh no)
Or going to Mama's house to make a phone call (no no)
No we don't have to struggle at all
I'm getting paid and doing it my way (my way)
We're finally on our way
Baby now it's time to celebrate
Oh live it up
We can go crazy
Live it up
You and me baby
Live it up, live it up, live it up
We're flying high
Don't want to come down
We'll let 'em know
All over town and
Live it up, live it up, live it up
No more putting it in the layaway
'Cause Boo I got the money today
Come on and go to the mall and let's play
Let's go raise a toast to the days ahead
You can't take it with you when you're dead
You might as well enjoy it now instead
Oh now, it's about to be a long evening (yeah yeah)
We'll party through the rest of the weekend (come on)
We're finally on our way
Baby now it's time to celebrate
Oh live it up
We can go crazy
Live it up
You and me baby
Live it up, live it up, live it up
(Oh we're flying high) We're flying high
Don't want to come down
We'll let 'em know
All over town and
Live it up, live it up, live it up
(We can fly so high
In the moonlit sky
'Cause there's no more cloudy days
It's so beautiful
When you feel the flow
We can dance the night away)
Do you remember when times were hard?
Oh so hard
Through it all
We've come so far (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
So we gotta live it up
So we can just celebrate there's no more pain
Raise your glass and feel no shame (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
Oh so we gotta live it up
Oh live it up
We can go crazy
Live it up
You and me baby
Live it up, live it up, live it up
(Oh we're flying high) we're flying high
Don't want to come down (yeah yeah)
We'll let 'em know
All over town and
Live it up, live it up, live it up
Oh, it's time to celebrate baby (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
So, we don't have to worry no more
We don't have to struggle no more baby
So does it feel good to you?
I know it feels good to you
we don't have worry no more
We don't have to struggle no more (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
It's time to celebrate baby (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
Yeah we gotta live it up
The song "Live It Up" by John Legend is an optimistic anthem about finally achieving financial success after a long period of struggle. In the first verse, the singer reflects on the hard times they've gone through and the various ways they've had to scrape by to make ends meet. But now that they're getting paid and doing things their own way, they feel like they're finally on their way. The chorus encourages listeners to embrace this newfound sense of freedom and joy: "Live it up, we can go crazy / Live it up, you and me baby / We're flying high, don't want to come down / We'll let 'em know all over town."
The second verse focuses on the tangible benefits of this newfound financial stability, such as no longer needing to put purchases on layaway and being able to indulge in some retail therapy. The chorus repeats, celebrating the sense of liberation that comes with no longer having to worry about money. The bridge reflects on the fact that the journey has been tough, but the singer is proud of how far they've come and wants to savor every moment of success: "Do you remember when times were hard? / Oh so hard / Through it all, we've come so far / So we gotta live it up."
Overall, "Live It Up" is a feel-good song that celebrates the joys of financial freedom and the hard work it takes to achieve it. It urges listeners to embrace the good times and recognize their own resilience and resourcefulness in the face of adversity.
Line by Line Meaning
You know we've been struggling for such a long time
We have faced significant difficulties for an extended period.
Working here and there just to get by
We had to do menial jobs just to survive.
It's finally time for me to get mine
I am ready to enjoy the fruits of my labor.
No more robbing Peter so we can pay Paul (oh no)
We will not have to borrow from one person to pay another.
Or going to Mama's house to make a phone call (no no)
We do not have to rely on other people's resources for basic needs.
No we don't have to struggle at all
We are now in a position where we will not have to face hardships anymore.
'Cause now every day is feeling like Friday (Friday)
Every day feels like we are at the start of a weekend due to the relief from financial struggles.
I'm getting paid and doing it my way (my way)
I am receiving income and enjoying the freedom that comes with it.
We're finally on our way
We have finally achieved a level of financial stability that we have been striving for.
Baby now it's time to celebrate
We are happy to celebrate this achievement with joy and happiness.
No more putting it in the layaway
We do not need to use the layaway system to acquire goods.
'Cause Boo I got the money today
I have the money today to acquire what we need.
Come on and go to the mall and let's play
We can visit the mall and enjoy some stress-free shopping.
Let's go raise a toast to the days ahead
We want to celebrate the prosperity and success in the future.
You can't take it with you when you're dead
We should enjoy our wealth since we cannot take it to the afterlife.
You might as well enjoy it now instead
We should savor the moment and enjoy our success to the fullest.
Oh now, it's about to be a long evening (yeah yeah)
We plan to enjoy the evening fully as we have a lot to celebrate,
We'll party through the rest of the weekend (come on)
We will keep up the fun until the weekend ends.
Do you remember when times were hard?
We reminisce about the hard times that made us appreciate this moment better.
Oh so hard
The hard times were really challenging.
Through it all
Despite the obstacles, we persevered.
We've come so far (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
We have made significant progress since the hard times.
So we gotta live it up
We have to enjoy this moment of success to the fullest.
So we can just celebrate, there's no more pain
We can celebrate without any worries or troubles.
Raise your glass and feel no shame (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
We should proudly declare our success and be happy about it.
It's time to celebrate baby (ha-ha ha-ha ooh)
It is time to express our joy and happiness.
Yeah we gotta live it up
We have to enjoy this moment of success to the fullest extent.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing, Reservoir Media Management, Inc., Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: DEVON HARRIS, ANTHONY HESTER, JOHN ROGER STEPHENS, TAREY TORAE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
jaxon
on All of Me
really really good I love it
Rickie
on All of Me
Good
Christine Bañega
on All of Me
like
Promise Sokyes
on All of Me
A perfect love song.