John Legend Impresses Broadway In New Song For ‘Finding Neverland’
John Legend has the perfect voice for musicals. I would have never guessed it without listening to this new track. It’s obvious John Legend’s talents cannot be boxed. He’s proven it year after year. But this takes his versatility as a singer to a new level.
Legend shows the same heart on this Broadway style vocal arrangement that he did on his last few hit songs. I hope he branches off and does more songs in a variety of genres and styles. As reported by Broadway World John offered his talents for the musical Finding Neverland. The musical opened on Broadway a little earlier this year, and takes its story from the film of the same name. In 2004’s biographical Finding Neverland Johnny Depp portrayed legendary playwright James Matthew Barrie. The movie explored his adventures with the family who would inspire Barrie to write Peter Pan.
Legend’s track on this Finding Neverland concept album is “My Imagination.” He says he took more of a Stevie Wonder Innervisions approach to this song, referring to that great record from 1973. John Legend is only one of the many stars to sing on the project, which includes Jennifer Lopez, Kiesza, Christina Aguilera, Nick Jonas, and Jon Bon Jovi. So for everyone involved this will be something new. And this is also something new for stage shows. With names like that, how could it not sell well? Perhaps this is the beginning of stage shows taking the approach of movies, where the soundtrack is a huge deal with big pop stars.
The amazing thing that producers can do with this approach is to draw in a more diverse audience to see musicals and plays. Considering how much star power John Legend and the others bring to this album, it can only help the show stay afloat in a competitive Broadway atmosphere. But this is certainly no easy task to handle for pop singers who aren’t properly trained. Do you hear the arrangement on this John Legend song? These are songs from the show. It’s a much more complex task than your average pop or R&B project.
This is only one of the many projects John Legend is working on outside of his solo music career. He produced a documentary that aired on HBO in May, and he has worked on philanthropic projects with his own organization since 2007. John Legend also made quite a statement at the Academy Awards this year, winning an award for the touching civil rights anthem “Glory.”
[Photo by Paras Griffin/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures]
