John Legend has announced an unusual collaboration with Sufjan Stevens for his new children’s album. Listen to it below.
- READ MORE: Sufjan Stevens – ‘Javelin’ review: Cult hero remains compelling and fresh
On August 30, Legend will release My Favorite Dream, an album he says is full of “sing-alongs and lullabies for kids and families.” The record was inspired by his experiences as a father of four children with his wife, Chrissie Tiegan.
“My parents loved to sing around the house and make up lullabies for us and songs that motivate us and inspire us,” Legend said. “And Chrissy (Tiegan) and I love singing to our kids too. We’re always making up little songs and ditties for them. In our house, music is very important to the way we interact and communicate with them.”
Now he has announced that Stevens is the record’s producer. “I just felt that (Stevens’) musical approach would be perfect to create arrangements and soundscapes that complement the songs,” Legend said. “When I was thinking about who could bring these songs to life with me, he was the first and only choice. I’m so glad he said yes.”
The album includes nine original songs, three covers of Fisher-Price songs, and three bonus tracks. The first single, “LOV-E,” released Friday (August 9), is one of the original songs and features vocals from Legend’s two eldest children, Teigen and Stevens. Listen below.
More news: Stevens’ Broadway musical Illinois concluded last night (August 10) after 16 weeks. The 90-minute show, directed, choreographed and co-written by Justin Peck, is based on Stevens’ 2005 concept album “Illinois.” Previous performances have taken place at Bard College’s Fisher Center in New York and the Chicago Shakespeare Theater.
When he reviewed Stevens’ “Illinois” (aka “Illinoise”) in 2005, NME wrote: “(This album) may not be his best record, but it is his masterpiece to date; a stunning collection of indescribably valuable music.”
The American singer-songwriter released his tenth and latest album, “Javelin,” last October. Stevens dedicated the record to his “beloved” late partner Evans Richardson, who died the previous April.
‘Javelin’ also landed at number 11 in the NMEIt was included in the list of “Best Albums of 2023”, where it was described as “another triumph from the prolific cult hero”.
