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№ 2014.026 — University of Pennsylvania — Commencement address
John Legend
Field: arts
John Legend tells Penn's Class of 2014 that true success comes from opening your heart to love rather than chasing money or status. He recounts his journey from his Ohio childhood, his family's collapse after his grandmother's death, his early rejection by record labels, and his eventual breakthrough with Kanye West, framing each chapter around the role of love and passion. He extends the idea beyond personal relationships to 'love in public'—justice, philanthropy, and compassion for strangers—and urges graduates to overcome fear and go 'all in' on love.
Key moments
- 01 Recalls his difficult childhood, his grandmother's death, and his parents' divorce
- 02 Describes leaving a consulting job to pursue music and facing repeated label rejections before meeting Kanye West
- 03 Argues that loving humanity publicly means justice and compassion, citing examples like Trayvon Martin and the kidnapped Nigerian girls
- 04 Identifies fear, not hate, as the opposite of love and urges graduates to risk vulnerability
Transcript
The full transcript is hosted by the original publisher. Commencement Archive links to the source rather than republishing copyrighted text.
Read the full transcript at source →Provenance
Imported from NPR commencement archive; cross-referenced with Open Commencement DB
NPR archive last updated in 2015; destination availability has not been exhaustively rechecked | Open Commencement DB transcript; not independently verified against the original recording