John Legend talks about 'MUSE,' Pharrell Williams, and Jay-Z

John Legend talks about changing direction with ‘MUSE’ and Pharrell Williams’ influence: ‘That’s why you work with new people…’​

John Legend seems to be stepping a little bit away from his usual soulful songs with his latest album, 'MUSE.' The studio album was released worldwide on October 23 and features a total of 16 tracks.

What makes the album even more special for the singer is that Pharrell Williams, with whom he has been friends for more than 20 years, is heavily featured on it. During one of his recent interviews, the actor opened up about Williams’ influence on his music, taking a new turn with his songs, and how Jay Z sang his praises when he heard the album.

John Legend talks about Pharrell Williams’ influence on 'MUSE'

'MUSE,' which was released yesterday, features a total of 16 tracks, all of which Pharrell Williams produced and co-wrote.

While in conversation with the Associated Press to promote the album, he opened up about how Williams influenced many decisions when creating the album, leading him to take a completely different approach because of the ‘Freedom’ singer.During the interview, he commented, “I really want every project to be my best project. Every album to be my best album," while also talking about how working with his longtime friend was a great experience.

He added, “Working with Pharrell on an entire album was something new for me. I’m writing for Broadway now. Just finding new creative avenues to continue to throw some more challenges into the mix and seeing what it inspires in my creativity.

”He also shared that Williams, who worked with Legend on all of the songs from his latest album, creatively challenged him to try something new with his music. He mentioned, “One of the things that he encouraged me to do on specific songs was to talk-sing in a way where it was like I was more speaking and having a conversation.”

He then referred to one of the songs on the album titled 'Fireflies,' sharing that some parts of the song seem more on the lines of orating rather than singing.

He added, “Like I’m speaking, rather than like I’m singing a melody. That was his idea, and I think it really works. … That’s why you work with new people, because they may bring new ideas to the table that you hadn’t tried before.”

John Legend talks about Jay-Z's compliment

During the interview, the ‘All of Me’ singer also recalled the one time that Jay Z complimented his music. He shared, “I think a lot of people know it, and they acknowledge it to me. Jay-Z one time came up to me and said, ‘You’re our voice.’ I think a lot of hip-hop fans know that these MCs bring me onto a song when they think that I’ll add something special to it. … I love that hip-hop is such a big part of my legacy and my body of work over the years.

”John Legend released his debut album, ‘Get Lifted,' in 2004 and has since then worked on 11 full-length albums, six live albums, two video albums, and three extended plays, along with multiple singles.