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Earlier this week, John Legend released a holiday song called “Under the Stars,” using actual recordings of star vibrations. Wednesday night, the singer got to debut the new tune at the opening of “Stars” by brewer Stella Artois, an interactive light installation in New York City. After giving an intimate performance, the singer told ABC Radio why the event was so special.
“When Stella Artois presented the idea of me doing a duet with stars, it was like I didn’t even know that I can do that,” Legend said. “So as soon as I started listening to the sounds they were able to record of the stars, it was really inspiring and I wrote this song, ‘Under the Stars,’ which is about just the holidays, and how you want to be with the ones you love and how connected we can all be under the stars.” He added, “This was cool to perform it here for the first time, it’s such a beautiful place.”
The event was held at a fitting venue: the Skylight at Moynihan Station. There were fewer than a hundred people waiting in the dark, intimate space for Legend, who later performed a medley of hits — ranging from “All of Me” to “Ordinary People” — at his piano, with illuminated stars hanging above him. “I love these, I love looking in people’s eyes, I love that connection,” Legend said of playing the intimate setting, but adds, “I also love being in a huge place and hearing like 20,000 people roar too, so either one is fun, but they’re fun for different reasons and you get a different rush from each one. “
Legend said overall, he’s glad he agreed to the collaboration. “Well, it wasn’t my idea, but when they brought it to me I thought it was a really cool idea,” he said. “And what I love about this kind of collaboration, because you know artists do things with brands all the time, but its fun when its actually collaborative and creative and that’s what this was for me. I got to write a song, a kind of song that I would write anyway, so it really directly flows from who I am as an artist.”
“Under the Stars,” written exclusively for the Stella Artois Give Beautifully holiday campaign, debuted Monday. “Stella” means “star” in Italian.
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