Photos provided by Emily Walker / Ravinia

To illustrate the sheer star power of singer/songwriter and “The Voice” coach John Legend, he not only packed the entire Ravinia pavilion on a mere Monday following a sell out the night before (when he’s pictured), but even filled much of the lawn, despite a torrential downpour.

He’s of course been to the Highland Park’s primary hang out before, but it was never as personal or revealing as a special one man show to mirror the mood of his latest recording, “Legend (Solo Piano Version).”

After stunningly soulful versions of “Save Room” and “Tonight,” the headliner was quick to acknowledge the less than ideal conditions, joking it wasn’t as bad as seeing the Chicago Bears during the dead of winter and assuring everyone it was still “so wonderful to be here [in] one of my favorite places in the world.”

“Chicago, tonight’s the night,” he teased before promising, “I wanna be the best you ever had” in a direct reference to the latter mentioned hit that was one of many leading to twelve Grammy Awards, an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Tony Award and an Emmy Award, making Legend the first Black male artist to ever earn EGOT status.

For nearly two-and-a-half-hours, he traced precisely how the marvelous feat happened through stories and songs, from finding both a faith and performance foundation in church, as illustrated by “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” to a formative influence turned friend, the one and only Stevie Wonder, who earned a “Ribbon In The Sky” shout-out.

Legend soon spoke of lucky session break on Lauryn Hill’s “Everything Is Everything” as a teenager, coming up alongside the locally grown Kanye West and knowing he’d officially arrived when receiving separate cell phone calls from Magic Johnson and Oprah Winfrey on the very same day to be booked for their respective benefits.

Along the way, he juggled breakthrough tracks such as “Used To Love U” and “Ordinary People” with the recent “Wonder Woman,” plus shared plans to use this platform to promote social justice and political activism, perhaps most overtly prominent throughout the Common collaboration “Glory.”

The program also addressed his mother’s deliverance from drugs on the heels of a family trauma and the romance of meeting music video partner turned wife Chrissy Teigen, culminating with the entire audience singing along to their anthem “All Of Me,” which is exactly what this modern day Legend gave Ravinia.

For additional information on John Legend, visit JohnLegend.com.

Upcoming concert highlights at Ravinia include Jethro Tull (Aug. 18); Kenny Loggins (Aug. 19); Buddy Guy and George Benson (Aug. 23); Classic Albums Live: Pink Floyd’s “Dark Side Of The Moon” (Aug. 25); Boyz II Men and The Isley Brothers (Aug. 26); “Encanto” In Concert (Aug. 27); “Jurassic Park” In Concert (Aug. 29); Train (Aug. 30); Brandi Carlile (Aug. 31); Carrie Underwood (Sept. 1-2) and Shakti (Sept. 3). For additional details, visit Ravinia.org.

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