John Legend opens up about his marriage to Chrissy Teigen, his masculinity, and fertility struggles.
In the interview with Cosmopolitan, the musician admitted he lost his virginity at a very young age because he was trying to blend in.
“Just being around older people that were having sex, it felt like I had to catch up with everybody, I think a lot pressure when you’re a ‘cisgender male’ teen has to do with losing your virginity and negotiating relationships with women.”
Adding that, while growing up most especially around older people there were parts of him he was scared of revealing.
“I think you’re always policing yourself by trying to do what you think would be ‘cool’ and accepted by other people, until you start to figure out who you really want to be. Growing up is an ongoing push-and-pull of you being yourself and you performing to what society expects you to be. I think the end product ends up being some kind of composite of these two factors.”
When asked about how he and his wife, Chrissy express their feelings well and communicate openly.
“There’s no problem with openness in our relationship. You know Chrissy. She doesn’t hold anything back! I’m quite reserved, but being with someone like her inspires me to be open about my emotions. She brings them out of me because she’s so open about hers.”
He further explained they’ve been trying to have another child although it’s one of the challenges every couple have but going through that together strengthen the bond.
“I think it’s especially difficult when you can’t conceive naturally. You want to feel like everything’s working properly and want everything to be perfect, but sometimes it’s not. I wouldn’t say we can’t conceive naturally, but I would say that it’s enough of a challenge where it felt like we needed help. We’re lucky that we’re living in an age where we can conceive in other ways. [IVF] brought us Luna and hopefully it will bring us a few more awesome kids, too.”