R&B Casanova

John Legend doesn't carry himself like the ordinary people who populate his tunes, those star-crossed lovers with relationships rockier than the Himalayas.

He speaks in the measured, contemplative tones of an urbane former prom king with an Ivy League pedigree and a fondness for piano-driven slow dances that could make a grapefruit sigh.

Born John Stephens, the man doesn't feign false modesty, as his self-appointed surname suggests.

"It always strikes me as funny when people want artists to be so humble," Legend says. "Usually artists are acting humble, because artists have to be a bit more confident than most people are. It takes a lot of audacity to believe that you have something that the world needs to hear."

But Legend's audacity takes far different shapes than many of his R&B peers, a hot-under-the-collar bunch who do enough heavy breathing to practically suck the oxygen out of your lungs.

He tends to favor romance over sex, subtlety over the explicit, blown kisses over sweaty gropes.

Predictably, this has earned Legend much cachet among the Oprah set, and he's become a fixture on the Adult Contemporary airwaves with his unwavering sentimentality -- love hurts, love's hard, love will knee you in the groin when you're not looking, but it's worth it in the end.

In many ways, this guy is the anti-R. Kelly, so confessional at times, it seems as if he's whispering his diary into your ear.

"I think there's a misconception that everything I write is autobiographical, which it's not," Legend counters. "That being said, I like to talk about intimate issues usually, issues that are complex and that will hit close to home with people. All of them aren't specifically personal, sometimes I'll dramatize them and make them more interesting or blend stories that I've heard. I don't feel like I'm just putting my personal life out there, but I think when people do listen to my music they get to know me better."

Beginning with his 2004 major label debut, "Get Lifted," which earned him a trio of Grammys, Legend has made a name for himself with svelte R&B soap operas where public displays of affection are encouraged and fitful lovers always seem to be wandering away in opposite directions.

It's by turns a slick and warm sound, with Legend frequently working with hip-hop prime mover Kanye West, with the result being a playfully seductive repertoire that feels both loose and studied at once.

"I think part of it is just where I come from," explains Legend, who started playing piano at the age of 5 and writing songs before he was a teen. "I grew up playing a little bit of classical and a lot of gospel. Gospel has a much more improvised, kind of raw feel, classical is a bit more studied and elaborate in certain ways. And I have a certain kind of approach that's a little bit academic as well. Everything I do blends those sensibilities, I think."

None of this is to suggest that Legend is solely preoccupied with matters of the bedroom or that he's risk averse. To wit, in March, Legend appeared on HBO's "Real Time With Bill Maher," where he had sharp criticism for the current administration.

"Oh, it's fun for me," Legend says, his voice brightening. "That show's fun, and I watch it all the time anyway. I'm always staying aware of what's going on politically. It's just something that I've always been interested in, even as a kid. I think every citizen should care about how the government is spending their money and the things that the government does in our name, because we pay for it and it directly impacts us."

It's this mix of candor and studiousness that's come to define Legend, the Casanova, the popular kid, who seems so at ease with himself, it's just natural for everyone else to follow suit.

"It's not some kind of plan I have to be relatable, I'm just being myself," Legend says. "I don't overtly seek publicity for my social life. I get to enjoy all the benefits of my celebrity without the drawbacks. I have more fun now than I've ever had."