John Legend Named People’s Sexiest Man Alive 2019

Singer John Legend has been crowned People’s Sexiest Man Alive 2019.

What’s his reaction to the coveted title? John told People magazine, “I was excited, but I was a little scared at the same time because it’s a lot of pressure. Everyone’s going to be picking me apart to see if I’m sexy enough to hold this title. I’m [also] following Idris Elba, which is not fair and is not nice to me!”

Legend is the 34th man to hold the title, including Chris Hemsworth, Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, Blake Shelton, David Beckham and Matthew McConaughey.

His wife Chrissy Teigen reacted to his Sexiest Man Alive cover by tweeting, “my secret is out. I have fulfilled my dream of having boned @people’s sexiest man alive!! an honor!!!!!”

John said the title made him more confident than ever before, explaining, “I’m so proud that I have a wife and two kids I’m so in love with and so connected to. I’m also so proud of my career. I love writing songs and performing on stage. I get a lot of joy from it and give a lot of joy to other people. I’m pretty at ease with myself now!”

Before he made a name for himself in music, Legend said he went through an “awkward phase.” He explained, “I was two years younger than my classmates, so I get to high school, everyone else is around 14 and I’m 12. And I get to college, everyone else is around 18 and I’m 16. I was always like less mature, less at ease socially. I had plenty of awkward times.”

“I think you grow into being comfortable in your own skin,” he emphasized. “Most of your teenage years, into your 20s, you’re still figuring out who you are, how you present yourself to the world… eventually I think you get more at ease with yourself. I know who I am. Maturity helps with that.”

The 40-year-old also revealed what his sexiest quality is, saying, “I mean, I’m a pretty good singer. That helps.”

On Wednesday, John celebrated the title on “The Voice,” joking, “I want to thank People magazine, of course, but mostly, I want to thank Blake Shelton, because I sat next to him for the last few months, and I learned his sexy ways. I observed every move he made, every utterance that came from his mouth, and I think some of it rubbed off on me. I think that has everything to do with why we’re here today.” Watch!

People’s Sexiest Man Alive issue hits newsstands Friday.