"All of Me" is a song by American singer

John Legend John Roger Stephens (born December 28, 1978), known professionally as John Legend, is an American singer, songwriter, pianist, and record producer. He began his musical career by working behind the scenes, playing piano on Lauryn Hill's " Eve ...

from his fourth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

'' Love in the Future'' (2013). It is dedicated to Legend's wife

Chrissy Teigen Christine Diane Teigen (born November 30, 1985) is an American model and television personality. She made her professional modeling debut in the annual ''Sports Illustrated'' Swimsuit Issue in 2010 and later appeared on the 50th anniversary co ...

. "All of Me" first aired on American

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radio as the album's third single on August 12, 2013. On the week ending May 26, 2014, it peaked at number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, becoming his first number-one single in the United States. It knocked off " Happy" by Pharrell Williams, which had spent 10 weeks at number one. The song peaked at number two in the United Kingdom, South Africa and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and topped the charts in Australia, Canada, Ireland, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. It became the second best-selling song of 2014 in the United States with 4.67 million copies sold for the year, as well as the third best-selling song in the United Kingdom. "All of Me" was the third best-selling song of 2014 with 12.3 million equivalent-units worldwide (sales plus streaming), according to the IFPI. A remix of the song (Tiësto's Birthday Treatment remix), featuring

EDM EDM or E-DM may refer to: Music * Electronic dance music * Early Day Miners, American band Science and technology * Electric dipole moment * Electrical discharge machining * Electronic distance measurement *Entry, Descent, and landing demonstrat ...

artist

Tiësto Tijs Michiel Verwest (; born 17 January 1969), known professionally as Tiësto ( ), is a Dutch DJ and music producer from Breda. He was voted "the Greatest DJ of All Time" by '' Mix'' magazine in a 2010/2011 poll amongst fans. In 2013, he was ...

, was released in January 2014 and won the 2015

Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical The Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical is an honor presented to producers for quality remixed recordings at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in seve ...

, while another remix was done in March of that year by trance artist Dash Berlin. A live version of the song was nominated for

Best Pop Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guides, the Best Pop S ...

, losing to Williams' "Happy".

Background and composition

"All of Me" is a tender piano

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

, which was inspired by his then-fiancée, now wife, model

. The couple met in 2007 on the set of his video for "

Stereo Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

". They were then married on September 14, 2013. The song was produced by

Dave Tozer Dave Tozer is an American Grammy Award-winning record producer, songwriter, and musician. He has worked with several R&B, hip-hop, rock and pop artists including John Legend, Kanye West, Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, John Mayer, Snoop Do ...

and Legend himself. It is a simple, modest proposal set against delicate keys. Musically, according to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Gad Songs and John Legend Publishing, "All of Me" is written in the key of A major with a slow tempo of 120 beats per minute. Legend's vocals span from C₃ to B₄.

Release and promotion

In June 2013, Legend premiered "All of Me" during a performance on

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...

's ''

Oprah's Next Chapter ''Oprah Prime'' (formerly ''Oprah's Next Chapter'') is an American prime-time television series hosted and produced by Oprah Winfrey, airing on Oprah Winfrey Network. The series premiered on January 1, 2012, with a two-part episode featuring Ae ...

''. On August 6, 2013, the full song was released to

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along with the pre-order for '' Love in the Future''. "All of Me" impacted American

radio as the third single from ''Love in the Future'' on August 12, 2013. Dutch electronic producer

released a remix of the song in January 2014. A

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

-influenced duet version of "All of Me" with

Jennifer Nettles Jennifer Odessa Nettles (born September 12, 1974) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and record producer. Nettles is the lead vocalist of the duo Sugarland alongside Kristian Bush, and prior to this she fronted the Atlanta-based band ...

, featuring

Hunter Hayes Hunter Easton Hayes (born September 9, 1991) is an American multi-genre singer, songwriter, record producer, and multi-instrumentalist. He is proficient at more than 30 instruments. Hayes released his self-titled debut album in 2011. It reache ...

on guitar, was released in June 2014.

Commercial performance

After being stationary at number two for six weeks, "All of Me" finally reached number one on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 on the chart dated May 17, 2014. This was Legend's first Hot 100 number one single, almost 10 years since his first appearance on the chart. That was the longest wait for an artist's first number-one song from their first chart appearance since

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

waited 10 years and 10 months for his. "All of Me" became the second best-selling song of 2014 in the United States with 4.67 million copies sold for the year. The song spent three weeks at number one before being dethroned by

Iggy Azalea Amethyst Amelia Kelly (born 7 June 1990), known professionally as Iggy Azalea (), is an Australian rapper. At the age of 16, Azalea moved from Australia to the United States in order to pursue a career in music. Azalea earned public recognitio ...

's "

Fancy Fancy may refer to: Places * Fancy, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, a settlement * Fancy River, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Music Albums * ''Fancy'' (Bobbie Gentry album), 1970 * ''Fancy'' (Idiot Flesh album), 1997 * ''Fancy'' (video ...

" featuring Charli XCX. Additionally, "All of Me" spent 23 consecutive weeks in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100's top 10 and spent an overall 59 non-consecutive weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. As of April 2016, "All of Me" has sold 5,878,000 copies cumulatively in the United States. In the United Kingdom, "All of Me" peaked at number two on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and it became the third best-selling song of 2014 in the UK. As of February 2016, the song has sold 1.18 million copies in the UK.

Critical reception

"All of Me" was met with generally positive reviews from music critics. Ken Capobianco of ''

The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...

'' named the song the album's "essential track". Ryan Patrick of ''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

'' said the song, shows "Legend's current commercially friendly, sentimental sound." Jon Dolan of ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' called the song a "mountainous piano crusher". Julia Leconte of ''

NOW Now most commonly refers to the present time. Now, NOW, or The Now may also refer to: Organizations * Natal Organisation of Women, a South African women's organization * National Organization for Women, an American feminist organization * Now ...

'' stated that Legend's voice shines in the song. Molloy Woodcraft of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' also praised Legend's vocal talents on the song. A live rendition of the song was nominated for

Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance The Grammy Award for Best Pop Solo Performance is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. According to the 54th Grammy Awards description guides, the Best Pop So ...

at the 57th Annual Grammy Awards.

Live performances

On August 20, 2013, Legend performed the song live on the ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

''. On August 27, 2013, Legend performed the song at The Box in New York City. On September 2, 2013, Legend performed the song on ''

Jimmy Kimmel Live! ''Jimmy Kimmel Live!'' is an American late-night talk show, created and hosted by Jimmy Kimmel, broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The nightly hour-long show debuted on January 26, 2003, at Hollywood Masonic Temple in Hollywood, Los ...

'' along with the album's second single "Made to Love". On October 10, 2013, Legend performed the song during his appearance on ''

The Wendy Williams Show ''The Wendy Williams Show'' (often shortened to ''Wendy'') is an American syndicated talk show created and hosted by Wendy Williams, and produced by Wendy Williams Productions, along with Perler Productions. The show is distributed by Debmar- ...

''. The song was performed by Legend at the 56th Grammy Awards on January 26, 2014. The song was also performed as a duet with

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bor ...

during her 1989 World Tour.

Music video

The song's music video was shot in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

just days before Legend's wedding, featuring his fiancée, model

. The video ends with footage from their actual wedding in Lake Como, Italy. On September 12, 2013, the first image from the music video was released. On October 2, 2013, the full version of the

Nabil Elderkin Nabil Elderkin is an American-born Australian film and music video director and photographer, who is of Iranian and American descent. He is mononymously credited as Nabil in his videos. Elderkin has directed videos for musical artists such as: ...

-directed black and white music video for "All of Me" was released. The video was meant to bring the relationship full circle, as he chose the man who originally introduced them to each other, Elderkin, to direct it. A duet version of the song with accompanying music video was filmed with violinist

Lindsey Stirling Lindsey Stirling (born September 21, 1986) is an American violinist, songwriter, and dancer. She presents choreographed violin performances, in live and music videos found on her official YouTube channel, which she created in 2007. Stirling pe ...

and released on YouTube on October 26, 2013. In November 2015, the YouTube video's title mysteriously changed from 'All of Me' to 'One Last Time' and then changed back. The same happened on Spotify and Google Play. There has been no explanation for this incident. As of April 2022, the music video has received over 2.1 billion views and over 10 million likes on

YouTube YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...

Track listing

*;Digital download #"All of Me" (album version) – 4:30 *;Digital download — remix #"All of Me" (

's Birthday Treatment remix) (radio edit) – 4:11 *;Digital download #"All of Me" (featuring

and

) – 4:20 *;CD single #"All of Me" – 4:30 #"Made to Love" – 4:00

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

Release history

References

External links

*
John Legend "All of me" sheet music
{{authority control 2013 singles 2013 songs John Legend songs Jennifer Nettles songs Hunter Hayes songs Songs written by John Legend Songs containing the I–V-vi-IV progression Contemporary R&B ballads Music videos directed by Nabil Elderkin Pop ballads Soul ballads Songs written by Toby Gad Black-and-white music videos Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Switzerland Number-one singles in Romania Dutch Top 40 number-one singles GOOD Music singles Columbia Records singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Canadian Hot 100 number-one singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles 2010s ballads Grammy Award for Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical