John Legend and Donald Trump have made no secret of their feelings for one other in the past. Last year Trump took to Twitter to call John "boring", after the singer apparently failed to credit him for passing a criminal justice bill.
In response, John called the US President "petty and narcissistic" in an interview with the Evening Standard. Now, in an interview with Cosmopolitan, John has described Trump's leadership as "embarrassing" and said that he and his wife Chrissy Teigen have even considered leaving America because of him.
"Every once in a while you think about it," the singer told us. "We were born and raised here, all of our families are here. It would be hard to leave. But I don’t know what one’s supposed to do when you have a leader who is trying to destroy democracy."
John, who is expecting his third child with Chrissy, added, "At some point, if that project [to destroy democracy] was to be in any way successful, you’d have to think about going somewhere that is a true democracy, that has respect for the rule of law and human rights.
"If America chooses to be that place then people will have to start thinking about going somewhere else. It is truly disturbing and concerning."
John's comments come as the US presidential election on 3rd November draws closer. It will decide whether Trump is elected for a second term. His opponent is Democrat Joe Biden.
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John continued, "I’m not nervous. I strongly believe America is exhausted from three and a half years of Donald Trump. Exhausted from the daily efforts to destroy democracy and the free press.
"I think his handling of the [COVID-19] pandemic has been embarrassing to the entire nation and has caused so much loss of life, that was preventable. I think people are just exhausted and ready for new leadership: sane leadership, empathetic leadership. Joe Biden can bring that to the country.
"We can’t bear another four years of this. As Michelle Obama said, we have to vote like our lives depend on it. I honestly think the American people will do it. I truly don’t know if we would be a democracy when we were done if we went another four years."
And of his former mentor Kanye West's own bid for President, John said, "I don’t think it’s going to impact the election much. I do think a lot of it’s being supported by the Trump campaign."
John said in June that he and Kanye were no longer friends, but denied that it was anything to do with Kanye's support of Trump.
John told Cosmopolitan, "He always expressed affinity towards Donald Trump and is co-ordinating with the Trump campaign’s personnel, meeting with Jared Kushner [advisor to Trump, who is also his son-in-law].”
John Legend is Cosmopolitan's first ever digital cover star.
Cosmopolitan UK's October issue is out now and available for purchase online and via Readly. You can also SUBSCRIBE HERE or read on Apple News+. Find our podcast 'All The Way With...' on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and the Acast app.
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Lottie Lumsden is the Group Entertainment Director at Harper’s Bazaar, ELLE, Esquire, Cosmopolitan, Red and Prima. Lottie heads up the entertainment and celebrity talent strategy across these Luxury and Women’s Lifestyle titles, which includes booking talent for print and digital magazine covers, brand events such as Harper’s Bazaar’s Women of the Year Awards and the ELLE Style Awards, as well as talent led video interview franchises.She has interviewed everyone from Sophie Turner to Olivia Cooke, and Kim Kardashian (twice), as well as Haim during a visit to LA for their cover shoot. Lottie has secured the likes of Anya Taylor-Joy, Jodie Comer, Paul Mescal, Florence Pugh, Greta Gerwig, Julianne Moore, Cate Blanchett, Saoirse Ronan and Cara Delevingne for covers.Lottie has 20 years’ experience working as an entertainment journalist.When not securing A-list names, Lottie can usually be found watching the latest must watch TV show or out on a run.
Follow Lottie on Instagram at @lottielumsden
