John Legend Did a Surprise Piano Performance on the Latest Voice Episode

One of the great joys of The Voice is watching the Coaches step up to perform.

While they spend most of their time on the show sitting in their special chairs, watching other people sing and then commenting on it, The Voice never lets you forget that its Coaches are all music legends in their own right. They’re there because they know what star power is firsthand, and they’re ready to try and pass it on to the artists they recruit for their team. They also, fortunately for us, put that star power to use from time to time.

Most of the time, when a Coach sings on The Voice, it’s a rehearsed, pre-planned piece of performance, like when all four Coaches teamed up to sing “Take It Easy.” But sometimes the moment just presents itself, and a Coach bursts into spontaneous song, like John Legend did after he won yet another key vocalist to his team Monday night.

John Legend’s Spontaneous Piano Performance on The Voice Season 24

John Legend during Season 24, Episode 6 of the Voice Photo: Greg Gayne/NBC

To kick off Episode 5 of Season 24, the Coaches were treated to a performance by Lila Forde, who wowed them all and got a Four-Chair turn for her cover of Blind Faith’s “Can’t Find My Way Home.” It was clear that every Coach wanted Forde on their team, but Legend ultimately won out, and after Forde left the stage, he celebrated by wandering over to Forde’s keyboard, which still hadn’t been removed by The Voice crew.

Dropping onto the bench behind the keys, Legend did what any musical icon would do, and started playing, treating both the audience and his fellow Coaches to a version of his celebration song “Welcome to Team Legend.” It’s a way to gloat, sure, but if you’re going to gloat on national television, it helps to have a voice that beautiful.

And of course, it’s not the only time Legend has burst into song on Season 24 so far. A couple of weeks ago, in an effort to win over vocalist Mara Justine, Legend launched into a duet of his hit “All of Me” with the artist, and ended up convincing her to join his team instead of Niall Horan’s. Again, a bold tactic, but when you sound like John Legend people tend to let you sing whenever you want.