10 Musical Superstars You Never Knew Wrote Other Artists' Hit Songs

John Legend (né John Roger Stephens) has sung his share of hit solo songs, but he got his start collaborating with established artists, including Kanye, Jay-Z, and Fort Minor. Since his debut album, Get Lifted, dropped in 2004, the crooner has made huge strides in the music industry.

10 Grammy Awards, seven studio albums, and 39 singles later, John Legend has lived up to his last (pen) name. He is also one of only 15 people—and the first black man—to have gone EGOT (as in he has won an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. NBD.

Throughout his career, the soulful pianist has written tracks for a diverse group of artists, including Baby Come Home for the Scissor Sisters, Magnificent for Rick Ross, and I Want You for Janet Jackson, which went platinum and received a Grammy nom for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

For British hip hop star Estelle, Legend wrote Pretty Please (Love Me), which went on to be featured in Sex and the City: The Movie and Bride Wars. The All of Me crooner also penned Don’t Say Goodbye for Brazilian musician Sérgio Mendes. It's certainly no surprise John Legend won the Hal David Starlight Award from the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2007.