John Legend delivered a heartwarming speech for his wife, Chrissy Teigen, an honoree at Glamour's 2018 Women of the Year Awards on Monday, November 12 in New York City.
The singer and father-of-two opened his loving tribute by describing himself as, "Chrissy Teigen’s trophy husband."
"Sometimes Chrissy likes to take me out on the town and show me off a little. Nights like this one, when people are taking pictures," he joked to the crowd.
The singer gushed about his famously outspoken wife and described her impact on their family, moving himself and Teigen to tears with his words. "I have a career in the music business, but we all know who the star of the family is,” he said. “She’s the heart and soul of the family too."
He spoke on the overwhelming support he feels for his wife from everyone he meets.
"I am very much in love with this woman,” he shared. “But I’m not the only one who loves her. Many millions of people who aren’t married or related to her love her too."
"Everywhere I go, I meet people, fans, who used to ask me for an autograph or tell me how much they love my music. Now, the number one comment I get from people who used to be my fans is how much they love Chrissy. She gets bigger cheers than I do at my own concerts."
She inspires so many people and so many women. I mean, she’s the kind of woman you write songs about. Huge, international, award-winning songs.
Legend listed some of the qualities that make Teigen stand out: "Her honesty. Her humor. Her beauty and style. Her passion for food. Her sense of adventure and fun. Her big, beautiful heart. The heart she wears on her sleeve."
He also said that his wife has served as the inspiration for much of his music — and is the type of women music should be written about.
"She inspires so many people and so many women. I mean, she’s the kind of woman you write songs about. Huge, international, award-winning songs," he said. "But this is about Chrissy. Have you heard songs written for Chrissy before? One of them went to #1 on Billboard charts," he noted, likely in reference to his 2013 hit "All of Me."
MORE: Chrissy Teigen shares the recipe for her everything bagel cream cheese breakfast bakeNoting the influence of social media, which Teigen uses daily to voice her opinion on everything from the latest cooking trend to political drama unfolding in the United States, Legend said the tool allows Teigen to be unabashedly herself.
"I think the world may have missed out on Chrissy’s full awesomeness if it weren’t for social media. She would have never fully shone the way she does if she were filtered by publicists and handlers," he said. "Chrissy’s biggest impact may be the way she proves that just by being the person you are, you can make a difference. Being who you are, unapologetically, you can make a difference."
With extreme candor on social media comes opposing beliefs, Legend mentioned, but he said that his wife is making a difference through sharing her opinions.
"If you speak up about the things that you believe in, whether it’s immigration rights, postpartum depression or the joys of chicken pot pie — and if you do it authentically and without presumption, you can enlighten another human being you can brighten people’s day," he said.
"What a gift that is. And what a time to do it, right now, when it’s so important to amplify voices of reason, not shut them down," he added.
MORE: Chrissy Teigen reveals her 'mom bod,' plus other times she's kept it real as a parentWhen Teigen announced her Glamour “Women of the Year” award to her 21 million followers on Instagram at the end of the October, she mentioned how she feels she’s gotten quieter lately in the caption of her post.
"I’ve never been the most eloquent person and lately I’ve noticed myself going quiet — consumed by the news of the day, and not quite knowing what to say. Or wanting to say something but not really having the mental strength to handle the inevitable backlash," she wrote. "But I end up feeling worse."
"I want to speak up for those that can’t, for people that feel smaller or less-than because of the big talk of a small man," she wrote.
Legend noted in his speech that Teigen is worthy of being in the company of Glamour’s other impressive "Women of the Year," a list that includes Viola Davis, Senator Kamala Harris and students activists from March for Our Lives.
"In her Glamour profile, she talked about a time when we were at this big event and she was crying in a dressing room because she felt so overwhelmed by the illustrious company she was in," he shared with the crowd. "We were celebrating the TIME 100 and she felt like she didn’t belong. How could she be worthy of the likes of Oprah, Christine Lagarde, Michelle Obama?"
"I’m here to say that you belong here. I think it has become very clear to Glamour magazine and to many millions of people around the world that you are more than worthy of this honor tonight."
After Legend's passionate tribute to his wife while presenting her award, an emotional Teigen told the crowd just how much Legend means to her.
"I joke about it a lot, but I truly have the most incredible husband on the planet,” she said, through tears. “You are our everything. You completely made me a woman. We’ve grown together, our family’s grown together, our careers have grown together."
In typical Teigen fashion, she called herself out on her emotional display. "This is so sappy, I’m sorry. I hate it. I didn’t cry during our wedding! I hate you John — I really do."
