"Thought they banned capital punishment in California": Internet reacts as John Legend sings live for prisoner firefighters

On Sunday, January 19, 2025, singer John Legend was at the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, visiting the incarcerated firefighters who have been helping fight the brutal LA fires. Legend uploaded a video of the same on his official Instagram account. According to his video, about 400 firefighters working on the Eaton fire are incarcerated. In the caption of the post, he wrote:

"Something that struck with me from this group was that no matter where we come from, we all have the capacity to serve, protect, and rebuild- not just ourselves but for our community."

John Legend was further seen singing his 2004 hit track, Ordinary People. With the video going viral on social media, netizens began expressing their opinions on the same. Here are some popular comments found under the viral video on Instagram. A user commented:

"Being under paid, fighting a fire, and having to listen to John Legend sing... I thought they banned capital punishment in California."

A comment under the viral video, (Photo via Instagram/@johnlegend)

More comments under the viral video, (Photo via Instagram/@johnlegend)

While many mocked Legend's attempt, a lot of Instagram users actually appreciated his gesture and complimented him.

More comments under the viral video, (Photo via Instagram/@johnlegend)

According to the January 21 reports by USA Today, the horrific fires have spread to San Diego due to the strong winds and extremely dry climate. Edward Kelly, the president of the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF) even described the destruction caused to be "apocalyptic."

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John Legend and his wife Chrissy Teigen were among several people who had to evacuate their home

The LA fire has impacted many lives and caused massive destruction. Several celebrities too had to be evacuated, and John Legend was one of them. Earlier this month, Chrissy Teigen shared her experience before the evacuation, through her Instagram story.

According to reports by Page Six, the couple along with their children and pets, arrived at a hotel after evacuating their residence. While talking about her pets, she even confirmed that their bearded dragon Sebastian made it safe as well along with their four dogs. In one of the stories, Chrissy wrote:

"I haven't had the words, it is a hellscape. We are ok as of right now, and I felt weird saying that with so many people we know and don’t know who are not ok. Thank you for reaching out."

She further went about expressing her gratitude to the emergency responders and firefighters who have been working day and night to control the brutal fires.

Apart from Chrissy Teigen and John Legend, multiple stars like Kid Cudi, Tom Hanks, Adam Sandler, Ben Affleck, Mandy Moore, Mark Hamill, Miley Cyrus, and many others, reportedly had to evacuate their homes due to the uncontrollable fires.

According to Cal Fire's official website, the state has witnessed 255 wildfires which further resulted in burning about 50,683 acres and damaging around 16,188 buildings. The website also suggested that as of now, 28 fatalities have been recorded.