“I was more selfish then,” the “All of Me” singer opened up about his relationship with his now wife during an interview with podcaster Jay Shetty this week

John Legend is reflecting on the early days of his romance with his now wife, Chrissy Teigen.

The Hollywood power couple first met on a music video set in 2006 and instantly hit it off. Despite wanting to take things slow, their romance quickly heated up and the two later tied the knot in 2013.

While speaking on the latest episode of the On Purpose with Jay Shetty podcast published on Monday, the “All of Me” crooner admitted he wasn’t as committed at the onset of his relationship with Teigen, 36.

“I think I was more selfish then,” he explained. “I wasn’t a great partner at the beginning of our relationship. Even though I was very into her and very excited to be with her. I was still selfish. I was in my mid-20s, still not ready to fully be the committed partner that I am now.”

As time passed, Legend, 43, said it later dawned on him that he needed to change to fight for the relationship with the person he loves.

“When you stop being so selfish when you think about not only the joy you get from a situation and the pleasure you get from it, but also think about your responsibility and your commitment in that situation. You just grow, and you mature,” he said. “Part of it is it’s just a matter of time. You need time to become that person you want to be.”

“When we first met, we were very attracted to each other, our chemistry was great, but that level of attraction is more like infatuation at the beginning of a relationship,” the EGOT winner continued. “And love when it is able to stand the test of time, it has to be deeper and more real than that. We’ve been through enough together where it’s really fortified us and made us stronger. Those tests have made us grow together and realize things about each other that we didn’t know. And going through all of that … to be able to write and sing a song called ‘I Don’t Love You Like I Used To.’ It’s different now but it’s better.”

The pair who share two kids, Luna Simone, 6, and Miles Theodore, 4, are expecting a new addition to the family after suffering a pregnancy loss a little over two years ago.

Through the ups and downs in their relationship journey, Legend shared he was able to learn so much about Teigen’s personality, which helped him appreciate her even more.

“How she reacts to stress, how she reacts to life, how she can find a joke even in the craziest … even in grief, she’s able to find humor,” he added. “I feel like you see so many things about your partner as you grow together and as you experience adversity together and what I’ve seen from her just made me love her more and value her more. I think she’s cooler now than I ever thought she was. I just really have seen her in all kinds of situations. I just value her more, and am in awe of her more than I ever have been.”