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NE-YO: Saving Music From The Matrix
(April 6, 2006)
Ne-Yo has come to save us. Not the Neo character played by Keanu Reeves, who freed mankind from the Matrix – NE-YO, the young musical brother who’s come to save music. At just 23 years old, Ne-Yo has become a force to be reckoned with. Fresh from penning the very popular Mario hit, “Let Me Love You,” Ne-Yo released his debut album, “In My Own Words.” Aptly titled, as he is the sole writer of all tracks on the disc, the record soared up the charts thanks in part to the momentum of the first single “So Sick.” It’s safe to say that music fans are hardly sick of the record. “In My Own Words” was certified platinum just one month after its debut.
The young Arkansas native sat down with EUR’s Lee Bailey to discuss what he considers the return of R&B. And what really is in a name? Perhaps this young cat out of Arkansas, so called Ne-Yo, can deliver us from mediocre music. After all, he was bestowed the moniker by a producer who explained to him that he sees music the way Neo sees the Matrix in the movie.
“In the beginning, I didn’t really like [the name] because, if you remember in the movie, Neo was like Jesus. He was like the closest thing to a god. And I don’t think of myself that highly,” Ne-Yo explained modestly. But folks kept calling him that and the name finally stuck. Anyone’s who has taken a listen to the disc might be inclined to agree that there is a bit of lyrical purity that appears to be quite a conundrum to contemporary R&B music makers. Perhaps it’s true that Ne-Yo is one of the few who can solve the mystery.
One tool Ne-Yo, whose real name is Shaffer Smith, uses to decipher the musical matrix are lyrics with substance. The artist finds that he draws upon that old school drive in his writing.
“People underestimate the power of a good story,” he wisely professed. “Everybody likes to be entertained and that’s what stories do. I think if more songwriters concentrated on actually putting out a good story line, I think there would be better songs out right now. There’s nothing I hate more than a song about nothing. But, hey, let ‘em keep doing it, because the more they do songs about nothing; that makes my songs sound that much better.”
Of his disc, which hit stores last February, Ne-Yo said: “I was going for a more traditional sound of R&B. I don’t have any quarrels with hip-hop/R&B or crunk & B or none of that stuff. Actually, I’m a fan of a lot of that stuff and at some point in my career you will hear me do some type of stuff like, but for this album in particular, I very much wanted a specific kind of sound. I wanted what Boys II Men used to do; what Stevie Wonder does to this day; what Guy used to do and Jodeci and groups like that. I wanted thick, rich melodies and harmonies and lyrical content that was really talking about something.”
Even more, Ne-Yo’s influences got way beyond smooth R&B of the 90s. Would you believe he thanks the Rat Pack for developing his sound? It’s true, cats and kittens.
“My musical influences came from my mother,” Ne-Yo attributed. “Anything my mom was into, I was in to. And once we moved to Vegas, my mom was in and out of the casinos with odd jobs and back then, just blaring through the loudspeakers at these casinos was Tom Jones, The Rat Pack – Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr. all of that, so my mom developed an ear for it, so she brought it home and let me hear it and I was floored by it. I took a liking to Sammy Davis Jr. Him, Prince, and Stevie Wonder I call the Three Kings. These are the three men that if I can form them into one person – that is the person I aspire to be.”
Ne-Yo explained that he really loved what the Rat Pack represented and that they were masters of their craft.
“I think if the music industry went back to what it was back then, a lot of people that are making money today would be out of a job. Sammy Davis Jr. was all of that. He was a singer, dancer, and composer. He had the whole shebang – as someone back then might say.”
Although Ne-Yo says he can dance, artistically he doesn’t really liken himself to the infamous tapping Candy man. After all, he doesn’t really sound or look like Sammy Davis Jr. But Ne-Yo aspires to have his hypnotic style.
“Take Sammy, take Frank Sinatra, take any of those guys and you put them on stage and you’re enthralled. You can’t stop watching them. Sammy Davis Jr. was a guy that, whether it be him standing in one place and singing a song or tap dancing across the stage, you were just amazed as what he was doing.”
But of those he is likened to, Ne-Yo says: “I’ve heard people say there are elements of young Michael Jackson in my voice or that at times I sound like Usher. But I just sing. I don’t really focus on who I sound like in particular. I just sing.”
Now, now Ne-Yo, what kind of music industry messiah just sings?
The artist doesn’t just sing. He also writes.
“I have a song on Mary J. Blige’s latest album. But, the most famous song I have written to date is ‘Let Me Love You’ that I did for Mario. I met him through Dr. Dre and we became friends really quickly. He said if ever I’m in Miami, just come down and we’ll do some work. It just so happened that I was in Miami when [Scott Storch] was working on the album for Mario. He played me the chords and I sat down and penned the song with Scott and Kam Houf in about 30 minutes. We knew that we’d done something special. At first I thought Mario wasn’t going to be able to pull it off because he had just turned 18 and the song had such an old feel to it. But, he shut my mouth. He got in the studio and knocked that song out in an hour. He did it.”
And he produces. Ne-yo has his own production, management, and marketing company named Compound Entertainment, which produced most of his album and the “Save the Last Dance II” soundtrack. He also acts, and has a small role in the film, which is set to hit theaters this summer. He also designs. His has a clothing line that will be revealed this fall. The line is urban couture described as upscale street wear for men and women.
Look out for the video for his next single, "When You’re Mad", and the work he’s doing on Beyonce’s upcoming new project. For more on Ne-Yo, check out his website at www.NeYoworld.com.
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