Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 07:33, 27 December 2008

Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), better known by his stage name Ne-Yo, is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, actor, and occasional rapper. Since his debut, Ne-Yo has amassed seven top ten songs on the Billboard Hot 100 and two number-one albums on the Billboard 200. Ne-Yo has also amassed a catalog of chart-topping songs that he has written for other artists.

Early life

Ne-Yo was born on October 18, 1979 in Arkansas, United States, and baptized by the name Shaffer Chimere Smith. His father is African American and his mother is of mixed African American and Chinese American descent, both were musicians. As a young child, he was raised by his mother alone after she separated from his father.

Career

Songwriting

Ne-Yo launched his career as a songwriter. In his teenage years, he had written songs for the American boy band Youngstown. He broke in the industry after "Let Me Love You", a song he wrote for American singer Mario, reached number-one on the Billboard Hot 100, stayed on the top spot for nine weeks, and having became one of the most-played songs in the United States. Before working into his own albums, Ne-Yo had contributed songs to American singer Mary J. Blige, B2K, Faith Evans and Musiq, among others.

Ne-Yo frequently co-writes with Tor Erik Hermansen and Mikkel S. Eriksen of the Norwegian production team Stargate. Ne-Yo met them in a hallway at Sony Music Studios in New York, and having known the team produces R&B records, he decided to collaborate with them. The collective's early works were tracks off In My Own Words including "So Sick".

Aside from working on his own album, Ne-Yo also collaborated with several other artist and has been known to produce hits. His works also include: Rihanna's top-ten single "Unfaithful" and later her number-one hit "Take a Bow" in 2008, Mario Vazquez's "Gallery", Paula DeAnda's "Walk Away (Remember Me)", and Beyoncé Knowles's Billboard Hot 100 ten-week number-one hit "Irreplaceable".

Ne-Yo has also written songs for Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Corbin Bleu, and Enrique Iglesias. He also collaborated with Lindsay Lohan on her new material, having already finished "Bossy", a pre-single for her new album Spirit in the Dark. Ne-Yo confirmed that he has been contacted by producer will.i.am to work on Michael Jackson's upcoming album. His latest reported venture is with controversial and media loving industrial-metal star Marilyn Manson, after professing in an interview a desire to work with him.

Recording

"Ne-Yo" was coined by a producer Ne-Yo once worked with, Big D Evans, because Evans claimed that Ne-Yo sees music as Neo sees the matrix. Ne-Yo was signed by American hip hop artist Jay-Z, then-CEO of Def Jam Recordings.

Ne-Yo's debut album, In My Own Words, was released in early 2006 through Def Jam Recordings. Boosted by its popular lead single, "So Sick", the album debuted at number one on Billboard 200, selling over 301,000 copies in the first week. During the same week, the single had reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100. Later singles released were "When You're Mad" and "Sexy Love", which have peaked at number 15 and number seven, respectively. The album has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for a shipment of over one million units.

His second album, Because of You, was released on May 1, 2007 and, fueled by its lead single, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, selling 251,000 copies in the United States; the feat gave Ne-Yo his second number-one album. The first single from the platinum-selling album was the title track, which peaked at the number-two spot. Despite the success of "Because of You", later singles released charted less successful and was unable to reach the Top 20. The album has been certified platinum by RIAA for a shipment of over one million units. In December 2007, Ne-Yo and the Goo Goo Dolls performed at a fund raising concert for the then presidential candidate Senator Barack Obama.

Ne-Yo's third album, Year of the Gentleman, was released on September 6, 2008. The album sold 250,000 copies in its first week in the United States, debuting on the Billboard 200 at number two. Reviews for the album were positive: in one of which, Caryn Ganz of Rolling Stone magazine wrote that Year of the Gentleman is "actually a superb concept album about what a great boyfriend he can be". The first two singles, "Closer" and "Miss Independent", have peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100. The album was nominated for for Best Contemporary R&B Album and Album of the Year at the 2009 Grammy Awards, "Closer" for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance, and "Miss Independent" for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song. Year of the Gentleman has been certified gold by RIAA for a shipment of more than 500,000 copies.

Later in the year, Ne-Yo was invited to sing the United States national anthem The Star-Spangled Banner at the Special NFL game, San Diego Chargers against the New Orleans Saints held at Wembley Stadium in London, England, UK. He was later invited again to sing the anthem at the Ford 400 NASCAR race in Homestead, Florida as well.

Other ventures

Ne-Yo ventured out to open his own recording studio called Carrington House and started his own label, Compound Entertainment, in 2007; artists such as Paula Campbell, Sixx John, and Shanell are now associated with Compound.

Ne-Yo also appeared in several films. He debuted into the silver screen with Save the Last Dance 2 in 2006 and later with Stomp the Yard in 2007. He contributed songs to the soundtracks to both films. Ne-Yo is set to star in, executive produce and write the soundtrack to the film Venice Beach.

Personal life

Ne-Yo was arrested for reckless driving on February 19, 2008, while cruising through Cobb County, Georgia. He was driving at over 100 mph in his 2006 Range Rover and did not have a valid license. It was reported that he was doing about 105 mph, 50 mph over the speed limit. According to the Atlanta-Journal Constitution, ne-Yo was sentenced to 24 hours community service by a judge on June 2, 2008, after he pleaded guilty to driving without a license and pleaded no contest to the reckless driving charge.

Discography

• 2006: In My Own Words
• 2007: Because of You
• 2008: Year of the Gentleman

Filmography

• 2007: Save the Last Dance 2
• 2007: Stomp The Yard
• 2010: Venice Beach

References

1. ^ Hobbs, Linda (2007-02-27). "VIBE.com: Ne-Yo to VIBE: "I am NOT a Sex Addict"". Vibe. Retrieved 2008-10-15.
2. "Ne-Yo: Grammy-winning singer to perform at Halenbeck Hall". St. Cloud State University. 2008-09-25. Retrieved 2008-10-14.
3. Lo, Ricky (2008). "Let Ne-Yo Love You". The Philippine Star. Philippines.
4. ^ Kellman, Any. "Neyo: Biography". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
5. ^ Hope, Clover (2009-03-09). "Ne-Yo Completes Chart Takeover With 'So Sick'". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
6. ^ Reid, Shaheem. "Jay-Z's Picks: Teairra Mari, Rihanna, Ne-Yo". MTV. Retrieved 2008-12-25.
7. Sisario, Ben (2007-05-06). "Wizards in the Studio, Anonymous on the Street". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-12-25.
8. McDonald, Sam (2007-05-30). "The many roles of Ne-Yo". Daily Press. AccessMyLibrary. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
9. Laudadio, Marisa (2008-05-07). "Listen to Lindsay Lohan's New Song 'Bossy'". People. Retrieved 2008-12-24. {{cite news}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
10. "Ne-Yo: 'I'm Not Trying To Top 'Thriller'". Starpulse. 2007-06-07. Retrieved 2008-12-24.
11. "Ne-yo News - Marilyn Manson and Ne-Yo Duet". Idiomag. 2008-09-24. Retrieved 2008-09-26.
12. Scott, Kevin R. (2005-10-24). "20 Questions with Ne-Yo". Vibe. Retrieved 2008-10-21.
13. Lorez, Jeff (2006). "Ne-Yo 2006 Interview". Soulmusic. Retrieved 2008-10-21.
14. Hasty, Katie (2006-03-08). "Ne-Yo's 'Words' Speak Volumes At No. 1". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
15. ^ "Artist Chart History - Ne-Yo". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
16. ^ "RIAA - Gold and Platinum". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2008-12-25.
17. Hasty, Katie (2009-05-09). "Ne-Yo Scores Second No. 1 In Debut-Heavy Week". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
18. Cathcart, Rebecca (2007-12-11). "Ne-Yo, The Goo Goo Dolls and, Oh, Yes, Barack". The New York Times. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
19. Hasty, Katie (2008-09-24). "Metallica Edges Ne-Yo, Nelly To Remain No. 1". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-12-25.
20. Ganz, Caryn (2008-09-18). "Year of the Gentleman : Ne-Yo : Review". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2008-09-24.
21. Adler, Shawn (2008-12-04). "Ne-Yo Was Blown Away By His Six Grammy Nods: 'One Nomination Would Have Been Enough For Me'". MTV. Retrieved 2008-12-25.
22. Frezza, Robert (2007-05-29). "Ne-Yo To Open Carrington House Studio". Soulshine. Retrieved 2007-09-30.
23. "Interview: Ne-Yo". MTV. 2006. Retrieved 2008-12-26.
24. Simmons, Leslie (2008-10-17). "Ne-Yo Pulling Triple Duty On 'Beach'". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-10-18.
25. TMZ staff (2008-02-22). "Cops: Ne-Yo Was Driving CRAZY!". TMZ. Retrieved 2008-12-24.

External links

• Official Site
• Template:MySpace
• Ne-Yo at IMDb

• 1979 births
• African American singers
• Chinese Americans
• American actor-singers
• American dance musicians
• American male singers
• American pop singers
• American rhythm and blues singers
• Arkansas musicians
• Def Jam Recordings artists
• English-language singers
• Grammy Award winners
• Living people
• People from Ouachita County, Arkansas
• People of mixed Asian-Black African ethnicity