Earlier this summer, That Grape Juice was fortunate enough to sit down with Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter Ne-Yo in a swanky London hotel. With his third studio album ‘Year of The Gentleman’ nearing release at the time, he spoke openly with That Grape Juice about the record – which since went on to debut at #1, ‘beef’ with Chris Brown, his love life and much more. Though limited time made for the interview to come to a halt, I’m sure you’ll agree it’s a great read all the same. Enjoy
Sam: Having burst onto the scene little over 2 years ago, this singer/songwriter has quickly gone on to establish himself as one of the premier talents on today’s music scene. Of course I’m talking about Grammy winner Ne-Yo.

How are you, man? It’s great to finally be able to meet with you.

Ne-Yo: Thank you

Sam: You just landed in the UK a few days back, how has your stay been thus far?

Pretty good, pretty good – I like it out here. I haven’t really been able to do any of the ‘touristy’ stuff yet. It’s crazy as this is like my 10th time coming out here and I still don’t know anywhere outside of the area right here (referring to hotel locality). This is the hotel we always stay at; so it goes airport, hotel, (show) venue and hotel, venue, home.

Sam: This August sees the release your third studio album, ‘Year of The Gentleman’….

Ne-Yo: Uh uh…September.

Sam: Has it been pushed back?

Ne-Yo: September 15th.

Sam: Any particular reason for the pushback?

Ne-Yo: I was not going to put out an album that was not 100% right; and I wanted the record to be 100% right – so that’s pretty much it.

Sam: What exactly is the meaning of the album’s title?

Ne-Yo: ‘Year of The Gentleman’. That basically comes from me personally feeling that what it means to be a gentleman is a little lacking nowadays. From the way we view and treat our women, to outward appearance. All that stuff. It’s a little lacking these days. The guys that takes the time to make sure he looks at least half-way decent before he walks out of the house are few and far between nowadays. The guy that will pull out a woman’s chair for her, open the car door for her. That’s a little lacking nowadays. That effortless ‘cool’ that you used to see back in the day with the likes of Nat King Cole and the Rat Pack, stuff like that. Not this, what we have today, where it’s like ‘Hey, everybody look here, I got diamonds and money and girls…look at me’. It wasn’t like that back in the day. Back in the day it was about being charming, about being charismatic, about suave, about swagger back then. You didn’t have to try so hard to get someone’s attention; they’d just give it to you anyway because you were ‘that guy’. This album is basically me trying to lead by example and showcase what it is to be a gentleman.

With that being said, I am not a perfect gentleman – yet! I am a gentleman in training. So there are still some aspects of being a gentleman that I have to learn; but I’m willing to learn, which I guess puts me a little ahead of the curve.

Sam: Good stuff. Congratulations on hitting #1 with the record’s lead single ‘Closer’

Ne-Yo: Thank you very much…

Sam: The song has performed significantly better here than back home in the States. Why you think this has been?

Ne-Yo: Well, the song is inspired by the UK and going out here in London. I remember that night, we went to a couple of different clubs. Two clubs were very American R&B/Hip-Hop based and I remember saying to my people “I can get this back at home. I want to know what goes on here”. So they took me to another spot – I guess it was like a Techno/House club - real small venue, yet filled to the capacity. It had the whole green lasers; people had their hands in the air, eyes closed and in a trance from this music. I mean, I’ve never really been a fan of dance music, it’s just never really been my thing, but the common ground I found with that music, is that I like to make music that makes you feel something. That’s the whole M-O of the music I create – I try to evoke some kind of emotion – happy, sad, whatever. That music (Techno/House) is strictly about how the music makes you feel, to the point where the lyrics don’t even matter (laughs). There was one I heard that had but 3 words in the damn song (laughs). It’s all about the feel and what the music does to you. So I tried to capture that vibe, put the little ‘Ne-Yo’ spin on it and do my own interpretation of what I heard and felt that night.

Sam: Having served up R&B/Pop smashes with your previous releases, ‘Closer’ is somewhat left-field for you musically, with its Euro-Dance sound. Is this something we can expect to hear more of on the album?

Ne-Yo: To a degree. I did a lot of things on this new album that I haven’t done before. I think that one of the reasons ‘Closer’ has performed much better over here is that over here you guys are a little more susceptible to change, a little more open. Whereas back home in the States, people kinda get programmed into one thing and one thing only. If it ain’t 50 Cent or doesn’t sound like this, then we don’t want to know about it. That’s one of the reasons I like it out here – outside America in general because people are open to more things out here.

Sam: Ok, in general, what can we expect from the album in terms of producers, features etc.

Ne-Yo: No features. This is my first studio album with no features whatsoever. I kinda wanted to leave it like that, as I’m doing a lot of experimenting with different sounds and genres of music. So if something –touch wood (laughs) – went bad, I didn’t want to have anyone else to blame but me.

Producers, I used everyone that I normally use. My production company, Compound, Stargate and more.

As far as the sound of this album, I’ve been basically been calling the album a buffet, as there is literally a little something there for everybody. There’s something there for the cats that are strictly Urban, for the cats that are strictly Pop, for the cats that are into Alternative that don’t even know my damn name yet! A little bit of everything for everybody on this record.

Sam: Awesome. What do you hope to accomplish with this album?

Ne-Yo: I hope to help blur some of these lines, knock down some of these walls and barricades that have been put up in music. (I want it to be) Not Pop, Rock, Urban, but simply to come down to two categories of music – good music and bad music. I pray that my music is always in the good music category.

Sam: Amen.

Ne-Yo: Thank you, sir.

Sam: Next single?

Ne-Yo: A track called ‘Miss Independent’. (Coyly) You heard that one?

Sam: Uh huh (Sidenote: I’m not sure I’m supposed to have nodded as the track wasn’t supposed to have ‘surfaced’ at the time LOL).

Ne-Yo: …the track sees me pay homage to a woman that’s got her own. There’s something very sexy about that to me. Nothing worse than a chick you’ve got to (completely) take care of.

Sam: Ok. Like many, you recently put your own spin on Lil’ Wayne’s ‘A Milli’ track. However, your version in particular has garnered more attention than others, with many questioning who exactly you’re taking aim at…

Ne-Yo: (Laughs!)

Sam: For the record then, Mr Ne-Yo, what was the deal with that?

Ne-Yo: There was no deal (laughs)! Everybody swears I was talking about Chris (Brown). It wasn’t about Chris; Chris is my homeboy – why would I shoot at him? I actually said in the line “To anyone in general, this is not //But if you claim A Milli you ain’t got, this red dot is on your forehead”. That’s basically me saying, don’t think I’m talking about anyone in particular, I’m just talking shit. It’s one of those records you get on and basically talk shit. Everyone was talking about how much money they got, I was like ‘Hold on!!! Lemme talk about how much money I got!’ (laughs)…

Sam: As I’m sure that ‘Irreplaceable’ cheque guarantees (laughs)…

Ne-Yo: There you go (laughs)…

Sam: Your performance at this year’s BET Awards had many people talking, as you were largely considered to have stolen the show, so to speak, in comparison to more established acts. That said, do you feel you are in competition with the Usher’s, the Chris Brown’s and whatnot?

Ne-Yo: Yes, but it is a friendly competition – it’s not competition that’s based on animosity. We don’t do what the Hip-Hop cats do, where it filters into the music, then goes beyond the music. There is no such thing as “R&B Beef”. I mean, come on, we sing for girls, take our shirts off and shit. We don’t fight, no, that’s stupid.

I consider Chris Brown to be one of my close and dear friends. He’s like my little brother. Usher, I’ve met him and have the utmost respect for him – he’s done it better than anyone else. He set the bar for everyone else. It is competition, but it’s not angry competition. We can be compared to boxers; we can be friends outside of the ring, but everyone knows there is only one (#1) spot, which means there may come a point where you may have to get in the ring with your homeboy and knock his ass out! Don’t mean you ain’t friends no more, just that there is only room for one #1.

Sam: As we’re pressed for time, quickly, are you currently dating anyone?

Ne-Yo: Nope, unfortunately no.

Sam: Ok, I mean, you’ve been snapped with a few ladies, but I won’t probe…

Ne-Yo: (laughs) I mean I have ‘friends’, but I don’t have a steady girlfriend. The ‘special’ ones know who they are.

Sam: Mhmm…Ok. Moving on; with the success of So Sick, you were catapulted into the limelight and haven’t looked back since.

How have you adjusted to fame, particularly in your personal life? How you deal with the inevitable fair-weather friends and family?

Ne-Yo: Wow. Good question. (I try and deal with them) One at a time. It’s something that is a part of this game, it’s gonna happen. There’s no real way to avoid it; you make a little money and everyone finds out about it. All of a sudden you have 90 new cousins! “I’m your favourite aunty. Don’t you remember I changed your diapers?” “No I don’t and no you cannot have a Mercedez Benz” (laughs). I mean you just deal with it; the rumours, accusations, the invasions of privacy and all that stuff, it’s really just part of the game. You can’t stop it. What are you going to do? Go beat up everyone that has ever said anything negative about you? That will be a lot of beating up you have to do (laughs). So you just kind of roll with the punches. It is what it is.

Sam: Craziest fan encounter, briefly?

Ne-Yo: Craziest fan encounter? This young lady broke into my hotel room and was there waiting for me, when I showed up. It was in New York, during the promotion for my first album.

I must have walked into my room and she was like “Oh my God” and I was like “Oh MY God, what the hell you doing in here?” She replied “I’m your biggest fan, I love ‘So Sick, yada yada yada, can you sign this? Can I have a picture with you?” I was like “Ok, we can do all of that, slow down. How did you get in here” (laughs). She didn’t want to tell me at first, I guess she had a friend that worked at the hotel that told her I was there and gave her the key to my room and she didn’t want to get this person in trouble. I was like ‘Ok, I won’t say anything, but, for future reference, you may not want to be breaking into people’s hotel rooms. Had I called the cops, it could have been a really bad situation for you.” It was all good though; she apologised, (I) took a picture with her, signed her thing and she left. The girl was 15 years old…

Sam: Wow…

Ne-Yo:…that could have been really, really, really bad for me, you know what I mean?

Sam: Yeah!

Ne-Yo: That’s the craziest thing – thus far! Well, that and a chick that got my name tattooed on a (long pause)…region that you just wouldn’t show (laughs). She came to one of my shows and took it upon herself to show it to me while I’m on stage singing (laughs). I was singing ‘Sexy Love’ and I looked at her and she gave me one of these (gestures to his chest) and said to look at the tattoo.

Sam: I’ve just been notified that we’ve run out of time. Thank you very much for your time.

Ne-Yo: No, thank you.

Ne-Yo's awesome new album 'Year of the Gentleman' is in stores & iTunes now. Do be sure to pick up a copy.
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Your thoughts on the Ne-Yo interview?

R&B stars Kelly Rowland, Usher, Ne-Yo and Solange hit up the the Marlies Dekkers fashion show in Paris yesterday. Looking good...

Randomness: Just thinking aloud, but wouldn't it be great if Kelly hooked up with Ne-Yo for her next LP? His sound seems like a sure-fit for Kelly's voice /work-to-date.

Ne-Yo recently released 'She's Got Her Own Things' - the official remix of his current smash 'Miss Independent'. Check out the clip for the song which features both Jamie Foxx and Fabolous:

R&B star Ne-Yo has won the lawsuit he filed against a tour promoter acting on R. Kelly's behalf, after unceremoniously being thrown off a joint tour with the 'Ignition' singer back in January. Peep the report below:

Because of some backstage machinations, Ne-Yo is a little bit richer.

The R&B star has scored a nice payday for being dumped from R. Kelly's road show last year. A Los Angeles judge has ordered Kelly's promoter to pony up $700,320 to the "Because of You" Grammy winner.

Ne-Yo went to court in December, alleging he was bounced from the Double Up tour because his opening set was getting better reaction from fans and critics than Kelly's. The bill also featured Keyshia Cole and J. Holiday.

Superior Court Judge Malcolm Mackey made his default judgment after Georgia-based Rowe Entertainment refused to respond to the lawsuit filed by Ne-Yo under his real name, Shaffer Smith.

Per his suit, Ne-Yo was supposed to earn $785,000 on the 25-date jaunt, but the 25-year-old performer was canned by Rowe after the second show on Nov. 15 and only received a fraction of the contracted amount.

At the time, the promoter blamed the dismissal on Ne-Yo's camp for not completing the proper paperwork. {Source}

Good to see justice served...

Your thoughts?

R&B star Ne-Yo recently shot the video for new single 'Miss Independent' in Santa Monica, California. Featuring cameos from Keri Hilson (she's everywhere lol), Gabrielle Union, trey Songz and Lauren London, the Chris Robinson directed video will be debuting in the weeks ahead.

Many thanks to all those baring with me as regards the Ne-Yo interview. I was hoping to have the matter tended to by now, yet it's all still in the works. So the situation is as follows lol:

That Grape Juice were fortunate enough to have interviewed Ne-Yo towards the end of last month here in London. We were allocated 15 minutes with Mr 'Closer' himself, however, due to time constraints our slot was trimmed slightly - leaving us with a 3/4 completed interview.

Thankfully, we were able to secure more time with Ne-Yo, however we are currently awaiting an affirmative date/time - which should be materializing any day from now.

I've been in two minds as to whether to post it in its current form or hold back until the final few questions were answered.

All feedback from you guys is much appreciated :)

Ne-Yo stopped by the UK's top Urban radio station 1Xtra earlier today to promote his upcoming 'Year of The Gentleman' LP. The talented singer/songwriter also performed a rendition of Rihanna's #1 smash 'Take A Bow'. I'm really liking his take, on the otherwise, so-so track.

Peep the official album cover for Ne-Yo's forthcoming effort 'Year of The Gentleman' (due September). Good stuff.

Our recent interview with Ne-Yo will be up mid-next week. apologies about the delay, you'll know why it's necessary when it's posted. In the meanwhile, click here to see Ne-Yo give That Grape Juice a shout-out (also under the spotlight section too)

With R&B star Ne-Yo gearing up for the release of his third studio album 'Year of The Gentleman' (due August 5th), the LP's second official single -'Miss Independent'- has surfaced. While 'Closer' exhibited a more Euro-Pop sound, 'Miss Independent' is, no doubt, familiar territory for the singer/songwriter musically. The mid-tempo cut sounds like a progression of the sound Ne-Yo championed on his first (and IMO best) LP. Good stuff.

R&B star Ne-Yo recently performed for Yahoo's Nissan Live Sets. During the Q&A session, the singer was asked by an audience member who he preferred looks-wise between Beyonce and Rihanna. Check out Ne-Yo's response below:

Nearly everyone and their mother jumped on the Lil' Wayne 'A Milli' bandwagon, each offering their own take on Wayne's cut. R&B star Ne-Yo has gone a step further, though, and dropped this new video for his version - courtesy of producer Bangladesh. Check it out {Thanks Necole Bitchie!}:

R&B star Ne-Yo has unseated Coldplay on the Official UK Singles Chart this week with his single 'Closer'. Having already secured the #2 position the week prior on download sales alone, the song's charting stands as the singer's second UK #1 - the first being 2006's 'So Sick'.

'Closer' has definitely grown on me since my initial listen; a much deserved charting, I must say.

Your thoughts?

That Grape Juice has just received confirmation that we will be interviewing R&B star Ne-Yo later this week the week of July 7th.

With his single 'Closer' blowing up the charts, and a brand new album 'Year of The Gentleman' on the horizon', the Grammy award winning singer/songwriter looks set to continue establishing himself as a music heavyweight.

Do you have any questions for Ne-Yo? As usual, drop them in the 'comments' section. Remember, only appropriate questions will be considered. Thanks guys :)

Those awaiting the release of Ne-Yo's third LP 'Year of The Gentleman' will be disappointed to learn that the album has been pushed back from its June 24th release to August 5th. I'm assuming Def Jam are going for the 2-single pre-album release strategy, as the set's first cut 'Closer' seems to be slowing down on the charts (#54 on the Billboard Hot 100).

In any case, 'Trouble', which will feature on the record, should help ease the wait. The R&B/Pop/Dance fusion further embraces the sound the singer/songwriter channeled on 'Closer'. Very 'European' sounding. With each track I hear from the set, I'm becoming increasingly more amped for what the record will be delivering. Good stuff.