For about twenty minutes the air-conditioning inside the Princess Hotel had been turned on, but you couldn’t tell from how hot the room was, and the reason was the same all around: people were working up a sweat over Ne-Yo!
It was pretty obvious that he was going to show because word that he had touched down had already penetrated the capital city and Linden, and even some folks in Berbice knew as well. The majority of people had one story: he was here and had a first meal of bake and salt fish.
The R&B star was here alright, and he was about to put in an appearance at the official press conference prior to his concert. The likes of Ravi B, Nesha B and the new guy on the block, Gregory, had already made their way into the room, but no one cared. On any other day, Karma would have been relevant.
“Ne-Yo is here! Ne-Yo is here!” a fan shouted but there was still no sight of the singer. Someone let out an expletive loud enough for a few people to hear, who were angry at the excited fan, but it is not every day a girl gets to meet Ne-Yo, so I thought why not lay off her.
There were too many things happening all at once in the room; people fighting with equipment at that twelfth hour, others talking excessively, the Jamzone beauty queen hopefuls trying to find seats, fans filing into the room to secure good seats and the list goes on.
Then there he was; a diminutive guy, wearing a red skirt, vests, jeans and of course, a hat. “Oh my God he is fine!” a fan shouted, and at that point the room was scorching hot; either the air- conditioning was turned off or the temperature went up when Ne-Yo walked into the room. I am thinking it was the latter; he is a good-looking gentleman.
Who is this Ne-Yo anyway? That was the question going through my mind and probably that of a host of other people there, but a few minutes into the press conference a picture started to emerge. The singer, born Shaffer Smith, spoke his first few words and declared right off that he was in Guyana to have fun: “I am here to have fun that is what I do, whenever I get onstage, I have fun.”
His music means a lot to him. If someone is listening and they appreciate what he is doing with his music, he encourages them to go see his show. In the years that he has been singing his songs have largely appealed to women; he sings about love, pain, happiness, sex and power, among other things, but it is all feel-good music.
His monster hits which include, ‘So Sick’; ‘Closer’; ‘Miss Independent’ are groovy R&B numbers that bring out the best in him – from the lyrics to the beats. Ne-Yo has released three successful albums and has a fourth coming out shortly; he discussed the new album saying there are still things he is working on to “get it right”.
The album titled, Libra Scale was set for a launch in September, but Ne-Yo told reporters here that the release date might be pushed back because the more he hears the stuff on it, the more he realizes the stuff that is missing from it. “I am going back to the studio to make things right,” he said with a slight smile, adding that the album is different from anything he has ever done.
Libra Scale is a concept and he explained that the name plays on his planetary sign, ‘Libra.’ The singer then quickly rattled off that his birthday is October 18 and he joked that everyone listening should take note and “free feel to buy me a gift.”
Still on the album, Ne-Yo said it is tied to the whole idea of what it means to be a Libra and that a Libra’s existence is about “finding a balance.” The album looks at the balance between love versus money, power and fame, and he said that it challenges people who buy it to answer the question as to which would prevail in their lives.
Ne-Yo said what he was trying to do was make a movie and let the album be the soundtrack, so he wrote a script. However he admitted that films take a lot of money and also a whole lot of time to make, and in the end he decided to do videos. The story (album) follows three main characters as they try to answer the question about love versus money, power and fame. “It is a question I ask myself on a daily basis, and I hope that people will also ask themselves the question when they buy the album and listen to the music.”
Like many of his contemporaries Ne-Yo also faces the criticism for mimicking Michael Jackson, but he has always been open about the huge influence the late King of Pop has on his life and his music. When asked about how much of that is reflected in his work, he said that it was more than he wished or had any control over. “… People have told me that I am trying to be Michael Jackson. I am not trying to imitate anyone but rather pay homage to a man that made it possible for me to do what I am doing right now,” he explained. The singer said he learned to sing and dance watching Michael Jackson do his stuff.
How does he try to stay in the competition? Ne-Yo addressed the question directly saying he is conscious of the fact that someone out there is the “next big thing” in music, but he never worries about the competition. “If I worry about the person who is doing it the same way I am doing then who is worrying about me,” he asked. Ne-Yo feels there is room for everybody in the world, “room for the Justin Biebers, the Ushers and the Ne-Yos.” He said the music is all that matters to him and once the music he is putting out there is good, then he has nothing to worry about.
Since he writes songs for other singers, some monster hits, such as ‘Irreplaceable’ which Beyonce did, he was asked why he has not collaborated with the former Destiny’s Child powerhouse. He was frank saying that he never believed he was good enough (as a singer) to perform with her. “You’ve heard Beyonce’s voice and you’ve heard my voice,” he said, adding that if he does a song with her, it will simply be known as “that song” with Beyonce and that “other dude.”
When he writes a song Ne-Yo says he has no idea whether people would embrace it. “I don’t know that it will be a hit,” he said, pointing out that he writes what feels good to him. The singer said he always waits on the feedback after a song is released and his reaction is often: “I’m usually like, y’all like that, okay, and y’all don’t like that!”
He said anyone trying to make it in the music industry has to learn the business side of it, noting that people will come along and tell you anything then basically “chew you up.” He stressed that people need to learn the business they are in. “You can’t sell French fries if you don’t know what a potato is,” the singer said, tickling the audience.
As to whether real talent is here in the Caribbean region, Ne-Yo said he has toured outside of the US and was fortunate to see the level of talent that is out there, particularly in this region. He cautioned that if someone wants to get in the business for money or fame they are going in for the wrong reasons; he opined that there are other things people can do for fame and money.
Ne-Yo revealed that he is in the process of putting together his own record label, but in the meanwhile he is happily awaiting the birth of a baby. Ne-Yo has a little baby girl on the way and he noted that he constantly has to deal with balancing a career and personal life. According to him, “it is not easy at all.” The singer said he has no idea how he manages to do it, but that he “makes it work”. (ianaseales@yahoo.com)
