Interview: Ne-Yo: A Lot of Talent under One Hat
There is no wonder he goes by Ne-Yo --- Shaffer Smith doesn't exactly snap.
And it's appropriate that the R&B singer who got his stage name from the motion picture "The Matrix" is having the kind of success that could merit widescreen treatment, too.
At just 24, the singer-songwriter has been nominated for Grammy awards, sold more than a million copies of his debut CD and landed a role in hit movie Stomp the Yard. He also has penned No. 1 R&B hits for himself ("So Sick"), Beyonce ("Irreplaceable") and Mario ("Let Me Love You").
And in addition to working on songs for upcoming Whitney Houston, Britney Spears and Celine Dion albums, he's also releasing his sophomore solo CD, "Because of You," on Tuesday.
To top it off, the Arkansas native is now an Atlantan. So it was at a three-level downtown loft he's renovating that the music powerhouse discussed his album, Houston's album and what exactly is going on under those hats he loves to wear.
After all, he did say, "There is nothing too personal --- come with it!"
Q: What's bigger: The checks you get being an artist or the checks you get as a songwriter?
A: Publishing checks! Checks I get for writing songs. [Smiles]
Q: You really go all Michael on your first single, "Because of You." You sing like Michael Jackson. The music sounds like classic Michael Jackson. And in the video, you even go so far as to wear a sequin jacket . . .
A: You've got to pay homage to those who were there before you.
Q: And there was no hesitation at all about being a guy in a sequin jacket in 2007?
A: Not at all . . . Michael Jackson is one of the people that I studied when I was learning how to sing . . . I hated my voice. I have a very nasally tone . . . So my mom gave me Michael Jackson's "Off the Wall" record, and she gave me Stevie Wonder's "Hotter Than July" to study.
Q: After hearing one of your new singles, "Say It," Prince clearly has a place with you, too.
A: Yeah, it has a 'Darling Nikki' [a Prince song] element to it. Prince, musically, is the kind of artist that I aspire to be . . . he's a musical god to me.
Q: Talk about powerful voices, you have a duet with Jennifer Hudson called "Leaving Tonight." She reportedly hasn't even started her own CD. How did you manage that?
A: You're right, she hadn't. It was a favor to me. . .
Q: Explain what it means when you hear reports like "Ne-Yo is writing for Whitney Houston." Are you actually going into the studio with the artists?
A: It varies. Like the Whitney Houston stuff, that was all written in the studio.
Q: Did you write with her?
A: I actually haven't even had the chance to meet or talk to her yet. But I've been working really closely with [RCA Music Group chairman] Clive Davis. He's been telling me what to write, what not to write. What she does want to talk about, what she doesn't want to talk about.
Q: You heard eight songs that were recorded for her album, right? It's been reported that you said they all kind of sounded the same: "I'm Whitney! I've been through this! And now I'm . . ."
A: Right. Very, um, victorious! --- which ain't a problem. But a whole album of that could get a little [pause] --- what's the word I'm looking for?
Q: Boring? Redundant?
A: Yeeeaah. It's like, OK, we get it. We get it. We saw you go through it. You did the whole thing on film. We are aware that you went through this and you went through that and your struggle and your pain and you're still here --- and we're proud of you. Now let's get on with life.
Q: Let's make sure we have the list right of all the people coming to you for hits: Britney, Celine Dion, Alicia Keys . . .
A: No, not Alicia Keys. Not yet, anyway.
Q: Jennifer Hudson, Chris Brown, Nicole Scherzinger of the Pussycat Dolls for her solo debut, Whitney. Anybody else?
A: Usher. [Long pause] Michael Jackson.
Q: You've actually started writing for him?
A: Me and [rapper/producer] will.i.am [aka Will Adams] are going to put some stuff together.
Q: How do you write? Does it have to be a certain place, time, with a certain candle burning?
A: [Laughs] I write pretty much every day. Melodies have never been really difficult. But it's like the melody and the lyrics and putting it together and forming the whole song, like, I normally just need a pen and a piece of paper and I'm good. I've just been blessed with the ability to find it anywhere and everywhere. I write from experience. Just living my day.
Q: So did you come up with the hook for Beyonce's "Irreplaceable" after some angry woman dumped your clothes in a box to the left? Or did you figure that repetition just works for Beyonce --- with [the singles] "No, No, No" and "Bills, Bills, Bills"?
A: Why not 'to the left, to the left,' right? . . . Repeating, period, just works, though. It makes the song easier to remember. But as for 'Irreplaceable,' that's basically my R&B version of a country western song. . .But we brought it back to R&B with the melodies. Otherwise, it could have gone to Faith Hill, Shania Twain or somebody.
Q: OK, since nothing's too personal, at what age did you realize, 'OK, I'm going to have to start wearing hats the rest of my life.' When did the hairline go?
A: Ummmm, around 15, it started thinning out. Little cowlicks and whatnot. My dad never really gave me anything, but that's the one thing he decided to bestow upon me --- my hairline. Thanks, Dad.
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