More about Ne-Yo

Ne-yo admits that his album, 'Year of of the Gentlemen', where our song features, was inspired by UK music. When asked who in particular, he responded Leona Lewis, Coldplay and Amy Winehouse.

"Years ago, if you weren't wearing the right suit or have a correct crease in your pants, you couldn't even get in the door--let alone on stage to perform," said Ne-Yo via a press release. "For me, the sharpness of Sammy and Sinatra is the kind of style I strive for in clothes and music. 'Year of the Gentleman' is named in honor of those guys."

Ne-Yo's singing ability was never in question, and he signed a deal with Columbia Records around 2002. Just happy to have a recording deal, the young artist allowed Columbia to twist his music into something he wasn't happy about. A record was in the works, but when Ne-Yo fought to write the type of songs he wanted and to be represented the way he wanted to be, the label decided they wouldn't compromise and dropped him off their roster in 2003. The young artist could have given up on music, but shortly after parting with Columbia his career as a songwriter began to flourish. "That Girl," a track Ne-Yo wrote and recorded for his never-released Columbia record was rerecorded by Marques Houston and became a smash when it got on the radio later that year. "That was the song that made me go OK, if people are digging this song, I guess songwriting is what I'm supposed to be doing," Ne-Yo confided to Hoffman. "That was my cue that God wants me to be a songwriter."

While simultaneously touring to promote his own record and being an in-demand songwriter for other artists, Ne-Yo was also sought out as a guest vocalist on a handful of records by the likes of Ghostface Killah and Remy Ma. In 2006 he had a cameo role in the movie Save the Last Dance 2, and showed true acting skills when he played the role of Rich Brown in the blockbuster film Stomp the Yard the following year. Ne-Yo's strength as an entertainer and businessman couldn't be denied. "R&B music is predominantly for women," Ne-Yo told Hoffman, "but I think that I've learned [that] my place in this whole thing is basically saying things for guys they want to say but don't know how to say." He proved to be more than successful when he had a hand in writing two of the year's biggest hits by female R&B singers, Beyoncé's number one Billboard song "Irreplaceable" and Rihanna's heartbreaking ballad "Unfaithful."