Wednesday, March 01, 2006  

Ne-Yo
"So Sick" (remix featuring Jin)

Ne-Yo Steps Up With Soulful Style But Little Substance
By Christopher Porter
Special to The Washington Post
Wednesday, March 1, 2006; Page C05

Ne-Yo wants you to know that he's a serious songwriter, not just another pretty-boy R&B singer. Born Shaffer Smith, the 23-year-old has penned lyrics for the likes of Mary J. Blige, Faith Evans and Mario. He dubbed his debut "In My Own Words" to underscore that he has language skills, and the CD booklet shows hand-scrawled lyrics and photos of pencils and paper to further reinforce the point.

So how are the lyrics to the 13 songs? Let's just say that Ne-Yo is a great vocalist.

His singing style somewhat recalls Michael Jackson's, especially in the way he slyly shapes and changes melodies over the course of a song, but Ne-Yo has the nasal delivery of modern-day R&B crooners. It sounds like each vocal line is conjured somewhere between the top of the mouth and the nose, never from the chest.

Still, Ne-Yo can sing the hell out of his songs, and he keeps melisma to a minimum while still emoting in a way that lets listeners know that he really means what he's saying. But it's best not to pay attention to the words, which fluctuate between juvenile bedroom seductions and sensitive-guy overtures that don't really seem that sincere. Witness the chorus to the slow-grinding "Mirror": "Baby, I love making love in front of the mirror/So that I can watch you enjoying me."

Such compassionate narcissism pops up again in the second verse: "I understand that you're not ready for me to make my directorial debut/Featuring me but starring you, baby/But that's okay with me/Honestly, this is the next best thing."

Get it? Ne-Yo wants to make a personal porn video, but he respects his girl's wishes that he hold off on breaking out the camcorder until they can get to know each other. He's truly a modern man.

Rather than look to Ne-Yo for insights on the state of modern love, just listen to "In My Own Words" for its pop-music smarts. A host of producers fill the CD with appealing midtempo and slow R&B jams, with no better example being the fantastic smash single "So Sick" -- turn on BET, MTV or the radio and you'll likely hear it in a matter of minutes.

One of the best pop songs to hit the airwaves in years, "So Sick" is one of four tunes that team Ne-Yo with the hot Norwegian production duo StarGate. Their collaborations are among the CD's highlights, followed closely by the nouveau new-jack swing of "Sign Me Up" and the '80s-sounding "It Just Ain't Right" (might be the DeBarge sample). Rapper Peedi Peedi pops up on the bumping "Stay," and Ghostface Killah spits a few killer lines on "Get Down Like That." Ghostface might be a bit of a wacko, but that guy knows how to write lyrics.

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