Photography by Jerome Shaw
Entertainer/Songwriter, Ne-Yo
was the focus of a very special event last night (February 2). “The Gentleman”
appeared in NYC on behalf of Macy’s by way of the Alfani RED clothing
line which he is the face of and the RESPECT! campaign; a social action
campaign to promote respect in relationships and increase awareness
about the positive role everyone can play to help end and prevent relationship
violence and abuse.
“It is a shame that it took
for the Chris Brown and Rihanna situation to happen for people to pay
more attention to Relationship Violence,” said Ne-Yo before playing
the world premiere of his new song called ‘Heroes’. The crowd of
journalists, photographers and industry professionals gave the song
a rousing applause for which Ne-Yo humbly thanked everyone. If you would
like to make a difference, you can download ‘Heroes’ for free at www.Macys.com/Ne-Yo. Alfani will donate $1 every
download up to $50,000 to the RESPECT! campaign.
Ne-Yo made it his mission to
give AllHipHop.com a few minutes of his time before leaving to another
engagement.
AllHipHop.com: Ever since
the gentleman appeared, you haven’t looked
back. Talk about what inspires your fashion sense.
Ne-Yo: I dress for comfort.
It’s not always about wearing a suit and tie, although this style
is comfort for me. I don’t want people to think that they must put
on a suit and tie to be (look like) a gentleman. Being a gentleman is
about being comfortable in your own skin while realizing that when you
step foot outside, people are watching; people are paying attention.
You want to give them something that is worthy of who you are. You don’t
want to leave the house with your jeans hanging low, unless you want
to be judged for it. It’s a shame, but people judge books by their
covers. So why not put a quality cover on that book.
AllHipHop.com: I’ve noticed
the black and grey color scheme you wear. I’m very comfortable running
same color scheme. What will be your combination of choice in 2010?
Ne-Yo: I am on my black and
white this year. It’s easy and it’s classy and always makes perfect
sense.
AllHipHop.com: With the
passing of Michael Jackson, brought on more
vocal comparisons between you and the King of Pop. I was wondering if
any industry executives talked to you about continuing Michael’s sound.
Do you feel any pressure in the matter?
Ne-Yo: There have been a couple
of people that asked me about that. And I feel that I could never redo
what Michael has done. I could never do what has already been done.
But I can do my best to make sure that his legacy lives on. I will continue
to focus on the melody. The magic in Michael’s music was his melody
and his tone. So I plan to keep that going as long as I possibly can.
AllHipHop.com:
Could keeping his legacy alive possibly
mean covering one of his songs in the future?
Ne-Yo: Honestly, no. Because
I feel like in order to do a cover, you must make the song better than
it was or make it into something else. And I don’t think I could do
either with any of Michael’s songs.
AllHipHop.com: Who are you
currently writing songs for and with at this time?
Ne-Yo: Working with Jennifer
Hudson, Jamie Foxx, Justin Beiber, and doing some more stuff with Rihanna
real soon. I have a few artists of my own that I am working with, so
be on the look out for that. Plus I am working on my fourth album.
AllHipHop.com: Tonight is
all about RESPECT, so talk about your new single
‘Heroes’ and when can we get our hands on your fourth album?
Ne-Yo: The fourth album will
drop sometime in August. The song ‘Heroes’ is a different way to
approach the subject of “Relationship Violence.” It starts with
respect in any relationship. I feel that if you have the respect for
your husband, your wife, your boyfriend or your girlfriend that you
should have, you should try to be a Hero to that person.
