In My Own Words

by

Ne-Yo

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I first saw Ne-Yo when I saw his video for the song with Peedi Crakk entitled "Stay". The song was pretty good but since Ne-Yo was a new artist I wasn't sure if I was going to purchase his CD. I don't listen to the radio that often, because of my CD collection, but I had alot of people asking me if I had heard Ne-Yo's song called "So Sick" and I was like no, not yet.

Once I heard the song and saw the video, I knew that I would purchase Ne-Yo's CD. One problem that I thought that Ne-Yo would have was that a song like "So Sick" is so tight that he would have a problem keeping up with that track. Once you listen to "In My Own Words", you will see that isn't the case.

One reason why I like Ne-Yo's CD so much is like reviewer "Charles Hubbert" stated he has a whole bunch of singles on this CD. Some artists' CDs are based on the strength of 2 singles and the rest of the material on their CD clearly doesn't match up to the well known, popular songs.

"Let Me Get This Right" has Ne-Yo talking about a situation where him and this woman are messing with each other with an understanding that they can still do their thing if they need to, however, Ne-Yo seems like he is ready to take the next step and wants to see if this particular woman is ready to take the next step like he is ready to by making this an exclusive relationship. Ne-Yo makes alot of songs that people can relate to when it comes to male/female relations. His current single "So Sick" is also an excellent example of this. If a male says that he can't relate to this song then he must extremely hate r&b music or he is in extreme denial. It's bad enough that the relationship is already over and you're reminiscing about everything but you torture yourself even more by listening to songs that remind you of when times in the relationship were still going well. Believe me I've done that myself. "When You're Mad" talks about when your woman is either being petty by talking about how you left the toilet seat up or even when she really is mad and you respect that but she still looks good and you're thinking about sexual things instead of thinking about what she is really mad about. Some women don't like that, but as MJ would say that's just "Human Nature" for a man. "It Just Ain't Right" is a nice midtempo song that I enjoy personally because Ne-Yo samples one of my favorite slow jams of all time, "I Call Your Name" from the group Switch. He even goes as far as singing original notes from the original song as well. Of course Ne-Yo puts a sexual twist to things as he asks a woman that he use to mess with if she still thinks about their sexual encounters of the past eventhough they are both supposed to be involved with other people at the current time. Ne-Yo shows another side on "Mirror". Think Sisqo's "Unleash The Dragon" CD and think slow jam. The ladies will definitely not have a problem with this song at all. Sisqo had slow jams on his solo debut entitled "How Can I Love U 2Nite" and "So Sexual" and when I think of "Mirror" those are 2 songs that come to my mind right away. After "Mirror", Ne-Yo speeds the pace back up with "Sign Me Up". This is a classic uptempo jam as Ne-Yo basically tells this particular woman that whatever I need to do, I'll do it as long as you give me a chance to be the man that you need and if need be she can "sign him up". "I Ain't Gotta Tell You" has Ne-Yo talking about a situation where he is letting the woman know that he doesn't have to "gas" her up with things that she is use to hearing, he just wants to know if he has a chance with her. "Get Down Like That" has Ne-Yo using the same O' Jays sample, "I Swear I Love No One But You", that Mary J. Blige used on her current CD, "The Breakthrough", entitled "No One Will Do". While Mary J. sounds like she used the track as a dedication to her husband Kendu, Ne-Yo uses the sample to let the ladies know that while he is involved in this current relationship he can't allow the pressure to stay faithful to get to him and even if another woman is trying as hard as she can to get with him that he can't do anything for them while he is with this particular woman. This track is one of my favorite songs on "In My Own Words". "Sexy Love" is a nice midtempo jam that has Ne-Yo talking about a special woman that may have been in his life at one time. "Let Go" is basically a slow jam version of "So Sick". The only difference is that in "So Sick" it seems as if Ne-Yo doesn't want to be reminded of the relationship and on "Let Go" Ne-Yo is having a hard time letting go of that relationship and seems determined that if the woman wants to come back to him that he would be all for it. "Time" is definitely a change of pace from the rest of "In My Own Words". "Time" is a nice slow jam that has Ne-Yo reminding everyone men or women that if you love someone you have to chreish that situation before it's too late. Ne-Yo definitely shows me something on this track. "In My Own Words" closes out with the aforementioned "Get Down Like That" that this time features Ghostface. "Pretty Tony" definitely adds some flavor to a track that was already one of my favorites. This collaboration happened more than likely because of Ne-Yo being featured on Ghostface's 1st single from his CD "Fishscale", "Back Like That".

In my opinion, you will find a hard time trying to find many faults with "In My Own Words". You may find yourself saying that alot of the tracks are similar or that they may deal with the same subject matter but when you're a young man in your early 20s what more can your really talk about. There are alot of sexual undertones on this CD, but that doesn't take away from the quality of this CD. You can tell that Ne-Yo is a very talented songwriter and his producers match his voice with good tracks as well.

Overall, Ne-Yo has unlimited potential. If you are a fan of new school r&b then I think this will be the CD for you. Although this CD doesn't have alot of ballads, this CD reminds me of Bobby Valentino's CD because of the subject matter. As far as potential goes, Ne-Yo and Keyshia Cole has the new school r&b game on lock for now. Hopefully, both artists can continue to get better as they get older.

James' Top 5

1) So Sick

2) Get Down Like That

3) Sign Me Up

4) It Just Ain't Right

5) Time

Ne-Yo's "In My Own Words" is not bad at all. He's already had a prolific career as a songwriter and this is now his time to shine as a complete full-fledged artist. This set contains a good mixture of love songs, a ballad or two, some mid-tempo radio jams, and a few dance grooves. It's not the perfect album -- but it's one of the best we've heard in this genre this year.

Ne-Yo at least helped pen all of the tracks (as you already know by now), which helps give it a personal feeling that is underrated in the music business these days. He has his own style, or his own swagger to say the least. In a way this album stands alone because (except for the first track "Stay" F. Peedi Crack) there are barely no guest spots, so Ne-Yo and his team "The Compound" can really allow their talents all of the spotlight. Ne Yo obviously has a great understanding for radio which is beneficial to his career.

From the catchy radio hit "So Sick" to the sad but sweet "Time", this album has few goodies. Much of the lyrical content stems from honesty in relationships and love-making, while other parts are sprinkled with sadness and the reality of breaking up. "Let Go" is sure to be a hit, with smoothly produced harps and strings over upbeat synthesized percussion. Other standout tracks include "When You're Mad", "Sign Me Up" & "I Ain't Gotta Tell You That."

Other than that the album is creatively done, musically sharp, modern without being too trendy, and vocally honest.