In My Own Words.... Ahhhh, Ne-Yo
I am a BIG fan of Ne-Yo's, and I LOVE this CD! He has such a SEXY voice, style, swagger, etc...

The Ne-Yo captured my feelings in his songs.
I thoroughly enjoyed this CD because it just captured some of the emotions that I am going through at the moment. Although I am twice the age of the artist, the expressive emotional vibe that is given with each of the songs brings it all into perspective.

RANKS A STRONG 10 AMONG TEENAGERS....
This was just a simple 'I have to have it A.S.A.P.!'. This was bought for a friend's Daughter...And she's been playing it to death! Not my cup of tea (I lean more towards 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's & 2000 Deep Soul, Soul, Blues, Jazz & Gospel Music). Expect several more Top Selling Albums/Singles from this artist....So how easy that was!

Sexy songwriter. 4.5 stars.
This Boy Possesses ILL skills - Like *Magic*. He Won't Be Denied in the Near Future, I'm just So sure of it!

I like His smooth vocal ability, His decent range, and His songwriting skills are up there with the rest of the non-refundable R&B/Pop stars.

I love Ne-Yo. He's kinda cute and He's so fly.

I can't speak enough about Him!!!

I now own this and have played it enough to know how it works. There are songs that are close enough to R&B to actually be called so - So Sick, When You're Mad, and Time - as well as those with a more Pop and catchy feel - Stay, Let Me Get This Right, Sign Me Up (one of my favorites), and the mid-tempo Let Go. He has a way with words and although this CD is about music - Stay - relationships, love and, well, relationships and love.

Although the subject matter at hand it quite limited, that doesn't make this a bad run through nor does it take away from this man's talent. It's very fresh-feeling, youthful, catchy, filled with good, good beats, a few samples and something that a lot of the monotone rap could take a few tips from; talent.

This album as of February 2006, has sold over 1,400,000 copies (1.4 million) in the U.S. alone, certified platinum once over. His sophomore release, which wasn't up to par but way more varied musically, Because Of You is doing well also. It has been certified Platinum also.

There is not one song here I don't appreciate at least a little.

He's got *It*, I'm telling You. Buy a copy, and just zone the "F" out. :P

Cover Art: A+
Inside Art: B- -I like all the drawn stars in it. They're simple, but they're there. I've always been into stars. (:-
Songwriting: B-
Vocals: B-
Vocal Emotion: C+
Production: A+
Overall: A-

4.5 stars.

end note: It Just Ain't Right is pretty much my favorite track from the album. It's a bit more poppy than R&B, but the lyrics and the way he sings it gives it R&B undertones. Come to think about it, I may like this CD more than some others cause it is pretty poppy in parts...

In My Own Words - actually 3.5 stars
I, like a lot of people began to hear about Ne-Yo when his single, SO SICK "blew him up". I honestly don't listen to the radio anymore but do occasionally watch videos so the fact that every channel I turned to seemed to have his video on constant repeat informed me that he had a huge hit on his hands. As the summer and fall of 2006 progressed, I got to see Ne-Yo perform on awards shows and was intrigued enough to get his debut disc.

After listening to it off and on for the past few months I can honestly say that in addition to his songwriting skills, he's got a pleasant smooth voice that works extremely well with his songs. In the tradition of the other so-called 'young guns of r&b', he mixes elements of hip hop and r&b to make an album of catchy mid to up-tempo tracks. I was prepared to only like 2 or 3 tracks and had initially wrote him off as a one hit wonder but was pleasantly surprised - this is a solid debut.

My stand-out tracks:

SEXY LOVE - now this track I love more than SO SICK

TIME - interesting ballad

LET GO - I like the interesting beats used on this track

LET ME GET THIS RIGHT - catchy lyrics & exceptional musical arrangement

IT JUST AIN'T RIGHT - loved how the DeBarge sample was incorporated