ne-yo again!

Ne-Yo Returns to Seoul in January

R&B star Ne-yo will return to Seoul for another concert in January.

/ Courtesy of All Access

By Cathy Rose A. Garcia
Staff Reporter

Grammy-award winning R&B star Ne-Yo returns to Seoul for a concert in January, after thrilling Korean fans at his successful first concert last April.

Ne-Yo will perform Jan. 11 at Olympic Hall, Olympic Park, southern Seoul. He will be singing songs from his Grammy Award-nominated album ``Year of the Gentleman'', such as ``Closer'' and ``Miss Independent,'' and other hit songs ``So Sick'' and ``Because of You.''

Last April, Ne-Yo staged his first concert in Seoul with Jamaican reggae singer Sean Kingston. The success of Ne-Yo's first concert prompted organizers to invite him again.

Ne-Yo recently received six Grammy Award nominations, including Album of the Year for his third album ``Year of the Gentleman.'' He also got nominations for Best Male Pop Performance for ``Closer'' and Best Male R&B Performance for ``Miss Independent.''

Ne-Yo, whose real name is Shaffer Chimere Smith, started as a songwriter. He wrote songs for Youngstown, Christina Milian and Mario, whose single ``Let Me Love You'' became a hit in 2004.

In 2006, Ne-Yo released his debut album ``In My Own Words,'' which sold 301,000 copies in the first week alone. His first single ``So Sick'' reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. The album sold over four million copies around the world.

Ne-Yo's second album ``Because of You'' was also a big success, and also won him a Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B album. He continued collaborations with other artists, such as Fabolous on ``Make Me Better'' and Rihanna with ``Hate That I Love You,'' and New Kids on the Block on their comeback song ``Single.''

Ne-Yo is one of the most in-demand songwriters today. He has written chart-topping songs like Rihanna's ``Unfaithful,'' Mario Vasquez's ``Gallery'' and Beyonce's ``Irreplaceable.'' ``Irreplaceable'' stayed on the number one spot on Billboard Hot 100 for 10 weeks, and was nominated for Record of the Year.

Ne-Yo has also written songs for Michael Jackson, Jay-Z, Celine Dion, Britney Spears, Enrique Iglesias, Usher, Mary J. Blige and Jennifer Hudson.

Tickets for Ne-Yo's concert are 110,000 won, 99,000 won and 77,000 won. Call (02) 3141-3488 or visit ticket.interpark.com

cathy@koreatimes.co.kr