Ne-Yo Decoded: The Man, The Musician, The Mogul

Over the last ten years, there are very few artists who have impacted music in the way  Ne-Yo has. His lyrics are unforgettable, heartfelt and real. His music is groundbreaking, giving you everything from R&B ballads to club bangers. In addition to his own music, he’s written some of the most popular and iconic singles of the earlier part of the 21st century.

With the recent release of his new album “R.E.D” which stands for “Realizing Every Dream,” his art is clearly imitating his life as well.

From being charged with the task of cultivating the new wave of icons – to making boss moves with brands like Malibu Red – and making time for his budding family, Ne-Yo is seamlessly making a transition from musician to mogul.

“Very very very big shoes to fill,” says Ne-Yo of his new position at Motown. “It’s the same position that Smokey Robinson held. So I’m just trying to do my part to continue the legacy.”

The position he’s referring to is Senior Vice President of A&R at Motown. Under the direction of Barry Weiss (CEO at Def Jam/Universal Republic Records), Motown is being “revitalized,” channeling its earlier days. One of the things that attracted Ne-Yo to the position was the focus on artist development.

“An icon is something that is nurtured. You take the raw talent and you give it the necessary care to become an icon,” says Ne-Yo.

Some of the raw talent he’s currently cultivating includes a group of songwriters and producers. He’s also working with new talent in Ravaughn Brown and popular actress and singer, Adrienne Bailon.

While Ne-Yo cites his mentor Renell “Tango” Hay (his business partner and manager), he did receive some advice from the man who started Motown, the legendary Berry Gordy. Back in the day, Gordy and his team had quality control meetings where they listened to songs and discussed whether or the not the single was a hit.

“The question would always be: if you had a $1, would you buy a sandwich or the single,” once said Berry.

In one of the quality control sessions, Berry played the song “My Girl” by the Temptations. Seven out of 8 people in the room thought it wasn’t a hit. Gordy was the only one who did – and of course – the song went on to be a major hit.

“The moral of that story was anyone can be wrong and anybody could be right. Your opinion is just as important. When you feel it, there’s a reason,” once said Gordy.

While being a mogul isn’t as easy as 1,2,3, there surely are steps that can be taken to get there.

Ne-Yo offers some advice here.

Figure out exactly what you want to do. “You have to figure out what the finish line is before you start running,” said Ne-Yo.

Ne-Yo stresses that a lot of people know that they don’t like their current job but don’ t know what they really want to do.

“The whole ‘Oh I got time’.. no you don’t. Tomorrow isn’t promised to anyone,” said Ne-Yo.

Research what it will take to get there. “We live in the information age. Get online, read up, get all the information on what you want to do so when you got the opportunity, you are ready. Hone your craft and know that it will not happen overnight. Anything worth it is not going to happen overnight,” said Ne-Yo.

Manage your money. “For whatever reason, us as people, we get a little bit of money and we spend it like it’s never going to go away and then when it does, we wonder where it went. You got to put the money back into your company, that’s how you make your money,” said Ne-Yo.

Work life balance is one of the toughest things you can face in

any industry, especially if you are working on building a business. Ne-Yo is the proud father of a daughter Madilyn and son Mason, as well as the fiancée’ of Monetta Shaw who is also the children’s mother. Ne-Yo does his best to take some time off from work, even if it means turning off his phone for a day.

“It takes a lot of understanding, as far as your family is concerned as well as your business partners,” says Ne-Yo. “I’d love to be there for every milestone in their life, but if I want their lives to go the way I need them to go, that can’t be. Lord willing, the harder I work now, the less I have to work later on so hopefully I can spend more time with them.”

Besides music, a big part of his brand is fashion. In fact, one of the things Ne-Yo is known for are his fedora hats. In 2011, Ne-Yo launched a hat line called Francis Ellargo. Unlike many celebrity inspired or owned fashion lines, Ne-Yo is completely hands-on with the brand even though he admits it’s been a challenging experience.

“It’s a learning experience. I don’t know much about retail. I’m in the process of learning about working with manufacturers,” said Ne-Yo.

Despite his learning curve, Ne-Yo knows what he’s looking for when it comes to the hats he’s offering which caused a rift in the beginning.

“Manufacturers would tell me that they’ve been doing this for awhile,” said Ne-Yo. “But my name is on it, and if it doesn’t look the way I want it to, I’m going to be blamed not the manufacturer.”

Ne-Yo says sometimes you have to stick to your guns.

“Tell em to shut up! If you’re name is on it, you have the right voice your opinion on everything going on.”

Whether its deals with Malibu Red, his own music or acting roles he carefully chooses, Ne-Yo wants to be associated with quality and that association he feels is his greatest accomplishment.

“You know when you say Ne-Yo, it means a quality lyric, it means an infectious melody and now we are getting to the point where it means a quality product. The product doesn’t have to be music,” said Ne-Yo. “It could be a quality role in a film, a quality beverage, a quality hat, a quality suit. I feel like we’ve made leaps and bounds in that direction and I’m very proud of that.”