Ne-Yo

Real Name
Shaffer Chimere Smith
Alias Name
Boy Wonder
Date of Birth
October 18, 1982 - Age 42
Hometown
Las Vegas, Nevada
Label
major
Social

Artist Bio neyo

Grammy award winning songwriter, singer, producer and actor, Ne-Yo defined his own sound in R&B and has been behind many hit songs since 2003.  He had been a songwriter behind the scenes, penning tracks for the likes of Marques Houston, Christina Milian and boy band Youngstown, until he gained mainstream attention when he wrote Mario’s 2004 hit “Let Me Love You” which attained the number 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.  He’s collaborated with Mary J. Blige, Celine Dion, Faith Evans, Rihanna, Musiq, Rick Ross, Jennifer Hudson, Kanye West, Keri Hilson, Wiz Khalifa and the list goes on. In 2006, Ne-Yo dropped his debut album “In My Own Words”, which featured his hit single "So Sick". The song achieved the number 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 and helped catapult his album’s debut to number 1 on the Billboard 200. As an actor, he is best known for his work in the films “Save The Last Dance 2” (2006), “Stomp The Yard” (2007) and “Battle Los Angeles” (2011).

Facts

  • Ne-Yo’s stage name was given to him by friend and producer Big D Evans who claims Ne-Yo sees music similarly to how Neo from “The Matrix” movies can decipher the matrix.
  • His ethnicity is a mix of African-American and Chinese. His grandfather on his mother’s side is Chinese.
  • He studies martial arts.
  • Ne-Yo’s previous stage name was Go-Go.
  • In 2000, he was part of an R&B group called Envy.
  • He owns a recording studio in Atlanta called Carrington House.
  • He was arrested in 2008 for reckless driving in his Range Rover without a valid license. He received a lenient sentence of 24 hours of community service.