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Because of You

 
Album Review: Because of You
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Because of You

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  • Artist: Ne-Yo
  • Rating: StarStarStarHalf Star
  • Release Date: May 01, 2007
  • Total Time: 49:57
  • Genre: Rhythm & Blues

Review

In My Own Words, released in early 2006, was a major success for Ne-Yo. It was a number one album supported by two Top Ten singles and a third that peaked in the Top 20. As it kept gathering steam, the singer/songwriter/producer shrewdly continued to write for others: Rihanna's Top Ten "Unfaithful" and Beyoncé's number one "Irreplaceable" kept his profile on the rise through the end of the year. Indicating that he still has quality material to spare, Because of You comes just a little after a year after his debut, and it is just as solid. Though some of the accomplices remain, such as the Norwegian StarGate team (his partners on "So Sick," "Sexy Love," "Unfaithful," and "Irreplaceable") and Ron Feemster, the key to the album's potency and freshness is its differences from In My Own Words. None of the debut's singles were as upbeat as this album's lead single, "Because of You," a sophisticated yet youthful song for the dancefloor, one of many instances where it's evident that Ne-Yo has thoroughly absorbed Michael Jackson and Rod Temperton's rich vocal arrangements on Off the Wall. The album's closing quarter fulfills the contemporary ballad quota, but the preceding quarter provides imaginative and surprisingly adventurous arrangements, as well as some of the nastiest hooks. "Sex with My Ex," the wildest of these three songs, is somewhere between a screwed-and-chopped mix of Prince's "Delirious" and Diddy's "Last Night," its hard beat and synthesizer rays twisted into knots. It's also one of several moments where a newfound swagger is just as convincing as that of prime Usher. Making it to number one on your own, writing a major hit for one of the planet's most popular entertainers, and qualifying as the heir to R. Kelly can have that effect. Executive producer Jay-Z seems to know exactly what he has on his hands: on "Crazy," he completes his verse within the first 30 seconds, allowing his R&B franchise star to take over with no interruptions. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide

Tracks

Track TitleComposersPerformersTime
Because of You (Lyrics) M.S. Eriksen Ne-Yo (4:26)
Crazy (Lyrics) Ne-Yo, Jay-Z (4:21)
Can We Chill (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (4:24)
Do You (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (3:48)
Addicted (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (3:46)
Leaving Tonight (Lyrics) Ne-Yo, Jennifer Hudson (5:14)
Ain't Thinking About You (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (3:41)
Sex with My Ex (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (3:39)
Angel (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (3:28)
Make It Work (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (4:08)
Say It (Lyrics) Ne-Yo (4:41)
Go on Girl (Lyrics) M.S. Eriksen Ne-Yo (4:21)

Credits

Mike Tocci (Engineer), David Barnett (Viola), Ellen Von Unwerth (Photography), Espen Lind (Guitar), Emma Kummrow (Violin), Brian Springer (Engineer), TaVon Sampson (Design), Jennie Lorenzo (Cello), Ricardo Hinkson "Slick" (Assistant Engineer), Jay Brown (A&R), Compound Entertainment (Compilation Producer), Igor Szwec (Violin), Robert Taylor "R.T." (Guitar), Tai Linzie (Photography), Terese Joseph (A&R), Ron "Neff U" Feemster (Producer), Joe Davi (Guitar), Brian Sumner (Engineer), Mikkel S. Eriksen (Vocal Engineer), Jeff Chestek (Engineer), Joe Davi (Bass), Ne-Yo (Producer), Jaymz Hardy Martin III (Engineer), Josh Houghkirk (Assistant), Eric Hudson (Producer), Danielle Decker (Groomer), Tor Erik Hermanson (Instrumentation), Larry Gold (Producer), Olga Konopelsky (Violin), Gloria Justen (Violin), Mikkel S. Eriksen (Instrumentation), Andrew Dawson (Engineer), Eric Hudson (Instrumentation), Tyran "Ty Ty" Smith (A&R), Tom Coyne (Mastering), Carter Administration (Audio Production), Kevin "KD" Davis (Mixing), Tai Linzie (Art Coordinator), Phil Tan (Mixing), TaVon Sampson (Art Direction), Bob Horn (Engineer), Deepu Panjwani (Assistant Engineer), Doug Joswick (Package Production), Larry Gold (Arranger), June Ambrose (Stylist), Mikkel S. Eriksen (Engineer)
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Wikipedia: Because of You (Ne-Yo album)
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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Because of You
Studio album by Ne-Yo
Released April 25, 2007 (2007-04-25)
(See release history)
Recorded 2006–2007
Genre R&B, pop
Length 49:57
Label Def Jam
Producer Ne-Yo, Stargate, Knobody, Neff-U, The Heavyweights, Shea Taylor, Eric Hudson
Professional reviews
Ne-Yo chronology
In My Own Words
(2006)		 Because of You
(2007)		 Year of the Gentleman
(2008)
Singles from Because of You
  1. "Because of You"
    Released: February 4, 2007
  2. "Do You"
    Released: June 12, 2007
  3. "Can We Chill"
    Released: September 29, 2007
  4. "Go On Girl"
    Released: December 4, 2007

Because of You is the second studio album by American R&B and pop singer-songwriter Ne-Yo, released May 8, 2007 on Def Jam Recordings in the United States. It features guest contributions from rapper Jay-Z on "Crazy" and singer Jennifer Hudson on "Leaving Tonight". Because of You debuted at number 1 on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts, selling over 250,000 copies in its first week. Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from most music critics, based on an aggregate score of 74/100 from Metacritic.[11] It won a Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 2008 Grammy Awards.

Contents

Reception

According to Nielsen SoundScan, Because of You debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, selling 251,000 copies on its first week of release.[12] Because of You is Ne-Yo's second number-one album. The album has shipped 1 million units in the US. Worldwide it has sold over 1,630,000. It spawned four singles: "Because Of You", "Do You", "Can We Chill", and "Go On Girl".

The album has also drawn mainly positive reviews, with Entertainment Weekly magazine noting, "Indeed, the album is an unmistakable attempt to channel [Michael Jackson's early work such as "Off the Wall"]...and the effort often pays off beautifully...Ne-Yo's lithe falsetto puts the many others who've been labeled Jackson-esque to shame." PopMatters.com called the album "a masterpiece of a record" and praised the title track's blend of "upbeat modern-day funk tempo, beautifully melodic backdrop and love-sick (in a good way) vocals...[it's] the perfect lead single off an album that is filled with number-one hits" [13]. The album won Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 2008 Grammy Awards.

Track listing

# Title Producer(s) Time
1 "Because of You" StarGate 3:46
2 "Crazy" (featuring Jay-Z) Ron "Neff-U" Feemster 4:21
3 "Can We Chill" Eric Hudson 4:24
4 "Do You" The Heavyweights 3:48
5 "Addicted" Shea Taylor 3:46
6 "Leaving Tonight" (featuring Jennifer Hudson) Knobody 5:15
7 "Ain't Thinking About You" Eric Hudson 3:41
8 "Sex with My Ex" Shea Taylor 3:39
9 "Angel" Syience 3:28
10 "Make It Work" Shea Taylor 4:09
11 "Say It" Keys 4:41
12 "Go On Girl" StarGate 4:21
* "That's What It Does" (UK and Japan bonus track) Shea Taylor & Ne-Yo 3:32
* "Spotlight" (Japan bonus track) The Heavyweights 4:04

Chart history

Album
Chart (2007) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Urban Albums Chart[14] 39
Dutch Albums Chart[14] 30
Irish Albums Chart[14] 34
New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart[14] 34
Swiss Music Charts[14] 49
UK Albums Chart[14] 6
U.S. Billboard 200[15] 1
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[16] 1
Chart procession and succession
Preceded by
The Best Damn Thing by Avril Lavigne		 Billboard 200 number-one album
May 13, 2007 - May 19, 2007		 Succeeded by
Call Me Irresponsible by Michael Bublè

Release history

Region Date
Japan April 25, 2007
Australia April 27, 2007
Europe
United Kingdom April 30, 2007
United States May 1, 2007
Canada May 26, 2007
Sweden

References

  1. ^ Kellman, Andy. Review: Because of You. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  2. ^ Rabin, Nathan. Review: Because of You. The A.V. Club. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  3. ^ Vozick-Levinson, Simon. Review: Because of You. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  4. ^ D., Spence. Review: Because of You. IGN. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  5. ^ Kim, Serena. Review: Because of You. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  6. ^ Sanneh, Kelefa. Review: Because of You. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  7. ^ McGuire, Colin. Review: Because of You. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  8. ^ Sheffield, Rob. Review: Because of You. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  9. ^ Soto, Alfred. Review: Because of You. Stylus Magazine. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  10. ^ Charnas, Dan. Review: Because of You. The Washington Post. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  11. ^ Because of You (2007): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2009-11-18.
  12. ^ HITS Daily Double
  13. ^ PopMatters Music Review
  14. ^ a b c d e f Ne-Yo - Because of You - Music Charts αCharts. Accessed September 20, 2008.
  15. ^ The Billboard 200 - Because of You - Ne-Yo Billboard. Accessed September 20, 2008.
  16. ^ Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums - Because of You - Ne-Yo Billboard. Accessed September 20, 2008.

External links

v • d • e
Ne-Yo
Studio albums
In My Own Words · Because of You · Year of the Gentleman
Greatest hits
Singles
Featured singles
Related articles

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

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