Hip-Hop Crunch

Ne-Yo Dropped From R. Kelly ‘Double Up’ Tour

2

November 20th, 2007 by Castina

Tagged as: Concerts, Ne-Yo, R. Kelly


Ne-Yo has been dropped from R. Kelly’s ‘Double Up’ Tour. Ne-Yo’s rep has released the following press release.

Yesterday, Shaffer Smith aka Ne-Yo was informed that he was being dropped from the rest of the R Kelly tour after delivering two sensational performances. Entertainment reporters, music critics, bloggers, fans, and concert goers all agreed that Ne-Yo’s performances brought the heat; but maybe it brought too much heat.

“He’s written hit songs for Beyonce “Irreplaceable” and Rihanna “Unfaithful” (spending a combined 19 weeks at #1 on the Hot 100), said Tango, Ne-Yo’s business partner and manager. He’s written songs slated to be on Whitney Houston, Celine Dion, Lionel Richie, and Enrique Iglesias’ new albums. In a recent article in Ebony Magazine, the king of pop, Michael Jackson, referred to him as one of the artists that impresses him most. The fans were really feeling his performances. He’s good; maybe he’s too good – that’s the problem.”

It seems like déjà vu – didn’t R Kelly have drama on his last tour. R Kelly’s camp sited the lack of a signed contract as the reason for removing Ne-Yo from the line up.

“I don’t understand their actions because I was rehearsing, doing media, promoting the tour, and performing, said Ne-Yo. In my opinion, I was doing everything possible to make the tour a success. I love being on stage in front of fans because of the immediate feedback you get. You know right away if they are feeling you; and they were really feeling our show.”

Ne-Yo expressed genuine concern regarding not having the opportunity to complete the tour. He wanted all of his fans and supporters to be able to see him live. “To my fans and ticket holders – I apologize if you are disappointed.”

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2 Responses to “Ne-Yo Dropped From R. Kelly ‘Double Up’ Tour”

  1. On November 21st 2007, Ne-Yo On R. Kelly ‘Double Up’ Tour Dumping | Hip-Hop Crunch wrote:

    [...] Ne-Yo has spoken out on being kicked off R. Kelly’s ‘Double Up’ Tour, also featuri… [...]

  2. On November 29th 2007, Equal-Opportunist wrote:

    Ne-Yo is a narcissus neophyte needing news. The art of B—S is to know when to quit. Whether you love or hate R. Kelly, folks need to report the facts more responsibly instead of looking for sensationalism. The reality of events can often be more entertaining then the lopsided logic and spurious spins being reported by Diva DJ’s and Wanna-be limelight seekers. Ne-Yo’s radio interviews regarding this matter weighted more against his argument then building upon it. *Sniff* *Sniff* smells like Jay-Z trying to throw a smoking gun into Kelly’s lawsuit (Jay-Z’a counter was thrown out). Not to mention that Ne-Yo is under Jay-Z’s label/thumb. For those intelligent listeners think about it, Ne-Yo admitted on Ed Lover’s show that he initially refused to take his crew to Columbus to practice and that they were practicing in Atlanta, instead. Ne-Yo also admitted that he was told by the Kelly folks that he’d “better” get his butt up to Columbus and rehearse on that stage (which anyone in the business knows is important in the event of some unforeseen matters that might need to be adjusted accordingly–like lights, sound and so forth). Once Ne-Yo reluctantly agreed and arrived in Columbus, his 4 hours was reduced to 2 hours because he used that time up debating and protesting. Ne-Yo was learning quickly he had to be a team player and just because he decided to finally give-in and act professionally, other performers who were already in place needed to use the stage to practice on as well. Ne-Yo’s time was cut because of his decisions, not anyone else’s. Similarly, if Ne-Yo had to “fight” for a dressing room, and Kelly took them all, then where did J Holiday and Keisha get dressed? Ne-Yo may be a neophyte but his manager needs to get fired if he allowed his client to go on tour without a contract under any circumstances. Or, perhaps Ne-Yo wanted to fly freestyle because he knew he had other rods in the proverbial flame while the tour was in motion. Notice Ne-Yo never explained how he “only” did 2 of the “5″ performances “BEFORE” he was removed from the line-up that Monday. While Ne-Yo played his fans by trying to collect sympathy, let’s also consider his lack of explaining how he’d missed the Greensboro, Birmingham, and Charlotte gigs because he was at the Music Awards performing with Rhianna. He didn’t seem to worry about those fans missing the opportunity to hear him perform then, nor has he fully explained that when he finally sauntered back to the tour that fateful Monday he was about to head off again to the Macy’s Day parade in NYC while the tour was performing in Newark that very same day. And then there were the continuos ribbon cuttings for the Ronald Houses and don’t forget the masquerade ball he was planing. And as far as upstaging Kelly. He wishes. I have scoured the net looking for reviews and Ne-Yo’s name, let alone his performance recap, never made it to more than one or two lines in any of the papers or on the e-news-net while still on the tour. In fact, Ne-Yo didn’t get past the blink of an eye for his presence on the Double-up tour until he pulled his disappearing acts that did catch the eye of the tour’s promoter, Rowe Entertainment. When Ne-Yo refused to sign the agreement, which meant he’d have to forego the Macy’s parade (unless he could split himself and be in two places at once, or only fly around the country to cut ribbons when the tour had a 2-day break every 4 shows, or else he’d be held in breach)—Ne-Yo decided to “Cry Wolf” and finally figured a way to get the attention he felt he deserved, but had failed to yield on the 2 performances out of the 5 actually done. But then—Thank GOODNESS! some Ne-Yo fan posted his anti-climatic performance clips from Columbus, where his mimicking Michael J’s steps seem several beats behind the frenzy Jackson made famous. And in keeping with Ne-Yo’s self professed idol MJ I noticed Ne-Yo generously sprinkles MJ’s trademark “ohhh’s” marking each stanza, as well as Ne-Yo’s attempt to James Brown his mic. And finally, the boy needs a choreographer, his dancers are as uninteresting as his amateurish performance itself. I’ll stick to listening to his records, I do enjoy his music. Hate Kelly all you want. But at least his material is unlike anyone else’s—-whether that is a good or bad thing or even bizarre, is left for the audience to determine—-but it is definitely wildly entertaining and unlike anything I have seen or can imagine someone actually doing. And, isn’t that what we pay the price of those costly tickets? Otherwise, we can simply save our money and just by the CD.

    So here’s the links from youtube of Ne-Yo in his Columbus’ Double-up performance. You be the Judge:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpWXst4NqkA

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSvzmRIimDQ

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