Ne-Yo

Most Favor Song Of Him

"Mad"

Biography

     Songwriter, arranger, and vocalist Ne-Yo was born Shaffer Smith in Arkansas and raised in Las Vegas, NV. His start in the music industry came as a songwriter. Prior to exiting his teenage years, he penned material for Youngstown and broke through in 2004 with Mario's "Let Me Love You," one of the most-played songs on urban radio stations across the U.S. In My Own Words, the second album he recorded but the first one to be released, came out in early 2006 and reached the top of the charts, supported by the number one hit "So Sick." During the same year, he appeared on Remy Ma's There's Something About Remy and Ghostface Killah's Fishscale, and he had a hand in writing a pair of Top Ten hits: Beyonc?'s "Irreplaceable" and Rihanna's "Unfaithful." Because of You, his second album, followed in May 2007. It went to number one on the Billboard 200 and Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts as well, with its upbeat title track topping out at number two on the Hot 100. Year of the Gentleman was issued in September 2008, but not before another series of songwriting triumphs, including Rihanna's "Take a Bow" and Jennifer Hudson's "Spotlight." Propelled by the hits "Closer," "Miss Independent," and "Mad," Year of the Gentleman eventually went platinum, just like Ne-Yo's first two albums. After releasing three albums in three years, Ne-Yo went relatively quiet but returned in 2010 with Libra Scale, an album inspired by science fiction and comic books, as well as Stevie Wonder's and Michael Jackson's most ambitious recordings.

    

Ciara

Now Most Favor Song Of Her

"Ride-featuring Ludacris"

Biography

     Dubbed the "First Lady of Crunk & B" by the producer who should know, Lil Jon, singer Ciara burst onto the scene with the never-gonna-get-it single "Goodies," the breathy "answer song" to Petey Pablo's "Freek-a-Leek." She was born in Austin, TX, but with her father in the Army, Ciara spent time living in Germany, New York, California, Arizona, and Nevada before landing in Atlanta. In her early teens, she got a piece of paper out and wrote down her life's goal, to become a professional singer. She joined a girl group, worked on her songwriting, left the group, landed a publishing deal, and found a "music soul mate" when she met producer Jazze Pha. With Sean Garrett, the co-writer of Usher's massive hit "Yeah!," Ciara co-wrote "Goodies," and when Lil Jon heard the demo, he knew it was going to be big. LaFace released the Lil Jon-produced track in the summer of 2004, and its quick climb to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 was remarkable. With help from Pha, Garrett, and Lil Jon, Ciara released her self-titled debut in September the same year. The follow-up singles "1, 2 Step" featuring Missy Elliott and "Oh" featuring Ludacris both broke the Top Five in the U.S. in 2005. By the end of the year she joined Gwen Stefani on tour before teaming with Bow Wow and Chris Brown for a package tour in early 2006. The Evolution, her second album, was released near the end of the year; though it debuted at the top of the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart and a handful of subsequent singles ("Get Up," "Promise," "Like a Boy") placed within the Top 20 of the Hot 100, it did not perform quite as well as the debut. The May 2009 release of Fantasy Ride, her third album, was preceded by a few delays, including a pre-release single that failed to catch fire. Fantasy Ride was, nonetheless, her most star-studded album to date, featuring collaborations with Elliott andLudacris, as well as the-Dream, Young Jeezy, Chris Brown, and Justin Timberlake.