Jump to content

Libra Scale

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 208.54.45.68 (talk) at 08:42, 25 November 2010. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Untitled

Libra Scale is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Ne-Yo. It was released on October 27, 2010 in Japan, followed by a release in the United Kingdom on October 29, as well a release in North America on November 22, 2010 by Def Jam. The album is preceded by three singles: its lead Europop-oriented single, and the UK number-one hit "Beautiful Monster", as well the R&B singles "Champagne Life" and "One in a Million". Upon its release, Libra Scale has received favorable reviews from most music critics, currently holding a 73 out of 100 on Metacritic, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on eleven reviews, and has attained three singles that have achieved moderate Billboard chart success.

Background and concept

According to Ne-Yo, the idea for the album emerged from three influences: his desire to do something different instead of a standard compilation; his interest in science fiction, comic books and Japanese animation; and inspiration from the works of Michael Jackson, particularly Thriller, Moonwalker, and Bad.[2][3] Originally a short movie was to accompany the album, but such proved not to be viable given time and monetary constraints, so Ne-Yo chose to develop a series of six extended music videos instead.[3][4] Nevertheless, the film concept continues to influence the work, as he has stated the songs on the album are inspired by the script of the film that he wrote.[5] The album features a number of songs which follow the story of Jerome and Pretti Sinclair.[4]

The album's concept explores a story questioning morality and both sides of the Libra Scale: the decision between money, fame, power and love. The story follows three garbage men – Jerome, Clyde and Leroy – who are offered everything they have wanted in return for protecting the city against a forthcoming threat. However, there's a catch: they can never fall in love. When Jerome (Ne-Yo) falls for Pretti Sinclair (Galen Hooks) disaster ensues, and he has to choose between his love for her and the fame, power and money that he had been given, as he must choose between her life and his own.[2][6]

Singles

"Beautiful Monster" was released as the lead single on June 8, 2010. It peaked at fifty-three on the US Billboard Hot 100 and sixty-one on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. It performed the best in the UK, where it became his third number-one hit. It also reached the top ten in Japan and Ireland, and acheived moderate success in other international markets. "Champagne Life" was released as the second North American single on July 20, 2010. It peaked at seventy-five on the Billboard Hot 100, eleven on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and due to gaining strong digital sales, reached the top forty in Japan.

"One in a Million" was released as the third North American and second international single on September 7, 2010.[7] It peaked at ninety-four on the US Billboard Hot 100 and has reached a current peak at twenty-one on the US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. It also reached the top twenty in the UK and charted in Australia.[citation needed]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[8]
Los Angeles Times[9]
Rolling Stone[10]
Metacritic(73/100)[11]

The album has generally received favorable reviews from most music critics holding a 73 out of 100 on Metacritic, based on 11 reviews.[12] Judy Rosen of Rolling Stone awarded the album with four stars out of five, commenting that "the real concept here is: Michael Jackson tribute album. And a damn good one."

Andy Kellman of Allmusic gave the album three and a half out of five stars, stating that "Ne-Yo remains a premier source of R&B, that is both traditional and contemporary."

Todd Martens of Los Angeles Times gave the album two and a half out of five stars, commeting that "Ultimately it's admirable that Ne-Yo felt the need to take listeners on a out-of-this-world ride, but he's at his best when sticking closer to home."

Track listing

Source:[13]

No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Champagne Life"Shaffer Smith, David GoughD. DoRohn Gough5:23
2."Makin' a Movie"Shaffer Smith, Derrick WhiteThe Runawayz3:52
3."Know Your Name"Rochad Holiday, Sixx Johnson, Shaffer Smith, Curtis WilsonSixx John4:07
4."Telekinesis"Anthony Reyes, Jesse Wilson, Shaffer SmithJesse "Corparal" Wilson4:22
5."Crazy Love" (featuring Fabolous)Ryan Leslie, Shaffer Smith, John JacksonRyan Leslie3:50
6."One in a Million"Charles Harmon, Shaffer SmithChuck Harmony4:03
7."Genuine Only"Reginald Perry, Samuel Jean, Shaffer SmithSyience3:56
8."Cause I Said So"Joel Augustin, Shaffer Smith, Alain BiambyJackPot3:49
9."Beautiful Monster"Smith, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy WilhelmStarGate, Sandy Vee4:11
10."What Have I Done?"David Gough, Shaffer SmithD. DoRohn Gough3:51
Japan bonus track[14]
No.TitleLength
11."Beautiful Monster" (Tony Moran Edit)4:33
Deluxe edition bonus DVD[15]
No.TitleLength
1."Life on the Libra Scale"9:38
2."Libra Scale (trailer)"1:54
3."Beautiful Monster (video)"8:09
4."Champagne Life (video)"8:10
5."One in a Million (video)"9:38

Personnel

Charts

Charts (2010) Peak Position
Australian Albums Chart[16] 36
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[17] 28
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia)[18] 60
Dutch Albums Chart[19] 48
European Top 100 Albums [20] 20
French Albums Chart[21] 45
German Albums Chart[22] 53
Irish Albums Chart[23] 24
Italian Album Chart[24] 15
South African Albums Chart[25] 13
Swiss Albums Chart[26] 15
UK Albums Chart[27] 11
UK R&B Chart[28] 1

Release history

Region Date Format Label
Japan October 27, 2010 Standard edition (CD, Digital download)[29]
Deluxe edition (CD + DVD)[30] 		Universal Music Japan
Germany[31] October 29, 2010 Universal Music
United Kingdom[32] Standard edition (CD, Digital download) Mercury Records
Hong Kong November 1, 2010 Def Jam Records
Australia November 5, 2010 Universal Music
Brazil[33] November 9, 2010
United States[34] November 22, 2010 Def Jam Records

References

  1. ^ http://sevenfootsounds.com/2010/ne-yo-selects-cause-i-said-so-as-next-single/
  2. ^ a b Wilbekin, Emil (July 20, 2010). "Ne-Yo Describes the Story Behind 'Libra Scale'". Essence.com. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
  3. ^ a b Fennessey, Sean (July 14, 2010). "Ne-Yo Records Concept Album About Superheroes". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
  4. ^ a b DJ Bigger. "Ne-Yo – Libra Scale Album Review". Contactmusic.com. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
  5. ^ "Ne-Yo Has Written A Movie Script". OMG,Music!. Retrieved 2010-06-09.
  6. ^ "Ne-Yo bringing back the concept album". The Courier-Mail. July 22, 2010. Retrieved July 31, 2010.
  7. ^ http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/one-in-a-million-single/id390991509
  8. ^ Kellman, Andy. http://www.allmusic.com/album/libra-scale-r2037706 Review: Libra Scale]. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2010-11-22.
  9. ^ Martens, Todd. http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/music_blog/2010/11/album-review-ne-yos-libra-scale.html. Retrieved on 2010-11-22.
  10. ^ Rosen, Judy. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/reviews/album/69206/236863. Retrieved on 2010-11-22.
  11. ^ http://metacritic.com/music/libra-scale
  12. ^ http://metacritic.com/music/libra-scale
  13. ^ http://www.amazon.com/Libra-Scale-Ne-Yo/dp/B003WE9KNO
  14. ^ http://www.hmv.co.jp/en/product/detail/3905380/ref/3925861_2
  15. ^ http://hmv.com/hmvweb/displayProductDetails.do?ctx=280;0;-1;-1;-1&sku=669313
  16. ^ "australian-charts.com - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". ARIA Charts. Hung Medien. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
  17. ^ "ultratop.be - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". Ultratop (in Dutch). ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  18. ^ "ultratop.be - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". Ultratop (in French). ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  19. ^ "dutchcharts.nl - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". MegaCharts (in Dutch). Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 6 November 2010.
  20. ^ http://www.billboard.com/#/charts/european-albums?tag=relcharts
  21. ^ "Tops : Shakira et la taupe dominent toujours" (in French). Chartsinfrance.net. Retrieved 2010-11-10.
  22. ^ http://musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Ne-Yo/?type=longplay
  23. ^ "Irish Charts - Singles, Albums & Compilations: Top 100 Individual Artist Albums". Irish Albums Chart. Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved November 4, 2010.
  24. ^ http://www.fimi.it/classifiche_artisti.php
  25. ^ http://www.rsg.co.za/musiek_top20.asp
  26. ^ "swisscharts.com - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". MegaCharts (in German). Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved 14 November 2010.
  27. ^ http://www.theofficialcharts.com/albums-chart/
  28. ^ http://www.theofficialcharts.com/r-and-b-albums-chart/
  29. ^ http://www.hmv.co.jp/en/product/detail/3905380
  30. ^ http://www.hmv.co.jp/en/product/detail/3905376
  31. ^ Libra Scale, Amazon.de.
  32. ^ [1], iTunes.
  33. ^ http://www.livrariacultura.com.br/scripts/musica/resenha/resenha.asp?nitem=22346918&sid=2051661091298293541897653&k5=345845FB&uid=
  34. ^ http://www.amazon.com/Libra-Scale-Ne-Yo/dp/B003WE9KNO/
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Libra_Scale&oldid=398778615"