Ne-Yo Leaves Def Jam & Signs With Motown

As the inner workings of the music continued to be restructured in an effort to handle sinking album sales, there has been yet another major shift behind the scenes. Ne-Yo has officially left his longtime Def Jam Recordings home and signed with Motown Records as the new Senior VP of A&R.

Ne-Yo was signed to Def Jam by Jay-Z and subsequently released his debut album, ‘In My Own Words’, in 2006. Since that time, the R&B singer/songwriter launched his own imprint with the company, Compound Entertainment, in a bid to find and develop young talent in the industry.

In his new deal with Motown – a label that separated from the defunct Universal Motown Records – Ne-Yo will assume creative leadership as Senior VP of A&R. Additionally, his Compound imprint has been shifted to the budding Motown umbrella.

Other major ventures that Ne-Yo will undertake later this year include a stint as a guest mentor on ‘The Voice’ and the release of his fifth studio album. The LP is tentatively slated for a summer debut.

Read what Ne-Yo had to say about his new position at Motown below:

“I’m honored that I¹ve been given such a prestigious title and trusted with such responsibility; terrified because I know that playing this role in the fashion of one of my career role models, Mr. Smokey Robinson — these are big shoes to fill. But trust, I can handle it.”

Congratulations are definitely in order for Ne-Yo. As one of the most talented songwriters on the music scene today, he has a viable ear for talent and he will be able to foster the growth of a new wave of R&B artists.

Thoughts?