Ne-Yo at Atlanta's Fox Theatre

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Ne-Yo at Atlanta's Fox Theatre

R&B star Ne-Yo, who now makes his home in Mableton, Ga., in suburban Atlanta, brought his Grammy-winning talents home to the Fox Theatre on Wednesday night.

Atlanta's own R&B star Ne-Yo performs at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009. Ne-Yo's third and most recent album, 'Year of the Gentleman,' was released in September 2008.

Ne-Yo has collaborated with Rihanna on a song. Ne-Yo declined to discuss the alleged altercation between Rihanna and fellow R&B star Chris Brown, but he told MTV recently that he had talked briefly with Rihanna about the incident.

Ne-Yo has written songs for top artists including, Mary J. Blige, Faith Evans, and Musiq Soulchild, who shared the bill with Ne-Yo and Jazmine Sullivan at the Fox.

Ne-Yo says he is shooting two movies: One, "Red Tails" about the Tuskegee Airmen, and another "Venice Beach," which he describes as his "Purple Rain" -- "My original music. My movie, starring me.'

Ne-Yo says his writing for other stars is taking a back seat to the tour. "This is my first time headlining, so with that comes a whole lot of responsibilities," he told Access Music Scene's Sonia Murray.

Ne-Yo was up for six Grammys at the recent awards ceremony and won two -- for best R&B and best male R&B vocal performance.

Ne-Yo pulls out some light sabre with his microphone at the Fox performance.

Ne-Yo said he especially enjoys doing the show with Musiq Soulchild and Jamine Sullivan. 'They do what I define as real music. Real instrumentation and actual voice not Auto-Tuned to death. Not following the new trend. Real voice. Real lyrics. Real music.'

A native of Camden, Ark., who grew up in Las Vegas, Ne-Yo moved to Mableton in 2006, not long after appearing in his first movie, 'Stomp the Yard' with Rihanna and Chris Brown.

Since moving to the Atlanta area, Ne-Yo has been active in rasing money for young musicians and for keeping open Atlanta's struggling public hospital, Grady Memorial.

Electrik Red, an R&B foursome who signed with Def Jam last year, opens the Ne-Yo show at the Fox Theatre. The group hails from New York City and Canada.

Jazmine Sullivan, another opening act for Ne-Yo, is a Philadelphia-based soul singer and protege of Missy Elliot.

Jazmine Sullivan's debut album "Fearless" was released in 2008. Its two biggest singles are "Need U Bad" and "Bust Your Windows."

Musiq SoulChild also opened for Ne-Yo. Born Taalib Johnson, Musiq has released five albums since 2000. His latest is "Onmyradio."

Musiq's biggest hits include "Halfcrazy," "Dontchange," "B.U.D.D.Y." and "Teachme." He played songs from all of his albums during the Ne-Yo concert.

Musiq throws a stuffed animal into the crowd. His most recent single is "SoBeautiful." Musiq has had 2 platinum albums and 2 gold albums.

Musiq SoulChild keeps the spotlight on himself during his opening show. His tour with Ne-Yo included a stop at Radio City Music Hall in New York and will include shows at two other Fox Theaters in Detroit and St. Louis.

Ne-Yo arrives at his after party at the W hotel in Midtown after finishing up his concert at the Fox Theatre.

R&B group Electrik Red poses with singer Mario (center) as they arrive at the after-party.

Celebrity stylist Patrick Cooper adds a splash of color to the Ne-Yo after party.

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Atlanta's own R&B star Ne-Yo performs at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta on Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2009. Ne-Yo's third and most recent album, 'Year of the Gentleman,' was released in September 2008.

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