Libra Scale

Libra Scale
Studio album by Ne-Yo
Released	November 22, 2010 (2010-11-22) (see release history)
Recorded	2009–2010
Genre	R&B, pop
Length	43:54
Label	Def Jam
Producer	Ne-Yo (exec.), Antonio "L.A." Reid (also exec.) Stargate, D. DoRohn Gough, Ryan Leslie, Syience, Rochad Holiday, Sandy Vee
Ne-Yo chronology
Year of the Gentleman (2008) Libra Scale (2010)
Singles from Libra Scale
"Beautiful Monster" Released: June 8, 2010 "Champagne Life" Released: July 20, 2010 "One in a Million" Released: September 14, 2010

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, the album opened at number 9 on the US Billboard 200, selling 112,000 copies in its first week sales, becoming his fourth consecutive top-ten album in the United States. It currently holds a 73 out of 100 on Metacritic, which indicates "generally favorable reviews", based on fourteen reviews,^[1] 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/power/fame versus love.^[6] 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][7]

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 achieved 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.^[8] It peaked at eighty-seven 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]}

Reception

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number nine on the US Billboard 200 chart, with first-week sales of 112,000 copies.^[9]

Critical response

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
Allmusic	[10]
The A.V. Club	(B+)[11]
BBC Music	(favorable)[12]
The Boston Globe	(favorable)[13]
The Guardian	[14]
Los Angeles Times	[15]
The New York Times	(favorable)[16]
PopMatters	(7/10)[17]
Rolling Stone	[18]
Slant Magazine	[19]

Upon its release, Libra Scale received generally favorable reviews from most music critics.^[1] At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average score of 73, based on 14 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".^[1] 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 four stars, commenting 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

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Champagne Life"	Shaffer Smith, David Gough	D. DoRohn Gough	5:23
2.	"Makin' a Movie"	Smith, Derrick White	D. White	3:52
3.	"Know Your Name"	Rochad Holiday, Sixx Johnson, Smith, Curtis Wilson	The NeXmen, Hollywood Hot Sauce	4:07
4.	"Telekinesis"	Anthony Reyes, Jesse Wilson, Smith	Jesse "Corparal" Wilson	4:22
5.	"Crazy Love" (featuring Fabolous)	Ryan Leslie, Smith, John Jackson	Ryan Leslie	3:50
6.	"One in a Million"	Charles Harmon, Smith	Chuck Harmony	4:03
7.	"Genuine Only"	Reginald Perry, Samuel Jean, Smith	Syience	3:56
8.	"Cause I Said So"	Joel Augustin, Smith, Alain Biamby	JackPot	3:49
9.	"Beautiful Monster"	Smith, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Sandy Wilhelm	StarGate, Sandy Vee	4:11
10.	"What Have I Done?"	David Gough, Smith	D. DoRohn Gough	3:51

Japan bonus track[20]
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
11.	"Beautiful Monster" (Tony Moran Edit)			4:33

Deluxe edition bonus DVD[21]
No.	Title	Length
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

Credits for Libra Scale adapted from Allmusic.^[22]

Hollywood Hot Sauce – Additional Production, Keyboards Kristen Yiengst – Art Coordinator, Photo Coordination Will Ragland – Art Direction, Design Leesa D. Brunson – A&R Q. Nicole Jackson – A&R Reynell "Tango" Hay – A&R Terese Joseph – A&R Dwayne Thomas, Jr. – Bass Erik "Baby Jesus" Coomes – Bass Anthony Reyes – Bass, Composer, Guitar Chuck Harmony – Composer, Producer Jesse Wilson – Composer, Musician, Producer, Programming Mikkel Storleer Eriksen – Composer, Engineer, Instrumentation, Production Tor Erik Hermansen – Composer, Instrumentation, Production Tyler Coomes – Drums Carlos Oyanedel – Engineer Damien Lewis – Engineer Jaymz Hardy-Martin III – Engineer, Mixing, Vocal Engineer

Antonio "L.A." Reid – Executive Producer Ne-Yo – Executive Producer, Vocals Brent Paschke – Guitar Sandy Vee – Instrumentation, Mixing, Producer Chris Atlas – Marketing Tom Coyne – Mastering Kevin "KD" Davis – Mixing Phil Tan – Mixing Jerel Lake – Mixing Assistant Josh Houghkirk – Mixing Assistant Doug Joswick – Package Production Sacha Waldman – Photography Jackpot – Producer Rochad Holiday – Producer Ryan Leslie – Producer Syience – Producer Sixx Johnson – Producer, Programming Rachel Johnson – Stylist Mike "TrakGuru" Johnson – Vocal Engineer

Charts and certifications

Charts Chart (2010) Peak position Australian Albums Chart[23] 36 Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders)[24] 28 Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia)[25] 60 Dutch Albums Chart[26] 48 European Top 100 Albums [27][not in citation given] 20 French Albums Chart[28] 45 German Albums Chart[29] 53 Irish Albums Chart[30] 24 Italian Album Chart[31][not in citation given] 15 South African Albums Chart[32] 10 Swiss Albums Chart[33] 15 UK Albums Chart[34] 11 UK R&B Chart[35] 1 US Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Albums[36] 4 US Billboard 200[37] 9

Certifications Country Certifications Japan Gold[38] United Kingdom Silver[39]

Release history

Region	Date	Format	Label
Japan	October 27, 2010	Standard edition (CD, digital download)[40] Deluxe edition (CD + DVD)[41]	Universal Music Japan
Germany[42]	October 29, 2010		Universal Music
United Kingdom[43]		Standard edition (CD, digital download)	Mercury Records
Hong Kong	November 1, 2010		Def Jam Records
Australia	November 5, 2010		Universal Music
Brazil[44]	November 9, 2010
United States[45]	November 22, 2010		Def Jam Records

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Libra Scale Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2011-03-05.
2. ^ ^{a b} Wilbekin, Emil (July 20, 2010). "Ne-Yo Describes the Story Behind 'Libra Scale'". Essence.com. http://www.essence.com/entertainment/hot_topics/ne-yo_interview.php. Retrieved July 31, 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Fennessey, Sean (July 14, 2010). "Ne-Yo Records Concept Album About Superheroes". Rolling Stone. http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/17386/180872. Retrieved July 31, 2010. 
4. ^ ^{a b} DJ Bigger. "Ne-Yo – Libra Scale Album Review". Contactmusic.com. http://www.contactmusic.com/new/home.nsf/albumreview/ne-yo-libra-scalex09x07x10. Retrieved July 31, 2010. 
5. ^ "Ne-Yo Has Written A Movie Script". OMG,Music!. http://www.omgmusic.com/news/ne-yo-has-written-a-movie-script. Retrieved 2010-06-09. 
6. ^ Ne-Yo interview by Pete Lewis, Blues & Soul' August 2010
7. ^ "Ne-Yo bringing back the concept album". The Courier-Mail. July 22, 2010. http://www.couriermail.com.au/entertainment/music/ne-yo-bringing-back-the-concept-album/story-e6freqgx-1225895455243. Retrieved July 31, 2010. 
8. ^ iTunes Store
9. ^ Jacobs, Allen (2010-12-01). "Hip Hop Album Sales: The Week Ending 11/28/2010". HipHopDX. Cheri Media Group.
10. ^ Kellman, Andy. Review: Libra Scale. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2010-11-22.
11. ^ A.V. Club review
12. ^ "Music - Review of Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". BBC. http://www.bbc.co.uk/music/reviews/gd8r. Retrieved 2010-12-24. 
13. ^ Boston Globe review
14. ^ The Guardian review
15. ^ Martens, Todd. LA Times Review, Retrieved on 2010-11-22.
16. ^ New York Times review
17. ^ PopMatters review
18. ^ Rosen, Judy. Rolling Stone Review, Retrieved on 2010-11-22.
19. ^ Slant Magazine review
20. ^ Libra Scale(Limited (Price))【CD】-Ne-Yo｜R&B / Dance｜Dance & Soul｜Music｜HMV ONLINE Online Shopping & Information Site
21. ^ Ne-yo: Libra Scale: Includes Dvd (2010): CD: hmv.com
22. ^ Credits: Libra Scale. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2011-03-05.
23. ^ "australian-charts.com - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale". ARIA Charts. Hung Medien. http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Ne%2DYo&titel=LibraScale&cat=a. Retrieved 15 November 2010. 
24. ^ "ultratop.be - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale" (in Dutch). Ultratop. ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. http://www.ultratop.be/nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Ne%2DYo&titel=LibraScale&cat=a. Retrieved 6 November 2010. 
25. ^ "ultratop.be - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale" (in French). Ultratop. ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. http://www.ultratop.be/fr/showitem.asp?interpret=Ne%2DYo&titel=LibraScale&cat=a. Retrieved 6 November 2010. 
26. ^ "dutchcharts.nl - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale" (in Dutch). MegaCharts. Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. http://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Ne%2DYo&titel=LibraScale&cat=a. Retrieved 6 November 2010. 
27. ^ European Albums, billboard.com
28. ^ "Tops : Shakira et la taupe dominent toujours" (in French). Chartsinfrance.net. http://www.chartsinfrance.net/Shakira/news-71413.html. Retrieved 2010-11-10. 
29. ^ Die ganze Musik im Internet: Charts, News, Neuerscheinungen, Tickets, Genres, Genresuche, Genrelexikon, Künstler-Suche, Musik-Suche, Track-Suche, Ticket-Suche - musicline.de
30. ^ "Irish Charts - Singles, Albums & Compilations: Top 100 Individual Artist Albums". Irish Albums Chart. Irish Recorded Music Association. http://www.irma.ie/aucharts.asp#albums. Retrieved November 4, 2010. 
31. ^ FIMI - Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana - Classifiche
32. ^ :: Radio Sonder Grense ::
33. ^ "swisscharts.com - Ne-Yo - Libra Scale" (in German). MegaCharts. Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. http://swisscharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Ne%2DYo&titel=LibraScale&cat=a. Retrieved 14 November 2010. 
34. ^ Album Top 40 from the Official UK Charts Company
35. ^ R&B Albums Chart
36. ^ Ne-Yo Album & Song Chart History – R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. Billboard. Retrieved on 2011-03-05.
37. ^ Latest Music News, Band, Artist, Musician & Music Video News | Billboard.com
38. ^ http://www.riaj.or.jp/data/others/gold/201010.html
39. ^ "Certified Awards Search". British Phonographic Industry. 26 November 2010. http://www.bpi.co.uk/certifiedawards/Search.aspx. Retrieved 27 November 2010. 
40. ^ Libra Scale(Limited (Price))【CD】-Ne-Yo｜R&B / Dance｜Dance & Soul｜Music｜HMV ONLINE Online Shopping & Information Site
41. ^ Libra Scale (+DVD)-Deluxe Edition -(+DVD, Special Edition (Deluxe))【CD】-Ne-Yo｜R&B / Dance｜Dance & Soul｜Music｜HMV ONLINE Online Shopping & Information Site
42. ^ Libra Scale, Amazon.de.
43. ^ [1], iTunes.
44. ^ Cd: Libra Scale - Ne-Yo - Rap & Hip Hop
45. ^ Amazon.com: Libra Scale: Ne-Yo: Music