Ne-Yo is a busy man, and for the prodigious singer/songwriter, Labor Day is just another Monday. He’s busy writing songs for New Kids on the Block, Monica, and Michael Bolton. Yep -- the man who’s shaking up dance floors with “Closer” is working with flaxen-haired, saxy-tooting Michael Bolton. Plus, he’s busy promoting his new album Year of the Gentleman. But regardless of his hectic schedule, the suave crooner set aside some time (10 minutes!) to chat about his cool people, romance, and yet another venture he’s undertaken: curating Hennessy Artistry.

What's up with you and NKOTB?
You know what’s cool. They’re New Kids on the Block, not old guys trying to bring it back. They still have their swag about them. It’s a different swag from when they were younger but they still swag all the same. They definitely look like they know what they’re doing.

So hello, Ne-Yo. You're looking so rat pack these days. Can you tell me about what you're wearing?

Button down, red shirt, tie, nice fedora. This is my thing -- the year of the gentleman.

How’d you come up with this concept?

Basically, it's me making an assessment of the business and seeing that the essence of what it means to be a gentleman is lacking nowadays. For example, the guy that will pull a woman's chair out for her when they sit down to eat, the guy that will open a car door for a lady, the guy that takes the time to make sure he looks his best when he walks out of the house, that guy is far and few in between. So I'm basically leading by example, trying to show cats what it means to be a gentleman again.