A lot of today’s hits are led by horns — Jason Derulo‘s “Talk Dirty,” Ariana Grande‘s “Problem,” Taylor Swift‘s “Shake It Off” — and Ne-Yo wants in on the action. The singer-songwriter’s latest song, “She Knows,” centers around a low saxophone riff.
“She Knows” is the second single on Ne-Yo’s forthcoming album, Non-Fiction (his sixth). The song is produced by certified hit-maker Dr. Luke and features a verse from Juicy J. While Non-Fiction‘s first single, “Money Can’t Buy,” with Jeezy, was lush and romantic — at one point Ne-Yo quoted William Devaughn‘s sunny 1974 hit “Be Thankful For What You Got” — “She Knows” is spare and hard-hitting.
Ne-Yo starts a 12-date tour on October 12 in San Francisco, in time for the fall release of Non-Fiction. He told New York’s Power 105 recently that the R.E.D. follow-up “is 99.999998% R&B.”