Ne-Yo - Champagne Life Single Review

After waxing lyrical over 'Libra Scales', the stunning fourth album from Ne-yo on these hallowed web pages, I am gonna let you into a lil secret, word is that this is going to be part of a double a side or two track single with "Beautiful Monster". This isn't common knowledge at the moment and the label don't want it to be known yet, doh! lol, because they do not want to confuse radio or have the airplay of "Beautiful Monster" diluted in any way. So this is just between you and err me ;-) From a totally personal and a real heads point of view this is the better track by miles. This exquisite smoothed out soulful R&B mid beat monster is simply breath taking. From the opening strings you just know Champagne Life is going to be an R&B master class and trust me it is. Like "Can We Chill" I will never get fed up with this track. It tells the story of three guys that go from virtual average Joe's eating pizza and drinking cheap beers to the equivalent of lottery winners over night (see album review for the full story). The opening lyric says it all "welcome to the Champagne Life where your only troubles are a bubble in a champagne glass and where your dreams and reality are one and the same". The production and music is jaw dropping, the fiercest snares and bass lines that give the track its street appeal whilst still being smooth enough for the soul heads, this is matched by the pure class of the strings and keyboards. Sit Ne-yo's breathtaking vocals on top of all of this and you really have the cherry on the cake. For all my love for this single in all honesty at a commercial level in the UK and probably across Europe it will be "Beautiful Monster" that's the hit. In America I'm sure it will be a very different story as it is to theses ears. Its "Champagne Life" all the way for me baby.

R&B/Soul Appeal 5/5 Crossover Appeal 4/5

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