Grammy Award-winning, RIAA platinum Def Jam recording artist and chart-topping songwriter Ne-Yo will launch his brand new single “Closer” (which officially impacts at radio on April 7th) with a 2-month North American opening for Alicia Keys. The 32-city tour will begin April 19th at the Hampton (VA) Coliseum, and wrap up June 18th at Madison Square Garden in New York City.

“Closer”, written by Ne-Yo and produced by Stargate, is the first single from Ne-Yo’s upcoming third album, Year Of The Gentleman, set to arrive in stores June 24th. It is the follow-up to Because Of You (released May 2007), which received this year’s Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album, and In My Own Words (February 2006) – both of which debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200 and R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts.

Listen to "Closer" @ DefJam.com

In addition to his Contemporary R&B Album award, Ne-Yo earned four other Grammy nominations this year, including two for his collaboration with Rihanna, “Hate That I Love You” (which he co-wrote), namely Best R&B Song and Best R&B Performance Duo/Group; as well as Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his #2 hit “Because Of You”; and Record of the Year for Beyoncé’s “Irreplaceable” (which he co-produced). Ne-Yo’s Grammy recognition followed up the UK’s 13th annual MOBO (Music Of Black Origin) Awards in September 2007 – the only televised European Awards Show solely dedicated to urban music and culture – at which he won for Best Song (“Because Of You”) and Best R&B Act.

Ne-Yo’s RIAA platinum debut album In My Own Words was nominated for a Grammy as Best Contemporary R&B Album. It spun off three chart-topping hits, starting late-2005 with his debut Def Jam single, the #1 Grammy-nominated “So Sick,” followed by “When You’re Mad” and “Sexy Love.” Ne-Yo capped 2006 as Male R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year at the Billboard Music Awards. At the The 21st Annual Soul Train Music Awards in February 2007, Ne-Yo won the Coca-Cola Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap new Artist for “Sexy Love.”

Here are the dates for Ne-Yo's tour with Alicia Keys:

April 19 - Hampton, VA - Hampton Coliseum
April 21 - Philadelphia, PA - Liacouras Center
April 22 - Pittsburgh, PA - PetersonEvents Center
April 24 - Cleveland, OH - Wolstein Center CSU
April 26 - Columbus, OH - Schottenstein Center
April 27 - St. Louis, MO - Scottrade
April 30 - Minneapolis, MN - Target Center

May 1 - Kansas City, MO - Sprint Center
May 4 - Anaheim, CA - Honda Center
May 5 - Los Angeles, CA - Staples Center
May 7 - San Diego, CA - Sports Arena
May 9 - Las Vegas, NV - MGM Garden Arena
May 10 - San Jose, CA - HP Pavilion
May 11 - Sacramento - Arco Arena
May 15 - Memphis, TN - FedEx Forum
May 18 - Houston, TX - Toyota Center
May 22 - New Orleans, LA - Superdome
May 24 - Tampa, FL - Times Forum
May 25 - Miami, FL - AA Arena
May 28 - Atlanta, GA - Philips Arena
May 30 - Greensboro, NC - Greensboro Coliseum
May 31 - Atlantic City - Mark Etess Arena

June 3 - Montreal - Bell Centre
June 5 - Detroit - Joe Louis Arena
June 6 - Toronto - Air Canada Centre
June 7 - Chicago, IL - AllState Arena
June 11 - Boston, MA - TD Banknorth Garden
June 13 - Washington, DC - Verizon Center
June 15 - Baltimore, MD - 1st Mariner Arena
June 17 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
June 18 - New York, NY - MSG

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