17 February 2020
Newsdesk
Ne-Yo used his split from wife Crystal Smith as inspiration for his new song Pinkie Ring.
The So Sick hitmaker, real name Shaffer Smith, tied the knot with model Crystal on 20 February, 2016, weeks before welcoming their first child, son Shaffer Smith, Jr., and the couple went on to have another boy, Roman, in 2018.
It was reported by The Jasmine Brand last month that Crystal had called time on her marriage and was planning to file for divorce.
And after confirming the reports for the first time on the latest episode of podcast Private Talk with Alexis Texas, Ne-Yo admitted he used the split as inspiration for his upcoming track Pinkie Ring, and said that while he could have let the marriage breakup "really break me down", he opted to "take it in stride and keep moving like we all have to do anyway".
He added that while he was a "little angry" when he penned the tune, it's not a negative track directed at Crystal.
"The song is not a diss to her; the song is not about her," he continued. "The song is about the way I chose to handle the situation, the way I chose to lift myself up and keep moving as we all must do."
