The R&B Icon Shares a Single and Lyric Video From the Lionsgate and YouTube Original Series Step Up: High Water‘s Second Season, Which Boasts Starring Roles From Ne-Yo and Naya Rivera and Music from Timbaland.
One of the most successful and versatile R&B songwriters of this young century, Ne-Yo has a prime vehicle to showcase his singing, writing, and acting ability in Lionsgate‘s TV series Step Up: High Water, a YouTubeoriginal series. Sharing a revealing and highly danceable new song from the series, Ne-Yo drops “Genesis,” along with a lyric video. A brilliantly executed throwback to the heyday of New Jack Swing, “Genesis” finds Ne-Yo writing and singing in character as Sage Odom, the director of High Water Performing Arts School and a former pop star trying to execute a comeback.
Frequently presented as the series’ antagonist, “Genesis” shines a spotlight on Sage’s perspective, challenging viewers and listeners to see things from his point-of-view: “They don’t know about my life/They don’t know what I’ve been through,” sings Ne-Yo/Sage. The lyric video flashes back to Sage’s early days, depicting B-Boys dancing in abandoned lots, contrasted with cinematic cityscapes and stylish design. Premiered by Billboard, “Genesis” is a retro-futurist delight, demonstrating how Step Up: High Water enhances its story with music more than strong enough to stand on its own.
“My inspiration for the song ‘Genesis’ was my character Sage’s arc and going back to his beginnings,” Ne-Yo tells Billboard. “The music and feel that inspired him to choose music over the streets. He loses his way and has to go back to his roots to find it. The sound of the record is also a bit “throwback” on purpose. Taking it back to the fun and energy of just loving what you’re doing. The lyrics speak directly to what Sage is going through, who he is now and who he needs to remember he was.”
