Japan is still in turmoil after the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and the afterward tsunami that hit the country in the beginning of March. A lot of different artists immediately canceled the Japan leg of the tour after the disastrous events, not knowing how the extent would affect their concert appearance. Interestingly enough, R&B singer/songwriter, Ne-Yo, decided to continue his tour in Japan all for his fans and hoping he can aid in the relief anyway possible.    

Ne-Yo took time out of his busy schedule to provide MTV News with his reasoning behind continuing to tour in Japan via Skype. Sway interviewed Ne-Yo knew Skype before the airing of RapFix Live with Big Sean.

These were his comments:

“After we heard about what went down, a lot of people was like, ‘I know you’re not going out there now with everything going on,’ but our response to that was, ‘Of course we still going.’ They need the show more than ever. So that’s why we’re here.”

Ne-Yo continued detailing that he didn’t see any of the devastation firsthand, but he was sincerely inspired by the way the people of Japan and his fans are dealing with the aftermath of the disaster:

“It wouldn’t be possible to do a show from where everything really went down. The main thing that we been seeing out here is people coming together, people making donations, helping out their fellow man. As far as the crowds coming to the shows, it’s unreal. If you didn’t know that anything was wrong, you would never know that anything was wrong. It’s just people coming to enjoy a concert, which to me kind of speaks to the spirit of the Japanese people. They’re about keeping it going and keeping their spirits high and their morale high, and I dig that.”

He also continued to add how he and his Compound Entertainment company were assisting in the aid relief effort through merchandise sales and such:

Since we been out here, we did these wristbands, the wristband says ‘Our prayers are with Japan.’ We’ve been selling these at every show. Plus, we did T-shirts that say ‘Spread Love Through Music,’ as well as posters. We’ve raised somewhere close to $100,000 just in merchandise. All of the proceeds of this stuff goes straight to the victims of the quake and tsunami. Not to mention, a percentage of the proceeds of the shows themselves goes to the victims of the quake and tsunami. We’re definitely out here making a difference, more than just singing and dancing.”

As of now, Ne-Yo continues to complete his tour in Japan and help aid the victims with the selling of his merchandise and some proceeds from his concert sales. 

Keep posted to 24hourhiphop.com for more updated news on Ne-Yo.

Here the Full Interview with  Ne-Yo and Sway via Skype on RapFix Live: