Ne-Yo: I embarrassed One Direction

Ne-Yo embarrassed One Direction by being over excited when he saw them.

The American singer-and-songwriter is a secret fan of the British teen heartthrobs. Ne-Yo admits the hugely successful group found it a little strange when he called out to them during an interview. Ne-Yo and One Direction appeared on the X Factor UK over the weekend, and both acts were answering questions in the same room when the awkward encounter took place.

"I embarrassed One Direction. We were being interviewed in the same room and I shouted out, 'Oh my god there's One Direction,'" Ne-Yo joked to the BBC Radio One Breakfast Show. "It was a cricket moment. Everyone went quiet. I don't think they found it funny. They weren't smiling. I think they found it a little weird. They were like, 'Oh man, even Ne-Yo is a fan.'"

The Grammy Award winning artist went on to reveal other cringe-worthy experiences from his past. The 29-year-old hasn't always been a credible artist, and joked in the early days of his career he dabbled in painting rather than singing.

"I was a weird kid," Ne-Yo revealed. "I was well behaved. If you ever saw Fame the movie, then I was a lot like that. Although I didn't go for music or dance I went for art and painting."