Cornell Iral Haynes Jr., better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, and actor. He grew up in St. Louis, Missouri, and embarked on his musical career in 1993 as a member of the Midwest hip hop group St. Lunatics. He signed with Universal Records in 1999 as a solo act to release his debut studio album, Country Grammar (2000) in June of the following year. Its namesake lead single and follow-up, "Ride wit Me" both entered the top ten of the Billboard Hot 100, while the album peaked atop the Billboard 200 and received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His second album, Nellyville (2002) spawned two consecutive Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles, "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma", along with the top-five single, "Air Force Ones".
Country Grammar is the debut studio album by American rapper and singer Nelly. It was released on June 27, 2000, by Universal Records. The production on the album was handled by Jason "Jay E" Epperson, with additional production by C-Love, Kevin Law, City Spud, Steve "Blast" Wills and Basement Beats. Nelly contributed to all lyrics on the album, with Epperson and City Spud also contributing. With the album's release, Nelly and his “St. Lunatics” crew cemented the St. Louis sound firmly amongst other southern hip hop artists in the year 2000, such as Juvenile, Trina, Ludacris, OutKast, Three 6 Mafia and UGK. Country Grammar also introduced the world to Nelly's unique musical style of pop-rap and radio “singalongs” with a Missouri twang. It was supported by four successful singles: "Country Grammar ", "E.I.", "Ride wit Me" and "Batter Up". Its lead single, "Country Grammar ", peaked at number 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and UK Singles Chart. Its second single "E.I." peaked at number 16 on the Hot 100, number 12 on the UK Singles Chart and number 11 on the ARIA Singles Chart. "Ride wit Me" peaked within the top five on the Hot 100, ARIA Singles Chart, Irish Singles Chart and UK Singles Chart. The album's fourth and final single, "Batter Up" featuring St. Lunatics members Murphy Lee and Ali, achieved moderate chart success.
St. Lunatics were an American hip hop group formed in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1993. The group consisted of childhood friends Nelly, Ali, Murphy Lee, Kyjuan, City Spud, and Slo Down.
Torhi Harper better known by his stage name Murphy Lee, is an American rapper who is best known as a member of the St. Louis, Missouri-based hip hop group, St. Lunatics. Following the commercial success of its lead member Nelly in the early 2000s, Lee signed with his label Derrty Entertainment, an imprint of Universal Records to release his debut studio album, Murphy's Law (2003). It peaked at number eight on the Billboard 200 and was supported by the Billboard Hot 100-number one single "Shake Your Tailfeather", which was also included on the accompanying soundtrack to the 2003 film Bad Boys II.
Nellyville is the second studio album by American rapper Nelly. It was released on June 25, 2002, by Universal Records and Fo' Reel Entertainment. The album's production was handled by Waiel Yaghnam, the Neptunes, Jay E, Trackboyz, Ryan Bowser, and Just Blaze. Two singles from Nellyville, "Hot in Herre" and "Dilemma", both topped the US Billboard Hot 100 for respectively seven and ten weeks. The album received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the production.
"Air Force Ones" is a song by American rapper Nelly, from his second album Nellyville. It was released on November 4, 2002, and features fellow St. Lunatics rappers Kyjuan, Ali and Murphy Lee. The song was the third top 5 hit from Nellyville on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 3. Its video, whose exteriors were shot at the SE corner of Delmar and Westgate in University City, Missouri, featured St. Louis professional athletes Marshall Faulk, Torry Holt, D'Marco Farr, Ray Lankford, and Ozzie Smith, and hip hop artists Big Tymers and WC.
KooKoo is the debut solo album by American singer Debbie Harry, released on July 27, 1981, by Chrysalis Records. Produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of Chic, the album was recorded whilst Harry took a break from her band Blondie. It was a moderate commercial success, reaching number 25 on the US Billboard 200 and number six on the UK Albums Chart.
Da Derrty Versions: The Reinvention is a remix album by American rapper Nelly, released on November 25, 2003.
"Batter Up" is a song by American hip hop group St. Lunatics, with member Nelly credited as a featured artist. The track was produced by Steve "Blast" Wills and first appeared on Nelly's debut solo album, Country Grammar (2000). It was later included on the group's album Free City (2001) as a bonus track. A remixed version of "Batter Up" appears on Nelly's album Da Derrty Versions: The Reinvention (2003).
"Ride wit Me" is a song by American rapper Nelly featuring City Spud. It was released on February 13, 2001, as the third single from Nelly's debut studio album, Country Grammar (2000). "Ride wit Me" peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100. Outside of the United States, "Ride wit Me" peaked within the top 10 of the charts in Australia, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, and the United Kingdom.
"E.I." is a song by American rapper Nelly. Released as the second single on October 17, 2000, from his debut album Country Grammar, it peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart and 16 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. A remix of the song, called "Tip Drill", was released in 2003 along with lyrics and a music video that drew controversy for its misogynistic themes.
"Grillz" is a song by American rapper Nelly featuring fellow American rappers Paul Wall, Ali & Gipp, and uncredited vocals from American singer Brandi Williams. The song was written by Nelly, Jermaine Dupri, Paul Wall, Ali, Gipp and James Phillips; it contains samples of Destiny's Child's "Soldier", written by Beyoncé Knowles, Kelendria Rowland, Tenitra Williams, Garrett Hamler, and Rich Harrison; it also contains samples of "Left Me Lonely" by MC Shan. Production was handled by Dupri. Following its release, it topped the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top 20 in Australia, Ireland, and New Zealand.
"Welcome to Atlanta" is a song by American record producer Jermaine Dupri, featuring American rapper Ludacris. It was released on May 14, 2002 as the second single from Dupri's 2001 album Instructions, and appeared as a hidden track on Ludacris' second album, Word of Mouf. The song praises Dupri and Ludacris' hometown of Atlanta, Georgia. It samples "Five Minutes Of Funk" by Whodini, as well as "Do It Baby" by The Miracles.
Murphy's Law is the debut album by St. Louis rapper Murphy Lee. On October 11, 2003 the album peaked at number 8 on the Billboard 200 music chart. It was released on September 23, 2003 and was certified gold on November 17, 2003. It featured the single from the Bad Boys II Soundtrack "Shake Your Tailfeather". Its first official single was "Wat Da Hook Gon Be", which peaked at #17 in the U.S. pop charts, followed by "Luv Me Baby" and " Hold Up".
Heavy Starch is the debut studio album by American rapper Ali of St. Lunatics. It was released on April 30, 2002, via Universal Records. The album features guest appearances from fellow St. Lunatics members Kyjuan, Murphy Lee, & Nelly, St. Louis Alumni, Ms. Toi, Kandi Burruss, Toya, and Waiel "Wally" Yaghnam. Its first single was "Boughetto".
Kinfolk is the only studio album by American hip hop duo Ali & Gipp, consisting of Ali Jones of St. Lunatics and Big Gipp of Goodie Mob. It was released on August 14, 2007 through Universal Motown. Production was handled by DJ Speedy, Stee, The Trak Starz, T-Wayne, Dallas Austin, Jay E, Jasper Cameron, Jermaine Dupri, Nitti and Trife. It features guest appearances from Nelly, Murphy Lee, Avery Storm, Big Rube, Bun B, CeeLo Green, Chocolate Tai, David Banner, Jasper Cameron, Juvenile, Kyjuan, LeToya Luckett, Lloyd, Tamala Jones and Three 6 Mafia. The album peaked at number 174 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart.
Ryan Bowser is an American record producer from St. Louis, Missouri, United States. He has worked for many artists during his career, mainly R&B and soul music.
American rapper and singer Nelly has released eight studio albums, two compilation albums, one remix album, three extended plays, two mixtapes, 49 singles, three promotional singles and 48 music videos. He was also a member of the hip hop group St. Lunatics, which included fellow rappers Ali, City Spud, Murphy Lee, and Kyjuan. Nelly has sold a total of 21,815,000 albums in the US as of June 2014, making him the fourth bestselling rap artist in the country.
Jason Lee Epperson is an American record producer and DJ from St. Louis, Missouri. He first became known as the primary producer of hometown native Nelly's 2000 debut album Country Grammar, which received diamond certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Thereafter, he produced extensively for Nelly and his collaborators, and signed with his record label, Derrty Entertainment as in-house talent. He has since produced songs for other artists including Murphy Lee, St. Lunatics, Justin Timberlake, E-40, Cedric the Entertainer, Lil Wayne, Ron Isley, Three 6 Mafia, and Hilary Duff. Epperson's style is characterized by hip hop mixed with soul, R&B, and pop music. Billboard magazine, in its December 2000 issue, listed Epperson at number 16 on its "Top 100 Producers" list, as well as number 19 on its "Top 100 R&B/Hip Hop Producers of 2000" list. He has received a Grammy Award nomination.
State Property is the soundtrack to the 2002 film, State Property, as well as the debut album by the rap group, State Property. Selling 51,500 copies in its first week, the album was a success, making it to 14 on the Billboard 200, 1 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and 2 on the Top Soundtracks, and spawned one single "Roc the Mic", which was a minor hit, making it to 55 on the Billboard Hot 100. The remix to "Roc The Mic" features St. Louis rappers Nelly & Murphy Lee of the St. Lunatics and was included on rapper Nelly's 2002 album, "Nellyville" as a radio-only single.
