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Birth Name: Cornell
Haynes Jr.Birthdate: November 2, 1973Birthplace: Austin, TexasOccupation: MusicianClaim
to Fame: The hip hopper was just "Gettin' It Started"
when he burned up the charts with the single "Hot in Herre" (2002)
Family:
Father: Cornall Haynes Sr.
Factoids:
Played shortstop in the St. Louis Amateur Baseball Association and was invited to attend try-out camps for the Atlanta
Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates
Nelly's Big BreakThe St. Lunatics managed to put out another song called Who's The Boss, which became a local
hit. The song helped their reputation locally but didn't grab the interest of record companies. The frustrated St. Lunatics
decided to try their luck in Atlanta and teamed up with Kula who was managing Mase at that time. Eventually they realized
Nelly would have a better chance of scoring a record deal on his own. So with Kula, 19 year-old Nelly attracted Universal
Records exec Kevin Law in 1999. Nelly's career was off like a rocket with the release of his song Country Grammar,
which borrows the hook from the children's song Down, Down, Baby. On June 6, 2000, Nelly released his first full-length
album - also called Country Grammar. The album managed to sneak past Eminem and Britney to the number one spot on the Billboard charts on August 26, 2000.
Nelly Keeps The Hits ComingWith the release of the song Ride Wit Me Nelly the rapper has secured his spot
as a popular rap artist who's known as much for his signature low-riding pants as he is for his music. Nelly's second album Nellyville
was a huge hit and his third album, Da Derrty Versions: The Reinvention, which is out in November of 2003, is bound
to be as huge. Tell your 'rents not to worry - there's a clean version of Da Derrty Versions available too.
Nelly - Did U Know
Nelly's real name is Cornell Hayes Jr.
Nelly has his own clothing line called Vokal.
Nelly had a million dollars worth of stuff stolen from his room at the Aladdin Hotel, Las Vegas in 2003.
Nelly Says..."I'm a product of hip-hop. That's all I listen to what I grew up on, besides what my parents had going
on in the house. It's definitely hip-hop first and everything else is just distant."
Superstar rap artist Nelly is already setting another precedent with his newest single, My Place featuring
the platinum R&B singer Jaheim. In less than two weeks after the single was leaked to radio, My Place dominates the charts
and radio airwaves. This week, My Place is the number one Most Added Song on the Urban, Rhythmic Crossover, and Top 40 charts.
The song is also the #1 Greatest Gainer on the Hip Hop, Rap, Top 40, and Rhythmic charts.
According to Billboard's Radio Airplay Monitor, one of the radio industry's leading trade magazines, My Place
is "the first song in four years since Eminem's Without Me to earn Greatest Gainer and Most Airplay Adds honors on all three
charts." Nelly will continue to set new precedents when the three-time Grammy winning artist becomes the first rapper to release
two new, separate albums entitled Sweat and Suit simultaneously on September 14th.
My Place, a re-working of Teddy Pendergrass' Come On And Go With Me, is the lead single from Suit, and the
Neptunes-produced Flap Your Wings is the set-up single for the more street-oriented album Sweat. Both videos are in rotation
at MTV, BET, MTV2, VH 1 and FUSE.
Most recently, it was announced by Robert L. Johnson, the founder of Black Entertainment Television and the
majority owner of the first-ever all minority owned NBA team, the Charlotte Bobcats, that Nelly now joins him as part-owner
of the sports franchise. In addition to promoting his forthcoming albums, Nelly is preparing for a lead role in a remake of
the Burt Reynolds' classic film The Longest Yard starring Adam Sandler and Chris Rock.
Cornell "Nelly" Haynes first came to national prominence when Universal Records released his 9x platinum-selling
2000 debut Country Grammar. The St. Louis native's previous releases include his 6x-platinum-certified Nellyville (2002),
the platinum-certified remix album Da Derrty Versions (2003) and his group, the St. Lunatics' platinum-certified Free City
(2001). Cumulatively, Nelly has sold close to 30 million singles/albums worldwide.
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When Nelly first debuted nationally in summer 2000, he seemed like a novelty, but it quickly became apparent that he was, in fact, an
exceptional artist, a rapper with truly universal appeal. He wasn't from the East or West Coast, and wasn't really from the
Dirty South, either. Rather, Nelly was from St. Louis, a Midwestern city halfway between Minneapolis and New Orleans. His locale certainly informed his rapping
style, which was as much country as urban, and his dialect as well, which was, similarly, as much Southern drawl as Midwestern
twang. Plus, Nelly never shied away from a pop-rap approach, embracing a sing-along vocal style that made his hooks incredibly catchy. As a
result, Nelly became an exceptional rapper capable of crossing all boundaries, from the Dirty South to the TRL crowd and everything in
between. His first hit, "Country Grammar (Hot...)," became a summer anthem, and many more hits followed. In particular, his
popularity peaked in summer 2002, when he topped seemingly every Billboard chart possible with his Nellyville album and its
lead single, "Hot in Herre."
Nelly was born Cornell Haynes Jr. in St. Louis, where he encountered the street temptations so synonymous with rap artists. And like so many of his contemporaries,
a change in circumstance at a pivotal time in his life may have changed the course of Nelly's life. In his case, when he was a teenager, Nelly was taken away from those streets when his mother moved to nearby suburban University City. It was there that he shifted
his attention to playing baseball, storytelling, and writing rhymes. With some high school friends, Nelly formed the St. Lunatics, who scored a regional hit in 1996 with a self-produced single, "Gimmie What You Got." Frustrated with failed attempts to
land a record deal as a group, they collectively decided that Nelly would have a better chance as a single act, confident that his stage presence and rhyming skills would win through. The rest
of the group could follow with solo albums of their own.
The gamble paid off, and soon Nelly caught the attention of Universal, who released his debut album, Country Grammar, in 2000. What distinguished Nelly's take on rap from others was his laid-back delivery, deliberately reflecting the distinctive language and Southern tone
of the Midwest. The album featured contributions from the St. Lunatics as well the Teamsters, Lil' Wayne, and Cedric the Entertainer, and spent seven weeks on top of the U.S. album charts. All along, Nelly's goal was to put his hometown of St. Louis and the St. Lunatics on the hip-hop map. Though Nelly had become a star as a solo artist as planned, he said that he is and always will be a member of the St. Lunatics, a collective that also includes Big Lee, Kyjuan, Murphy Lee, and City Spud. Nelly fulfilled his promise in 2001 with the release of Free City, the debut St. Lunatics album featuring the hit single "Midwest Swing."
The following summer Nelly returned with his second album, Nellyville, and lived up to his self-proclaimed "#1" billing. The album topped the Billboard
album chart while the Neptunes-produced lead single, "Hot in Herre," remained atop the singles chart. In all, Nelly impressively held the number one spot on ten different Billboard charts the week of Nellyville's release. Few rap artists
could boast such numbers, and Nelly surely savored his number one status, particularly after being dismissed as a novelty two summers earlier when he debuted.
You could call him a pop-rapper if you liked, but you surely couldn't challenge his number one status. With his Platinum status
assured and street cred solidified, Nelly made a series of moves designed to establish his own fiefdom alsongside those of
hip-hop moguls ean Combs and Jay-Z. He launched his VOKAL clothing line, which quickly racked up multi-million dollar sales.
In 2003, he lit up summer radio yet again with "Shake Ya Tailfeather", a collaboration with Puff Daddy and Murphy Lee. The
track didn't cause the immediate addiction of Nelly joints past; nevertheless, as the lead single from celluloid hype machine
Bad Boys II, "Tailfeather" was irrepressible. The savvy MC piggybacked this success with the launch of Pimp Juice, his audacious
entry into the crowded energy drink market. Named for the hit song of the same name, the product stirred up plenty of controversy.
Of course, this only made the Nelly name stronger. In September of that same year, the burgeoning hip-hop mogul debuted his
Derrty Entertainment empire with the release of Murphy Lee's full-length effort. With the power of Universal behind it, Derrty
was Nelly's boldest move yet, bolder even than his ownership stake in a NASCAR team. Even so, things got a little bolder with
Da Derrty Versions [The Reinvention]. Dropping in late November 2003, the album featured retooled and remixed versions of
Nelly favorites like "Hot in Herre", "Ride Wit Me", "E.I.", and "Air Force Ones". With production work from within his crew
and guest shots from existing St. Lunatics members (City Spud; Ali) as well as up and comers (King Jacob; Prentiss Church; Tru; Chocolate Tai), Versions was yet another
way for Nelly to brighten his own star power while sharing the spotlight with his longtime homies. As he looked toward 2004
and his third proper solo album, Nelly's portfolio was diversified and strong. ~ Jason Birchmeier & Ed Nimmervoll, All
Music Guide
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