Jr.) grew up in St. Louis and experienced
first-hand the dangers and temptations
of life on the street. His escape came
when he moved as a teenager with his mother
to nearby suburban University City. There,
he discovered lures of a more constructive
kind - playing baseball,
storytelling and writing rhymes.
With some high school friends, Nelly formed a band,
the St. Lunatics, who scored a regional hit in
1996 with the self-produced single, "Gimmie What
You Got." Frustrated in attempts to land a record
deal as a group, they collectively decided that Nelly would have a better chance as a
single, banking on his winning stage presence and
superior rhyming skills. The gamble paid off
- soon thereafter, Nelly caught the attention
of Universal, who released his debut album,
Country Grammar, in 2000.
Nelly is now due to appear in a film being released mid 2002 name 'snipes' and is also releasing a new album in june called 'nellyville'