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NELLYVILLE
Nelly
(Universal)
On the followup to his 2000 breakthrough debut Country Grammer, funky St. Louis rapper Nelly keeps the momentum going.
Bursting with humour and confidence, the artist -- not to be confused with Nelly Furtado -- imagines a better 'hood than the tough, crime-ridden one he grew up in.
"Forty acres and a mule," he sings on the title track. "F--- that, Nellyville -- 40 acres and a pool."
Less clever are the "let's-get-naked" first single, the Neptunes-produced Hot In Herre, and the teen-appealing Work It featuring NSYNC's Justin Timberlake.
I could also do without the various spoken word skits, three of which feature Cedric The Entertainer and La La. But these are small quibbles.
Nelly's clearly on a roll with this energetic, original collection that just debuted at No. 1 on the charts and conveniently contains the "I'm a winner" anthem #1.
Other standout tracks are the slinky soul track Pimp Juice, which manages to lovingly conjure up blaxploitation movie music while sampling the Staples Singers' Love Comes In All Colors/Tellin' Lies, the more straight-ahead R&B ballad Dilemma featuring Kelly Rowland of Destiny's Child, the bling-bling lovefest Splurge, the electric guitar-driven The Gank and the moodier, slow-moving Say Now. (More on Nelly)
Track Listing
1. Nellyville
2. Gettin' It Started
3. Hot In Herre
4. Dem Boyz
5. Oh Nelly
6. Pimp Juice
7. Air Force Ones
8. In The Store
9. On The Grind
10. Dilemma
11. Splurge
12. Work It
13. Roc The Mic-Remix
14. The Gank
15. 5000
16. #1
17. CG2
18. Say Now
19. **** It Then