Nelly to release New Album before the End of the Year

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Last year, Nelly released 5.0. The album was his first release in two years. In the early 2000s, Nelly was one of the biggest rappers on the planet. But, by 2010, Nelly found himself struggling for radio play.

On his last album, Nelly found himself recreating some of his hits from years passed. He reunited with Kelly Rowland for a sequel to "Dilemma" called "Gone." The song was not met with the same critical and commercial reception.

While 5.0 was a bit of a disappointment, Nelly remains focused on his music. Before the end of this year, Nelly intends to release another album. This time, he is working on reinventing his style to win the fans back over.

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Nelly lands VH1 "Behind the Music" feature

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Nelly's long and successful career will finally be documented and viewed as legendary. Despite being in the game for over than ten years, Nelly has yet to have his own "Behind the Music" special. Next month, all of this will change as Nelly's career will be the subject of an all-new episode.

Early in his career, Nelly put St. Louis hip hop on the map and had everyone saying "derrty." But, following the success of his first two albums, Nelly continuously fell off. By 2005, Nelly was an afterthought in the game. Three years later, he resurfaced with his Brass Knuckles album.

Last year, Nelly released 5.0, his worst commercial offering, to date. Following the low sales of his latest album, Nelly has been looking for a way to leave his longtime label, Universal Records. Back in 1999, he would have never guessed he would be searching for a way to leave the label which helped him become a force in the game.

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Nelly blames Universal Records for Low Record Sales

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

In 1999, Nelly signed a major deal with Universal Records, which was a 50/50 partnership. The deal not only landed Nelly a major label record deal, but also created Derrty Ent. Early in his career, Nelly sold millions of records. He was one of the highest-selling artists of the 2000s.

5.0 was the first album from Nelly in the 2010s. The sales of the album have proven Nelly is definitely not in 2000. Where he sold over 1 million copies in his first week off his debut album, he only sold 63,000 copies his first week on this album. Nelly said a record deal is a 50/50 deal, but Universal did not do their half.

The top priority on Universal Records is Young Money. The debut album from Young Money rapper Nicki Minaj was also released earlier this week. Her album sold over 400,000 copies in its first week, but Nelly has barely sold records. Nelly feels as if he has been placed on the backburner for these artists and he said he thinks his records were undershipped.

Despite the high sales of his "Just a Dream" single, Nelly's album has not sold and it is his second album in a row to have this perplexity.

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Nelly channels Biggie on "5.0"

By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer

Nelly is on the comeback trail once again. The St. Louis rapper is preparing to release his first album in two years. In the midst of rumors about a relationship with Ashanti, there is plenty of buzz surrounding him. While all attention is good, Nelly would rather have the people focus on his music.

With 5.0, his sixth studio album, set to come out next month, Nelly definitely wants some music-related buzz. In anticipation for the release of the album, Nelly has released the track listing. Much like his previous release, Nelly aligned himself with the stars, working with the likes of Diddy, T.I., and Plies.

The one artist Nelly has always admired has been The Notorious B.I.G., as he frequently quotes his lines. Nelly was even featured on his posthumous album, Duets: The Final Chapter. The final result was the "Nasty Girl" hit. Five years later, Nelly has called upon some of Biggie's lyrics for his latest opus. The first single from 5.0, "Just a Dream," put Nelly back in the top ten and he hopes Biggie can help put him over the top.

Track Listing

  1. "I'm Number 1 (featuring Birdman and DJ Khaled)
  2. "Long Gone" (featuring Nelly and Plies)
  3. "She's So Fly" (featuring T.I.)
  4. "Just a Dream"
  5. "Making Movies"
  6. "Move That Body" (featuring T-Pain and Akon)
  7. "1000 Stacks" (featuring Diddy and The Notorious B.I.G.)
  8. "Gone" (featuring Kelly Rowland)
  9. "Don't It Feel Good"
10. "Broke Niggas"
11. "Live Tonight"
12. "Nothing Without Her"
13. "Go" (Bonus Track)
14. "If I Gave You One" (featuring Avery Storm) (Bonus Track)
15. "Kissing You" (featuring Dirty Money) (Bonus Track)

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