Editing Nelly (section)

=== 1974–2000: Early life and start of career ===
Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. was born on November 2, 1974, in [[Austin, Texas]], the only son of Cornell Haynes and Rhonda Mack. His father served in the [[United States Air Force|Air Force]] for much of his childhood and when he was seven, his parents divorced.<ref>{{cite web |last=Townsel |first=Lisa Jones |title=Heating Up 'Nellyville' |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zdUDAAAAMBAJ |date=September 2002 |page=144 |volume=57 |issue=11 |work=Ebony }}</ref> As a teenager, Haynes moved with his mother from [[St. Louis]], Missouri, to [[University City, Missouri|University City]], a [[St. Louis County, Missouri|St. Louis County]] suburb. While in high school, Nelly formed the [[St. Lunatics]] with his friends Ali, [[Murphy Lee]], Kyjuan, Slo Down, and his half brother [[City Spud]]. The group enjoyed moderate local popularity with their single "Gimme What Ya Got" in 1996.<ref name=biography.com>{{cite web |title=Nelly Biography |url=https://www.biography.com/musician/nelly |website=Biography.com |access-date=15 July 2022 |date=May 19, 2020 }}</ref>

Despite being popular in Missouri and the surrounding areas, the group struggled to achieve success outside of St. Louis. The rest of the group agreed to let Nelly go solo after a major record deal failed to appear.<ref name="all music">{{cite web |last=Birchmeier |first=Jason |title=Nelly – Biography |url={{AllMusic|class=artist|id=p416191/biography|pure_url=yes}} |publisher=Allmusic |year=2006 |access-date=2008-04-26}}</ref> Later in 1999, Nelly was signed to [[Universal Music Group]] by A&R Kevin Law.<ref name="hitquarters">{{cite web |url=http://www.hitquarters.com/index.php3?page=intrview/opar/intrview_Kevin_Law_2002_Int.html |title=Interview with Kevin Law |publisher=[[HitQuarters]] |date=October 3, 2002 |access-date=October 5, 2011}}</ref> Law told [[HitQuarters]] that Nelly was largely disliked by the label when he first signed, with the feedback he received from his colleagues on the rapper's music being "extraordinarily negative".<ref name="hitquarters" />

Nelly was unusual for being a rapper from the [[Midwestern United States|Midwest]] at a time when hip-hop was dominated by the [[East Coast of the United States|East Coast]], [[West Coast of the United States|West Coast]] and the [[Southern United States|South]]. The label used this to their advantage by branding him as a star of the Midwest, hoping to inspire pride in the people of St Louis and the surrounding regions.<ref name="hitquarters" /> Despite the negative feedback he received from the label, his debut single, "[[Country Grammar (Hot Shit)]]", was a success, peaking at number 7 on both the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] and [[UK singles chart]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/20001105/7501/|title=Official Singles Chart Top 100 {{pipe}} Official Charts Company|website=Official Charts|access-date=2020-03-21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/nelly/chart-history/hsi/|title=Nelly|magazine=Billboard|access-date=2020-03-21}}</ref> Recognizing Nelly's potential, the label began to change their mind and allowed work to begin on his debut album. The label decided to do a solo record with him first and then reunite him with the St. Lunatics the following year.<ref name="hitquarters"/>