Date of birth: November 2, 1974
Profession: Rapper, Entrepreneur and Occasional Actor
Nickname: Nelly
Hometown: Austin, Texas
Nationality: American
Astral sign: Scorpio
Height: 1.74 m
Cornell Iral Haynes, Jr. better known by his stage name Nelly, is a Grammy Award winning American rapper, entrepreneur and occasional actor. He has performed with the rap group St. Lunatics since 1993 and signed to Universal Records in 1999. Under Universal, Nelly began his solo career in 2000 with his debut album Country Grammar, the title track of which was a top ten hit. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200 and went on to peak at number one. Country Grammar is Nelly\'s best-selling album to date, selling over 8.4 million copies in the United States. His following album, Nellyville, produced the number-one hits \"Hot in Herre\" and \"Dilemma\" featuring Kelly Rowland. Other singles included \"Work It\" featuring Justin Timberlake, \"Air Force Ones\" featuring Murphy Lee and the St. Lunatics, \"Pimp Juice\" and \"#1\".
Nelly was born in Austin, Texas, where his father was serving in the military. When he was seven, his parents divorced.Nelly moved with his mother from inner city St. Louis to suburban University City, Missouri as a teenager. While still in high school, Nelly formed the St. Lunatics, who enjoyed local popularity with their single \"Gimme What Ya Got\". When a major record deal failed to appear, Nelly decided to go solo. He was signed to Universal Music Group by A&R Kevin Law.
