Nelly:
Sweat

Release Date: 14 September 2004

Reviewed By: Melisa Tang

1. Heart Of A Champion - feat, Lincoln University Vocal Ensemble

2. Na-Na Na-Na - feat Jazze Pha

3. Flap Your Wings

4. American Dream - feat, St. Lunatics

5. River Don't Runn - feat, Murphy Lee, Stephen Marley

6. Tilt Ya Head Back - feat, Christina Aguilera

7. Grand Hang Out - feat, Fat Joe, Young Tru, Remy Martin

8. Getcha Getcha - feat, St Lunatics

9. Another One

10. Spida Man

11. Playa - feat Mobb Deep, Missy Elliott

12. Down In Da Water - feat, Ali, Gube Thug

13. Boy - feat, Lil' Flip, Big Dipp

14. Don't Stop

Lloyd Banks - Hunger For More
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There are some artists who are born to hit the big time: Usher, Beyoncé, Alicia Keys… Add to that list St. Louis native Cornell Haynes Jr., or Nelly, as he is better known. Making history as the first rapper ever to simultaneously release two new albums on the same day, Nelly joins the exclusive ranks of Bruce Springsteen and Guns ‘n’ Roses as the third artist in history to do so.

The reasoning behind Nelly’s double release is to show love to both sets of his fans: ‘Sweat’ is the disc for those who like his carefree club tunes, and ‘Suit’ is for those who prefer the ‘Ladies’ Love’ side of him.

The ‘Sweat’ LP opens with ‘Heart Of A Champion’ featuring the Lincoln University Vocal Ensemble, who add their angelic harmonies to the track, which tells of Nelly’s determination to succeed: ‘Ain’t no way they can stop me now/ Nelly cos I’m on my way, I cam feel my reign coming…/ I’ma give what I can and more/ Even if my blood, my sweat and my tears, there’ll be nothing.’ The positive and uplifting rhymes from the St. Louis rapper is a great opener to the ‘Sweat’ album, giving fans a little taster of what’s to follow.

By now, everyone must have heard the lead single ‘Flap Your Wings’, a highly charged party track, where Nelly tells the chics to: ‘Get down and get your eagle on, girl.’ Considering that it’s produced by The Neptunes, ‘Flap Your Wings’ is just average. The beat is nothing special, and doesn’t even come close to that of the hit song ‘Hot In Herre’ from Nelly’s sophomore album, ‘Nellyville’. Even so, ‘Flap Your Wings’ is one of those tracks that seem to grow on you after time, so in that respect, The Neptunes haven’t done that bad a job.

‘River Don’t Runnn’, featuring the vocals of Stephen Marley, son of Reggae king Bob Marley, does catch my ear at first, but is a distinctively average cut. Although the song shows Nelly diversifying into the Reggae genre, it’s not a standout track, which is a shame, because it showed so much more potential on paper, with the added appeal of Murphy Lee on the track.

This is also the case with ‘American Dream’, featuring Nelly’s clique the St. Lunatics. On first listen, it’s a catchy carefree song, with decent appearances from each of the ’Tics, but when you play it a few more times, the track loses its appeal and begins to sound rather repetitive.

Showcasing his new album at the recent MTV Video Music Awards, Nelly performed the duet ‘Tilt Ya Head Back’ with Christina Aguilera, whose saucy dance moves with the rapper had every girl jealous! It can’t be denied though, the duet, like ‘Dilemma’ with Kelly Rowland, is a sure-fire hit, and the chemistry between the two artists will help to sell the record even more. It’s not a typical Nelly-sounding party track, but it does have elements of his Mid-West flavour throughout the song, making ‘Tilt Ya Head Back’ even more of a hit with his fans.

Other cuts to listen out for include ‘Playa’ featuring Mobb Deep and Missy Elliot, and ‘Boy’ featuring Lil’ Flip and Big Gipp, whose appearances all make for a good album. On the other hand, ‘Grand Hang Out’ with Fat Joe and Remy Martin doesn’t live up to it’s expectations, and is instead a big disappointment, as the subject matter doesn’t stray far from the ‘bling’ that we’ve all come to somewhat despise.

Overall, ‘Sweat’ has shaped up to be a decent album, but maybe one that isn’t as great as it could have been, had Nelly cut out the poorer tracks on this LP. He may feel his reign coming, but if Nelly’s gonna keep his large fan base, he’s gonna have to produce more high quality club tracks in the league of ‘Hot In Herre’ in order to keep us all entertained.

Rating: 3/5

Top 3 Tracks:
1) Heart Of A Champion
2) Playa
3) Titt Ya Head Back

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