Nelly made a nostalgic return to the stage with his original group, St. Lunatics, during a performance at the 50th American Music Awards held on October 6, 2024, in Los Angeles. They were joined by fellow artists Chingy and J-Kwon for an energetic medley that featured hits such as Chingy’s “Right Thurr,”J-Kwon’s “Tipsy,”along with Nelly’s classics like “Air Force One,””Ride Wit Me,”and “Hot In Herre.”
For those unfamiliar, the St. Lunatics, comprised of childhood friends Nelly, Ali, Murphy Lee, Kyjuan, City Spud, and Slo Down, formed in 1993. They gained widespread recognition with their track “Gimme What U Got.”Their sole album, “Free City,”released in 2001, achieved significant success, reaching No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and earning platinum certification from the RIAA. Nonetheless, the group members eventually turned their focus to individual careers, culminating in their split in 2010.
The reunion at the AMA was unexpected considering that just last month, four of the group’s former members filed a $50 million lawsuit against Cornell over issues of lack of recognition and unpaid royalties related to his diamond-certified solo album, “Country Grammar,”which released a year prior to “Free City.”
Slo Down was absent from the lawsuit against Nelly
The day before the AMA event, Nelly lightheartedly addressed the lawsuit in an Instagram post, stating:
“STL INVADES @amas …!!! An anyone who has a problem with that ‘Sue’ me…!!! Tomorrow @cbstv 8pm eastern..”
According to a report by Billboard from last month, Ali Jones (Ali), Torhi Harper (Murphy Lee), Robert Kyjuan (Kyjuan), and Cornell’s sibling Lavell Webb (City Spud) filed the copyright infringement lawsuit on September 18 in a New York federal court. Notably, Corey Edwards (Slo Down) did not participate as a plaintiff.
The report indicated that Nelly allegedly “manipulated”his former bandmates into believing they would be compensated for their contributions to “Country Grammar.”Legal documents quote the complaint as stating:
“Every time plaintiffs confronted defendant Haynes, (he) would assure them as ‘friends’ he would never prevent them from receiving the financial success they were entitled to.”
The plaintiffs reportedly trusted Nelly, their friend, not to “steal credit for writing the original compositions,”leading them to refrain from pursuing legal action.
Although members of St. Lunatics receive credit as co-writers on tracks from “Country Grammar,”the lawsuit asserts they artistically contributed to more songs than officially acknowledged, including “Steal the Show,””Thicky Thick Girl,”and “Batter Up.”As per Billboard, Cornell had previously and publicly recognized the plaintiffs as the lyricists and promised them “writing and publishing credits.”
However, a report by TMZ dated October 7, 2024, highlighted that Nelly’s attorney, N. Scott Rosenblum, claimed that Ali Jones instigated the lawsuit. The correspondence emphasized that the other three Lunatics did not consent to their inclusion in the lawsuit and threatened legal repercussions if this was not rectified. Nonetheless, this claim remains unverified.
This isn’t the first instance where Ali has accused Cornell of failing to acknowledge their collaborative efforts. During an August 2023 interview with VladTV, he revealed that Nelly would sometimes go months without paying him what was due. He elaborated:
“I’ll say like it could be $90,000 or $70,000. When that conversation happens I’ll get a check. It’ll be $13,000. Now you’ll be f**ked up now because what is this $13,000 for? You owe me $91,000.”
At that time, he pledged never to perform or collaborate again with his childhood friend, saying, “A tiger ain’t never gon’ change his stripes.”
So far, neither Nelly nor any other members of St. Lunatics, including Ali, have issued public statements regarding the ongoing situation.
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