Nelly is a successful rapper that entered the hip hop game with his Midwest Slang oriented song, Country Grammar. He hails from St. Louis, Missouri and introduced his state’s style by using the local slang and singing style that represents his region. He also introduced his St. Louis group, the St. Lunatics, that consisted of members Murphy Lee, Ali, Spud, Kyjuan, and Nelly. Nelly also branched off into the clothing industry by founding Apple Bottoms, which is an urban line geared towards ethnic women with curves. His belief was that most clothing did not cater to African American women, and so he wanted to tap into that market. His brand was very successful, and it added to his overall success as an industry leader in hip hop. Nelly’s singing style caused some people to criticize him and say that he was not a true hip hop artist, but just take a listen to Nelly – The Champ, and you will learn why he knocked out a lot of competition with his skills and business sense.