''Brass Knuckles'' is the fifth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

by American recording artist

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...

, released on September 16, 2008 after several delays. In 2008 Nelly embarked on

The Brass Knuckles Tour Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal R ...

in support of the album.

Background

Production was set to come from

Bryan-Michael Cox Bryan-Michael Paul Cox (born December 1, 1977) is an American record producer and songwriter who is notable for his work with artists such as Usher, Mariah Carey, Mary J. Blige, and Toni Braxton. Among his most notable productions are "Be Wit ...

, Neff-U and

Pharrell Pharrell Lanscilo Williams (; born April 5, 1973) is an American record producer, rapper, singer, and songwriter. Alongside close colleague Chad Hugo, he formed the hip hop and R&B production duo the Neptunes in the early 1990s, with whom he ...

, among others.Scott Bowles, Steve Jones and Pete Johnson (September 6, 2007)
Coming attractions: Nelly's ready to crack his 'Knuckles'
''USA Today''. Accessed September 9, 2007.Shaheem Reid (August 22, 2007)
T.I., Akon, Snoop, Pimp C Get Behind Nelly's ''Brass Knuckles''
MTV. Accessed August 22, 2007.Jayson Rodriguez, with additional reporting by Sway J. Calloway (October 16, 2007)
Nelly Ready to Battle Don Imus, Other Foes with Hard-Hitting New LP
MTV. Accessed October 16, 2007.DADDYMACKOFNYC (February 12, 2008). . Accessed February 13, 2008.Nelly & Ashanti Interview – Rap-Up TV
Rap-Up TV. Accessed August 25, 2007. Nelly mentioned in an interview that producer

Polow da Don Jamal Fincher Jones (born October 15, 1977, or 1978), professionally known as Polow da Don, is an American record producer and rapper. Jones has produced a variety of singles for a multitude of artists including "Anaconda" by Nicki Minaj (2014) ...

produced tracks for the album. On March 30, Nelly told HipHopDX.com that "the album would feature a handful of new producers." Nelly was set to collaborate with Springsteen but he stated he was hopeful to collaborate with him on a future album, or even a repackage of ''Brass Knuckles''. Dupri gave a look into the two collaborations, one being Nelly, Carey and Jackson all appearing on the same track, in which he stated Nelly has laid the following blueprint.

Nelly's got a crazy collaboration he's trying to put together, which is him, Janet and Mariah Carey all on one song...That's what he wants. If he could convince them to do it, it would be crazy. ewants
anet Anet () is a commune in the Eure-et-Loir department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It lies 14 km north-northeast of Dreux between the rivers Eure and Vesgre, the latter flowing into the former some 4 km no ...
to rap a 16-bar verse, he wants ariahto sing the hook and he's gonna do two verses. ehas it all planned out. You ask him about it! This is what he wants; he's 100-percent deadlocked into it.

Jermaine Dupri Jermaine Dupri Mauldin (born September 23, 1972) is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, record executive, entrepreneur, and DJ. Early life Jermaine Dupri Mauldin was born on September 23, 1972, the son of Tina (Mosley) and Michael ...

also stated possibilities of hopeful collaborations with

Bruce Springsteen Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen (born September 23, 1949) is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. Originally from the Jersey Shore, he is an originat ...

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

and

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreog ...

.Anthony Springer, Jr. (August 23, 2007)
Nelly Is Back!
. HipHopDX. Accessed August 23, 2007. Nelly went on to speak about the possibility of the Springsteen collaboration and that two of his own tracks will appear on the album.

I think he's doing a record with Bruce Springsteen. You know he always has to do one of those! My two records
hat J.D. has produced for Nelly so far A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
he's gonna have some people on them—I won't tell it yet. I don't want to jinx the record.

Singles

The first single was believed to be "Cut It Out" which features rappers

Pimp C Chad Lamont Butler (December 29, 1973 – December 4, 2007), better known by his stage name Pimp C, was an American rapper and record producer. He was best known for his work with Bun B as one half of the hip-hop duo Underground Kingz (UGK). ...

and

Sean P YoungBloodZ is an American Southern hip hop duo from Atlanta, Georgia composed of J-Bo (born Jeffrey Raymond Grigsby on October 4, 1977) and Sean P (born Sean Paul Ryan Joseph on March 7, 1978). The duo was signed to LaFace Records. They are o ...

YoungBloodZ YoungBloodZ is an American Southern hip hop duo from Atlanta, Georgia composed of J-Bo (born Jeffrey Raymond Grigsby on October 4, 1977) and Sean P (born Sean Paul Ryan Joseph on March 7, 1978). The duo was signed to LaFace Records. They are o ...

, but was later confirmed to be "

Wadsyaname "Wadsyaname" is a song by American rapper Nelly, released to the iTunes Store on August 22, 2007. It was supposed to be the first official single from his fifth studio album ''Brass Knuckles'' (2008), but Nelly later confirmed that the single wil ...

", which was released digitally on August 21, 2007. However, because of the pushed release dates from October 16, 2007 and on, the first official single was changed to " Party People", which features Fergie. It was released on March 18, 2008 and peaked at number forty on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number fourteen on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. The album's second single "

Stepped on My J'z "Stepped on My J'z" is a song by American rapper Nelly. The song features American singer Ciara and rapper Jermaine Dupri. It was recorded for Nelly's fifth studio album, ''Brass Knuckles''. The hip hop and crunk track was produced by Jermaine Dup ...

", which features

Ciara Ciara Princess Wilson ( ; Harris; born October 25, 1985) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, model and entrepreneur. She released her debut studio album, '' Goodies'' in 2004, which spawned four singles: " Goodies" (featuring Petey Pa ...

and

was released on June 11, 2008. It peaked at number ninety on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. " Body on Me", which features

Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P) ...

and Ashanti, was released as the third single from the album on June 9, 2008. It peaked at number forty-two on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number three on the UK Singles Chart.

Critical reception

Reviews for the album have been generally mixed. Pharoh Martin of ''

Vibe ''Vibe'' is an American music and entertainment magazine founded by producers David Salzman and Quincy Jones. The publication predominantly features R&B and hip hop music artists, actors and other entertainers. After shutting down productio ...

'' stated that "''Brass Knuckles'' is standard Nelly fare."Pharoh Martin (September 17, 2008). ''Vibe''. Accessed September 24, 2008 RapReviews wrote that "underneath the materialistic veneer Nelly's got a good delivery, sharp lyrics and impeccable breath control."RR.

Commercial performance

''Brass Knuckles'' debuted at number 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 83,717 copies in its first week in the United States. Only 8-weeks later, the album was left on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. On March 21, 2009, the album re-appeared at number 152. On December 12, 2008, the album was certified gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

(RIAA) for shipping over 500,000 copies in the United States. As of September 2010, the album has sold over 223,000 copies in the United States.

Track listing

;Sample credits *"Stepped on My J'z" Contains a sample of "Tipsy" performed by

J-Kwon Jerrell C. Jones (born March 28, 1986), better known by his stage name J-Kwon, is an American rapper best known for his 2004 single " Tipsy," which peaked at number two in 2004. Life and career At age 12, Jones was expelled from his home for a ...

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Brass Knuckles 2008 albums Nelly albums Albums produced by Akon Albums produced by Jermaine Dupri Albums produced by Polow da Don Albums produced by the Neptunes Albums produced by Droop-E Albums produced by Theron Feemster