N.E.R.D

Musical style

N.E.R.D.'s lyrics have been criticized. Ian Cohen of Pitchfork called the band's lyrical writing ability "far down the list of what N.E.R.D is actually good at", where Williams is often criticized for being excessively sexual. With the release of Fly or Die, the album was advertised in Kerrang! magazine, which made Alexis Petridis of The Guardian feel that N.E.R.D.'s lyrics tried to "empathize with the alienated teenagers who make up Kerrang!'s readership".