Nelly Reunites With St. Lunatics Amid $50M Legal Dispute
Nelly might be facing legal troubles with his former group, the St. Lunatics, but that didn’t prevent them from performing together or him from making light of the situation. The rapper, alongside his crew, J-Kwon, and Chingy (but excluding St. Lunatics member Ali), took the stage on Sunday (October 6) as part of the American Music Awards 50th Anniversary Special. They delivered an energetic medley featuring “Air Force Ones,” “Ride Wit Me,” “Tipsy,” “Hot In Herre,” and more.
Just a day prior to the performance, Nelly made a joke about the lawsuit filed against him by the St. Lunatics, which alleges that he did not credit them for their contributions to his hit album Country Grammar.
He said on Instagram, “STL INVADES @amas …!!! An anyone who has a problem with that ‘Sue’ me…!!!”
The St. Lunatics comprised of Ali Jones (Ali), Torhi Harper (Murphy Lee), Robert Kyjuan (Kyjuan), and Nelly’s brother Lavell Webb (City Spud) initiated a copyright infringement lawsuit against him on September 18. The suit, filed in New York Federal Court, claims that the star failed to acknowledge their work on his 2000 album.
According to TMZ, it appears that only one member taking legal action. A legal letter obtained by the outlet indicates that Murphy Lee, Kyjuan, and City Spud did not consent to their inclusion in the lawsuit initiated in mid-September, which is led by ex-Lunatics Ali Jones.
In 2023, Ali declared he would never perform with Nelly again due to money owed to the group. During an August interview with VladTV, Ali discussed how Nelly allegedly went months without paying him what he was owed. “I’ll say like it could be $90,000 or $70,000,” he estimated. “When that conversation happens I’ll get a check. It’ll be $13,000. Now you’ll be f—– up now because what is this $13,000 for? You owe me $91,000.” He concluded, “What did you pay me for? At the end of it, it’s gonna be $66,000 because he’s far behind on the payments.”
The St. Louis native criticized Nelly for his lack of communication and blamed an outsider for trying to separate Nelly from the group. Ali firmly stated that he would “never” reunite or perform with Nelly again. “A tiger ain’t never gon’ change his stripes,” he said. “I watched it for 20 years and I’m the butt of the joke because it took me 20 years to realize it. I could put a never, ever behind it will I ever hit the stage or do anything with him.”
The AMAs 50th show is currently streaming on Paramount+.
