Not many artists can claim the new heights that Nelly and Kelly Rowland’s classic duet “Dilemma” can claim as of today. The track has officially hit one billion views on YouTube!
Nelly, who has aged gracefully and no longer seems interested in remaining on top of the rap genre, continues to be a highly sought-after and influential rapper. He hasn’t really released any new music in a while and probably doesn’t have to since his debut album Country Grammar remains a best-seller. That in itself is quite an achievement considering it was released in 2000. That album was certified diamond in 2016 after it hit 10 million in sales and streams.
That shouldn’t be surprising since it featured mega-hits like “E.I” and “Ride Wit Me,” another track that has received diamond certification. “Dilemma” is from another successful album that he produced, titled Nellyville. The track was the third single on his sophomore album, Nellyville, which is currently 6X Platinum.
They join an elite club consisting of top-notch acts like Eminem, Nicki Minaj, and 50 Cent. After hearing the news, the rapper shared his excitement about the achievement with HipHopDX.
“It is both humbling and what every artist hopes for, to see your work from 20 years ago still getting such love from fans old and new. Super dope that a song made before YouTube existed is getting so much support now and shout out to Nelly fans and to my girl Kelly Rowland who helped make this song a hit when we made it and still a hit today!” he said.
It really is a remarkable achievement for the artists and the track that debuted in 2002. The song is not only featured on Nellyville but is the lead single from Rowland’s debut solo studio album, Simply Deep (2002) as well.
The beat borrows from Patti LaBelle’s 1983 song “Love, Need and Want You,” and the lyrics share the story about a couple who are in love with each other but are both in committed relationships. The song peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for ten non-consecutive weeks before Nelly himself replaced it with “Hot in Herre.” It was a hit with fans globally and also reached number one in the United Kingdom, Australia, and several other European countries.
Nelly and Kelly Rowland took home the Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Performance at the 45th Annual Grammy Awards in 2003. The music video was released in September 2002 and was directed by Benny Boom. It was filmed on Colonial Street with appearances by then-Golden State Warriors guard Larry Hughes and LaBelle.
Nelly seemed to know it would be a hit from the get-go, as he said in an interview, with XXL Magazine, around the time of its release.
“I did the Nellyville album in Miami, recorded the songs and all that.. and we kind of felt like we needed a couple more songs on there. So, the last two songs that we put on Nellyville were ‘Hot In Herre’ and ‘Dilemma.’ At this time we had been on tour with the girls from Destiny’s Child so we had become, fairly close to the girls and all that and I was like, ‘What do you think about Kelly?’ but at this time she was dating someone very close to me, I should say that, and we was like, ‘Yo, fam, this would hot.’ So you know we got her in the studio and sh*t was magic,” he shared.
The track is a cult favorite and was certified Platinum by the British Phonographic Industry in the UK for more than 800,000 sales. The track also topped the charts in several countries around the world, including Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Netherlands, Scotland, and Switzerland.
It was eventually certified Triple Platinum In Australia and Double Platinum in Norway. The song also went platinum in Belgium, New Zealand, and Switzerland. The song sold over 1 million copies of ringtones in Japan. Quite the achievement for both artists, and it seems this one will forever remain a classic.
