Nelly says he’s embraced country music for decades
Rapper Nelly recalls adding country to his sound when he collaborated with Tim McGraw for his 2004 hit "Over and Over."
Months after facing backlash for performing at the Liberty Ball in celebration of President Donald Trump's inauguration, Nelly is calling for unity as Trump reaches his 100th day in office.
"I’m all for everybody staying positive about any and everything," Nelly, who performed at Stagecoach over the weekend, told Fox News Digital. "I'm a glass half full type of guy. I’m more empowered by bringing people together and making sure that we all get what we need, when we need it and why we need it."
Nelly, with the help of Guy Fieri, also told Fox News Digital about his longstanding appreciation for country music, pointing to his duet with Tim McGraw, 2004's "Over and Over," as evidence.
NELLY DEFENDS PERFORMING AT TRUMP'S INAUGURATION, SAYS 'IT'S AN HONOR'
Nelly faced backlash for performing at the Liberty Ball in January.? (MICHAEL TRAN/AFP via Getty Images)
"Since 2003 … I had an idea of doing country music," he said. "My label told me I was purely nuts, ‘cause I was coming off of ’Hot in Herre' and ‘Dilemma,’ and I told them I wanted to do a song with Tim McGraw. And they looked at me like I had lost my freaking mind."
He called McGraw his "big brother," giving him a shout-out before joking, "I tease Tim all the time because he overachieved. You know, he got Faith [Hill, McGraw's wife]. He definitely overachieved."
Tim McGraw and Nelly collaborated for 2004's "Over and Over." (L. Cohen/WireImage)
While his collaboration with country legend McGraw was Nelly's first foray into country music, it wasn't his last – he also recorded "Lil Bit," a duet with Florida Georgia Line, which he performed during his set at Stagecoach.
WATCH: NELLY SAYS HE'S EMBRACED COUNTRY MUSIC FOR DECADES
Also during the set, he performed a cover of "Die a Happy Man" by Thomas Rhett.
According to Desert Sun, Nelly thanked attendees of the country music festival for letting him "come into your house" to play.
The outlet also reported that the rapper told the audience, "I love each and every one of y’all the same. No matter why it is you started supporting Nelly, no matter when it was you started f---ing with Nelly, no matter how the hell it came to be that you started playing Nelly, no matter where you were when you first started bumping Nelly, no matter who it was that turned you on to Nelly, I want to thank all of Stagecoach one more time from the bottom of my heart."
Nelly performs during Day 2 of the 2025 Stagecoach Festival on April 26, 2025, in Indio, California. (Timothy Norris/Getty Images for Stagecoach)
While Nelly seemed to be feeling the love at Stagecoach, he received criticism back in January when it was announced that he'd be performing at Trump's inauguration. At the time, he felt the need to defend his decision as he was met with a wave of criticism.
WATCH: NELLY CALLS FOR POSITIVITY AFTER TRUMP'S FIRST 100 DAYS IN OFFICE, ‘I’M A GLASS HALF FULL TYPE OF GUY'
"I’m not doing this for money. I’m doing this 'cause it’s an honor. I respect the office," the St. Louis native said during a live conversation with fellow rapper, Willie D.
"It don’t matter who is in office. The same way that our men and women, our brothers and sisters who protect this country, have to go to war and have to put their life on the line for whoever [is] in office," Nelly, who was born on a military base, continued. "So, if they can put their life on the line for whoever [is] in office, I can damn sure perform for whoever [is] in office."
WATCH: NELLY TAKES THE STAGE AT PRESIDENT TRUMP'S LIBERTY BALL
A source close to the artist told Fox News Digital that in addition to his father, Nelly's aunts and uncles "all served in the military for our democracy and the right for us all to vote. He has personally stayed away from politics and wouldn’t participate in campaigning for anyone, but this performance is for the highest office."
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The rapper told Fox News Digital it was an "honor" to perform at the inauguration celebrations.? (Erika Goldring/Getty Images)
In his conversation with Willie D., Nelly said his decision to perform at the inauguration wasn't based off politics.
"The politics, for me, is over. He won! He's the president," the "Hot In Herre" singer said. "He's the commander in chief of what I would like to say is the best country in the world."
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"It is an honor for me to perform for the president of the United States, regardless of who is in office. If President Biden would've asked me to perform, I would've performed. If Vice President Kamala Harris would've won and asked me to perform, I would've performed," he said.
Nelly called for unity as President Donald Trump hits his 100th day in office.? (Miikka Skaffari/FilmMagic/Getty Images)
After his performance at the Liberty Ball, Nelly told Fox News Digital, "It was an honor to have performed for the highest office in the greatest nation. Now we look to the president to step up, serve, and lift us all."
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Fox News Digital's Janelle Ash contributed to this report.
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