Popscreen: Nelly

Nelly ft. Paul Wall, Ali & Gipp

“Grillz”

Dir. Fat Cats



I always suspected that Paul Wall is actually Santa Claus sans beard and outfit. I don’t have any proof. Perhaps the rising cost of elf insurance has forced Santa to work summers in Houston as a grill dealer? After watching him dance, rap, and generally look awful—but ever jovial–in the video for Nelly’s “Grills,” my suspicions are all but confirmed: Paul Wall is none other than St. Nicholas himself. And Jermaine Dupri, the producer of this half-decent song, is one of his loyal elves.

The setting of the video is pretty nondescript; it might be a recording studio, it might be a dentist’s office with slightly better lighting. Except for the grills themselves (which are indeed very shiny), everything about the video looks second-rate. Close-ups of—you guessed it—diamond and gold grills are the order of the day here, along with the occasional shiny backdrop, hordes of skanky, moderately chubby groupies and the disgusting stubble around Paul Wall’s mouth. It’s very telling that he believes his name rhymes with “foul.”

This song and its accompanying video would be a complete throwaway, except for two things. First, the beat is pretty good for a So So Def production. The second is the appearance of Goodie Mob’s Gipp (formerly known as Big Gipp) in the third verse. Not only does he eclipse both Santa and the forgettable Nelly, he also does it while looking completely ridiculous. The only reason why one might watch a music video of an otherwise unexceptional song is to see his pimped-out mink-cum-red-striped shirt outfit. As he trades off bars with his newfound partner Ali (of the St. Lunatics), Gipp more than earns his royalty check. And if it’s not quite “Soul Food,” it does a lot more in the way of making me show my grill in a smile than does the rest of the song.

—J. Samuel Abbott