Paul Wall has revealed that Nelly was sold a fake Johnny Dang grill, an act that eventually led to the creation of their 2005 Grammy-nominated hit song "Grillz."
During his appearance on The Art of Dialogue, Wall reflected on the song and expressed his excitement about its success while also explaining how selling grills was initially a means to fund his rap career.
In Wall's telling, Nelly entered the picture when Wall got a call from T.I., saying, "Yeah man, I see my boy Nelly got a grill from you".
Wall was taken aback, recalling, "I'm confused 'cause I'm like man I never met Nelly a day in my life. I'd love to make him a grill, but what are you talking about."
Wall's business partner, Johnny Dang, known for running the workshop, was often unaware of celebrity clients and confused many people. Because of that, Wall initially considered the possibility that they had indeed made a grill for Nelly and that Johnny, being out of the loop on celebrity recognition, simply hadn't known.
Wall later discovered the truth behind Nelly's grill was far more intricate. Other rappers had begun to capitalize on Wall's fame, offering "Paul Wall style" or "Johnny style" grills to clients. Wall explained, "[People were saying,] 'You want a Paul Wall grill? Yeah I'll get you a Paul Wall grill. A Johnny? I'll get you a Johnny grill.' What they mean is the Paul Wall-style grill or a Johnny-style grill. So that essentially is what happened."
The mystery unraveled more when Wall met Nelly's associate, Big Gip, in a New York hotel and asked if the grill was purchased from Dang or "an Indian guy," to which Gip responded that it was the latter. Wall instantly realized that a rival jeweler, also named Johnny, and another artist who was "a little jealous" of Wall's grill-selling notoriety, had intentionally led Nelly to the competition.
To alleviate the situation, Wall and Dang made Nelly a custom pair of $20,000 grills that were the most expensive set they ever made. The investment paid off though, as Nelly loved the piece and asked Wall to get on a song that would become "Grillz."
"As soon as Nelly got his grill he was like, 'Hey I love my grill. I got this song I'm doing. You want to get on it?' 'Of course I want to get on it'".
Wall, who had "made so many songs about grills that nobody cared about," humbly recognized that the true "ingredient" for a hit was Nelly and Jermaine Dupri.
The end result became an instant anthem celebrating the flashy hip-hop jewelry trend. Produced by Jermaine Dupri, "Grillz" topped the Billboard Hot 100 and cemented its place as a cultural snapshot of the mid-2000s bling era.