Back in the day, the worst kind of disrespect was when somebody stepped on your precious Air Jordans, especially after you had made it your life's purpose to make sure they stayed looking brand spankin' new. Nelly, no stranger to revolving entire songs around his favorite accessories ("Air Force Ones", "Grillz"), pays tribute to the shoe obsession on his newest release "Stepped On My J's".

"We used to ditch school and head straight up to the mall/ Just so we could be the first ones wit em' on," the rapper fondly remembers atop a stomp-heavy rhythm that recalls the poppy grit of his Country Grammar introduction. The topic of choice might be heavily middle-school-ish, but after the downward spiral of recent ill-advised singles that saw him struggling to keep hold of his relevance, "J's", with it's infectiously irritated hook ("Man, these just came out/ He done stepped on my J's") and "Tipsy"-referencing bits, provides a welcome reminder to why he became such an instant sensation in the first place.

Is it bad, though, that we wish for featured guest Ciara to serve a "Stepped On My J's" sequel featuring just her?



DL: "Stepped On My J's" (YFH)