"Dilemma" is a song by American rapperNelly featuring American singerKelly Rowland. It was released on June 25, 2002, as the secondsingle from the former's second studio album,Nellyville (2002). The song also appeared on Rowland's debut solo studio album,Simply Deep (2002). AnR&Bballad, the song consists of a high-pitchedintonation andcall and response, and contains aninterpolation ofPatti LaBelle's 1983 song "Love, Need and Want You". The lyrics describe a man infatuated with a woman committed in an existing relationship. "Dilemma" was written by Nelly, Antoine "Bam" Macon andRyan Bowser, alongside the "Love, Need and Want You" writers,Kenneth Gamble andBunny Sigler.
"Dilemma" received generally favorable reviews frommusic critics, who praised the duet's emotional balance. It peaked at number one on the USBillboard Hot 100 for 10 non-consecutive weeks, after it replaced Nelly's previous single "Hot in Herre" on the chart. The song also topped the charts in the United Kingdom, Australia, Ireland, and Germany. "Dilemma" won an award forBest Rap/Sung Performance and was nominated forRecord of the Year at the45th Annual Grammy Awards. An accompanyingmusic video was directed byBenny Boom and released in September 2002. It was filmed onColonial Street with appearances byLarry Hughes and Patti LaBelle, and depicts Nelly attracted towards his new neighbor Rowland despite the latter being in a relationship.
American producerRyan Bowser created aninstrumental thatinterpolated and contained elements fromPatti LaBelle's 1983 song "Love, Need and Want You", written byKenneth Gamble andBunny Sigler. Upon hearing thebeat given to him by St. Louis producer Antoine "Bam" Macon,Nelly began writing lyrics for the track. He decided to include "Dilemma" as a last-minute addition on his secondstudio albumNellyville (2002), which was completed prior to Bam giving him the track. Once Nelly returned to the studio to record "Dilemma", he changed his vision to include a female vocalist. Nelly instantly thought ofDestiny's Child memberKelly Rowland, whom he met during theTotal Request Live (TRL) tour in 2001, and was encouraged by his sister to include her on the song. He called Rowland on the phone, who agreed to record the track. After a few days of recording, during which she re-recorded her part many times to achieve it "just right", "Dilemma" was completed.[2][3]
OnceNellyville was released in June 2002,[4] radiodisc jockeys in the United States started playing "Dilemma".[5] For the week of July 27, 2002, the track reached number eight on theBillboard Hot 100, after it charted at number 26 the previous week.[6] This prompted Nelly to release the song as the album's secondsingle although it was not the original plan.[5] The decision affected the timetable for each Destiny's Child member since they were on hiatus and were expected to release a solo studio album. As part of their strategy, each of them were to be staggered, with memberBeyoncé releasing one in October 2002, and Rowland's album expected in early 2003. Their management rescheduled the dates: Rowland released her debut solo albumSimply Deep on October 28, 2002, which caused Beyoncé to delay her eventual albumDangerously in Love to June 2003.[4][6]
Musically, "Dilemma" is anR&B[7][8][9]ballad.[10][11][12] The "high-pitchedintonation" used in the introduction prior to Rowland's vocals about "loving and needing Nelly" was initially rumored to be created on theRoland M-DC1 in 1995 as "Aaaah! (169)" (originally fromD-Train'sMisunderstanding), which is used in over 300 songs. Bowser denied using the sample, insisting that he created the sound while experimenting with different vocal techniques. During the song's progression, the sound mellows as the production is "fleshed-out".[13] Nelly raps during eachverse while Rowland performs a "twinklingnursery-rhymechorus".[14][15] "Dilemma" is centered on Rowland'shook, "No matter what I do / All I think about is you / Even when I'm with my boo / Boy, you know I'm crazy over you",[3] as Nelly responds with the line, "Check it, check it, check it, uh".[16] The lyrics describe the love a man has for a woman committed in an existing relationship,[17][18] the latter who is conflicted about abandoning.[19] James Hannaham ofThe Village Voice additionally wrote that it is "an infidelity ballad" which combines mack daddy content withTRL.[11]
AllMusic reviewer Jason Birchmeier noted that "Dilemma" is one of "three well-calculated, standout" tracks in the album.[20]Vice writer Ryan Bassil opined that the song is "the best R&B duet of the modern age" in comparison toJay-Z's 2002 song "'03 Bonnie & Clyde", stating that it had soul, passion, and feeling.[7] In her review forSimply Deep, Caroline Sullivan ofThe Guardian wrote that it "practically peeled off its clothes on the spot",[21] and Nathan Rabin ofThe A.V. Club commented that it "navigates the fine line separating sweet from saccharine".[22]Spin staff member Andrew Unterberger called "Dilemma" a "puppy-love duet",[23] whileBlender staff described the song as a "capable ballad".[10] However,Soren Baker of theChicago Tribune stated that the "pseudo-ballad" lacked spunk and was "hardly worth the bother".[12] Writing forThe Washington Post, Arion Berger critiqued that the "neo-R&B" song was a "requisite lull" in his review ofNellyville.[8]
"Dilemma" debuted on severalBillboard charts on the week of July 6, 2002, at numbers 66 and 63 on theHot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs andR&B/Hip-Hop Airplay charts respectively.[25] The next week, it debuted at number 51 on theRadio Songs chart, as well as at number 53 on the Hot 100 during the same week.[26] After four weeks, on the issue dated August 17, 2002, "Dilemma" peaked at number one on theBillboard Hot 100, where it stayed there for 10 weeks and remained on the chart for 29 weeks.[27][28] With this song, Nelly replaced himself from the top of the chart, as his previous single "Hot In Herre" dropped to number two while "Dilemma" ascended from number two to number one.[29] This surprised Nelly'srecord label, as they did not expect the song to instantly become popular and did not film amusic video during its release.[30] "Dilemma" topped theMainstream Top 40 chart on the week of September 21, 2002.[31] The song was ranked at number 11 on theBillboard Hot 100 decade-end list from 2000 to 2009,[32] and placed at the number 75 position on the listicle of all-time songs to chart on theBillboard Hot 100.[33]
On theUK Singles Chart dated October 26, 2002, "Dilemma" topped the chart, where it remained at the position for two weeks, before charting for 24 total weeks.[34] The song sold 208,000 copies in the first week and 129,000 copies the following week, which preventedJustin Timberlake's 2002 debut solo single "Like I Love You" from the number one position. It was the fourth-best selling single in the United Kingdom in 2002, and was the 23rd highest-selling single in the country from 2000 to 2009.[35] As of October 2016, "Dilemma" is the most successful song in both Nelly and Rowland's discographies.[36] As of February 2021, the song has sold over 7 million copies worldwide.[37] The song was also successful in mainland Europe, topping theDutch,Flemish,German,Irish, andSwiss charts.[38][39] In entered the top five in Austria, Croatia, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, Norway, Poland, and Sweden,[40][41][42][43] as well as the top 10 in Finland, France, and Greece.[44][45]
On April 22, 2025, the song reachedone billion views onSpotify, which was Nelly and Rowland's first video to accomplish the feat.[46]
In the music video for "Dilemma", Rowland used aNokia 9210 Communicator to text Nelly on a spreadsheet application, and was filmed onColonial Street to portray Nellyville.
An accompanying music video for "Dilemma" was planned in July 2002, prior to its release as the second single fromNellyville.[5] Nelly wanted the video to be "smooth" in contrast to his previous music videos, in order to emphasize on the storyline.[19] It was directed byBenny Boom and filmed from August 19 to 21, 2002.[47] The film set was located onColonial Street, which was one of thebacklot street sets located atUniversal Studios Hollywood in theSan Fernando Valley area ofLos Angeles County, California. Then-Washington Wizards playerLarry Hughes appeared in the video as Rowland's boyfriend, while Patti LaBelle was cast as her mother.[48] The music video premiered at the end ofMTV'sMaking the Video episode aired in September 2002.[47]
Rowland described the plot, stating that she was "the new girl in the neighborhood" who became infatuated with Nelly living across the street despite having a partner and children, which resulted in a "dilemma".[48] At one point in the video, Rowland is seen attempting to text Nelly on a spreadsheet application[a] using herNokia 9210 Communicator.[36][51] Nelly defended the use of the application in an interview with Australian talk showThe Project in November 2016, explaining that it was used during the time despite eventually becoming outdated.[18][52][53] In subsequent interviews, Rowland admitted to not knowing whatMicrosoft Excel was, which elicited a response from the application's officialTwitter account.[54][55]
The music video introduces the fictional neighborhood of Nellyville, as the eponymous song is briefly heard.[7] "Dilemma" begins as Nelly and Rowland sit on the front porch of their respective houses.[47] Rowland and LaBelle portray a mother-daughter pair who have recently moved into the house opposite the street from Nelly, with the latter sporting a 4XL t-shirt and headband.[56] They both greet each other as the moving van drives into Rowland's house. However, Rowland's boyfriend arrives and confronts her for communicating with Nelly, and they proceed to drive away. The next scene shows Nelly and Rowland encountering each other in arecord shop. Rowland quickly exits upon noticing him while simultaneously appearing conflicted.[48]
Rowland messages Nelly on her phone from inside her bedroom in another scene,[18][52][53] as sequences of both musicians flirting together in front of a car are sporadically intercut.[47] Rowland and her boyfriend queue inside a movie theater when Nelly walks opposite them with his girlfriend. They exchange glances while walking away from each other with their respective partners.[56] In the final scene, LaBelle opens the front door of her house and repeatedly demands for her daughter to return inside,[47] while the couple continue dancing outside throughout the night.[7]
In a retrospective review, Ashley Perkins ofVibe acknowledged how the music video contained "just the right amount of dramatization to allow a glimpse into how much of a dilemma Nelly and Kelly's situationship was". She further explained that the narrative was explained "in a light other than from the perspective of the frustrated and faithful counterpart or the creeping side piece", which would later be replicated in songs such as "Situationships" byFabolous, and "Distraction" byKehlani.[56] Bassil opined that the visuals contained "sartorial [color] coordination" and commented that Nelly's "dickhead"-styled clothing allowed him to dance alongside Rowland throughout the night.[7]
On July 12, 2021, the music video reachedone billion views onYouTube, which was Nelly and Rowland's first video to accomplish the feat. It was the thirdhip hop music video released before the website's existence to record one billion views, following "In da Club" by50 Cent and "Without Me" byEminem.[57][58]
The official remix for "Dilemma" was produced byJermaine Dupri, and features Rowland andAli of theSt. Lunatics. It was included on Nelly'sremix album titledDa Derrty Versions: The Reinvention (2003).[59] Writing in a review for the album for RapReviews.com, Steve Juon criticized thebass guitar in the remix and stated that the song "should have been left alone",[60] while Katharina Lobeck ofBBC opined that the original song "worked better" and is "more coherent" than the remix.[61]
On December 16, 2009, Nelly recorded a new song titled "Gone" with Rowland, which he initially dubbed as "Dilemma Part 2".[62] Nelly eventually retracted the statement, insisting that he did not want to replicate or diminish the original song but wanted to extend on the story and rekindle the chemistry he had with Rowland.[63][64] "Gone" was written by Nelly,Rico Love, Earl Hood, Eric Goody II, and the producerJim Jonsin. It was included on Nelly's sixth studio album5.0 (2010),[63] and distributed tourban contemporary radio stations as its third single on January 4, 2011.[65]
Japanese singer-songwriterRiri performed acover of "Dilemma", which was included on her thirdextended playSummertime (2019).[66] It featured Japanese rapper JP the Wavy, and was produced by DJ Chari and DJ Tatsuki, with the beat created by Zot on the Wave & Lil' Yukich.[67] The song debuted at number one on the JapaneseiTunes hip-hop chart.[68] Both artists were familiar with the original song in their youth and decided to create a reinterpretation of it.[67]
On the episode ofLip Sync Battle dated January 14, 2016, American actressOlivia Munn performed alip sync of "Dilemma" while competing against actorKevin Hart. Munn initially imitated Nelly's appearance by wearing a hat, bandana, and band-aid, but removed the accessories in order to portray Rowland.[69] Duringseason 21 ofThe Voice in the episode aired on October 12, 2021, two contestants on coachAriana Grande's team competed in a cover performance of the song during the Battles round, which was positively received by the four coaches.[70]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
"Dilemma" was covered in Spanish by Dominicanmerengue artistPapi Sánchez, under the title "Dilema". It was released as the second single from his studio albumYeah Baby !! in 2004. "Dilema" peaked at number eight on the Belgium (Wallonia) chart dated May 28, 2005, where it remained for 14 weeks.[165] The song charted at number 16 on the Belgium (Flanders) chart,[166] and at number 20 on the FrenchSyndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP).[167]
^While most sources identify the application as "Microsoft Excel", the software used by Rowland was the default Sheet application included with theSymbian operating system on the Nokia 9210;[49] the phone is however compatible withMicrosoft Excel spreadsheets.[50]
^abHoworth, Adam (October 5, 2002)."Airborne"(PDF).Music & Media. Vol. 20, no. 41. p. 14.Archived(PDF) from the original on March 8, 2021. RetrievedMay 5, 2021.
^Sullivan, Caroline (February 7, 2003)."Kelly Rowland: Simply Deep".The Guardian.Archived from the original on December 31, 2013. RetrievedFebruary 23, 2009.
^"Ririが5曲入り新作発表、Keiju＆小袋成彬とコラボした「アネッサ」CMソング先行配信" [Riri Announces New Work with 5 Songs, Collaborated with Keiju & Shigeaki Kobukuro for 'Anessa' CM Song Pre-Distribution].Natalie (in Japanese). April 17, 2019.Archived from the original on June 6, 2022. RetrievedJune 6, 2022.
^ab"Riri、『Summertime EP』発売記念ライブ開催 JP The Wavyコラボ曲「Dilemma」配信も" [Riri Holds Summertime EP Release Commemorative Live JP The Wavy Collaboration Song 'Dilemma' Also Distributed].Real Sound (in Japanese). May 15, 2019.Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. RetrievedJune 6, 2022.
