Nelly Delivers Hits at ‘Homecoming’ Super Bowl Week Concert in Historic New Orleans Restaurant

Entertainer Nelly performs at halftime of the Big 12 Conference championship NCAA college football game between Oklahoma State and Texas in Arlington, Texas, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023. (AP)
Entertainer Nelly performs at halftime of the Big 12 Conference championship NCAA college football game between Oklahoma State and Texas in Arlington, Texas, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023. (AP)
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Nelly Delivers Hits at ‘Homecoming’ Super Bowl Week Concert in Historic New Orleans Restaurant

Entertainer Nelly performs at halftime of the Big 12 Conference championship NCAA college football game between Oklahoma State and Texas in Arlington, Texas, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023. (AP)
Entertainer Nelly performs at halftime of the Big 12 Conference championship NCAA college football game between Oklahoma State and Texas in Arlington, Texas, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023. (AP)

Nelly brought his signature St. Louis swagger to a New Orleans institution, turning a nearly seven-decade-old restaurant into a Super Bowl week party.

The multi-Grammy winner packed Brennan’s on Friday night, delivering a hit-filled set at h.wood “Homecoming.” As fans rushed the stage, Pro Football Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe and actor Jaleel White kicked back in the VIP area, while Flavor Flav enjoyed the show from a prime onstage spot.

Chainsmokers went on before Nelly, performing a number of their hits from “Closer” to “Roses.”

Before Nelly's appearance, attendees mingled for a few hours at the invite-only event. Once he arrived, many flocked toward the stage and pulled out their phones to capture his set.

While Flavor Flav recorded him, Nelly went on to perform several jams including “Ride Wit Me,” “E.I." and “Air Force Ones.” Many in the crowd recited Kelly Rowland-sang chorus of “Dilemma,” which won a Grammy in 2003. He also performed “Hot in Here,” another Grammy winner in that same year.

The Homecoming concert show was a part of a night filled with other concerts across the New Orleans area before the Kansas City Chiefs face off against the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday.

Shaquille O’Neal held his carnival-style Shaq’s Funhouse with Ludacris and John Summit headlining the concert. Some attendees included football player Desean Jackson, NBA great Paul Pierce and Patrick Surtain II, who was recently awarded the NFL's defensive player of the year honor.



Tom Cruise, Superman and 'Avatar' Hold Keys to 2025 Box Office

FILE PHOTO: Paris 2024 Olympics - Ceremonies - Paris 2024 Closing Ceremony - Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France - August 11, 2024.  Actor Tom Cruise jumps from the roof of the Stade de France during the closing ceremony. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Paris 2024 Olympics - Ceremonies - Paris 2024 Closing Ceremony - Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France - August 11, 2024. Actor Tom Cruise jumps from the roof of the Stade de France during the closing ceremony. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
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Tom Cruise, Superman and 'Avatar' Hold Keys to 2025 Box Office

FILE PHOTO: Paris 2024 Olympics - Ceremonies - Paris 2024 Closing Ceremony - Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France - August 11, 2024.  Actor Tom Cruise jumps from the roof of the Stade de France during the closing ceremony. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Paris 2024 Olympics - Ceremonies - Paris 2024 Closing Ceremony - Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France - August 11, 2024. Actor Tom Cruise jumps from the roof of the Stade de France during the closing ceremony. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo

Tom Cruise takes on what may be his final "Mission: Impossible," a new Superman will wear the red cape, and the record-setting "Avatar" sci-fi series will return to movie theaters this year.
Those films and more are giving cinema operators hope that the long recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic will continue in 2025. Five years after the start of the health crisis, moviegoing has not fully rebounded.
Box office receipts totaled $8.6 billion last year in the United States and Canada, 25% below the pre-pandemic heights of $11.4 billion in 2019, Reuters reported.
The film industry was disrupted again in 2023 when Hollywood writers and actors went on strike.
"That complex matrix of filmmaking, where everyone wants the best talent and the best actors and the best sets, it takes a long time to get that running again," said Tim Richards, founder and CEO of Europe's Vue Cinemas. "2025 is going to feel the tail end of that."
Top names in the movie business will gather at the annual CinemaCon convention in Las Vegas early next month to talk about the state of the industry.
The conference draws executives from Hollywood studios and multiplex operators such as AMC Entertainment, Cinemark and Cineworld as well as owners of single theaters in small towns.
At the Academy Awards this month, "Anora" filmmaker and best director winner Sean Baker delivered a "battle cry" for filmmakers, distributors and audiences to support theaters.
"The theater-going experience is under threat," he said, noting that the number of screens shrunk during the pandemic.
"If we don't reverse this trend, we'll be losing a vital part of our culture," Baker added.
Shawn Robbins, Director of Movie Analytics at Fandango and founder and owner of Box Office Theory, said the movie business was adjusting to "a new normal."
"Event movies are increasingly drivers of the business," Robbins said. "There's even more weight on their shoulders in terms of box office dollars."
Moviegoers still turn out for big-budget films, Robbins said, but have shown they are happy to wait to watch others at home.
"It is very common knowledge that a lot of movies will be available to stream within three to eight weeks, whereas it used to be a minimum of three months," he said.
'AVATAR' AS TIPPING POINT?
Among the big hitters coming to theaters this year are "Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning," a movie that may be Cruise's last appearance in the long-running action franchise. "One last time," he says in the trailer. The film will debut over the US Memorial Day weekend in May, along with Walt Disney's live-action version of animated classic "Lilo & Stitch."
Brad Pitt plays a Formula 1 driver in the June release "F1," and in July, Warner Bros will release its new "Superman" movie directed by "Guardians of the Galaxy" filmmaker James Gunn and starring David Corenswet.
From Marvel, the anti-hero team "Thunderbolts" will kick off the summer moviegoing season in early May, followed by "The Fantastic Four" in late July.
Around the November and December holidays, offerings include the second part of musical box office phenomenon "Wicked," animated sequel "Zootopia 2" and "Avatar: Fire and Ash," the third film in James Cameron's "Avatar" series. The first "Avatar" is the highest-grossing movie of all time, and the second movie ranks third.
Robbins projected 2025 would end with a slight increase in domestic box office receipts compared with last year, "maybe flirting with $9 billion." He said it is unclear when ticket sales will return to pre-pandemic levels.
Richards said he believed the new "Avatar" would kick off "an extraordinary three to five years" for cinemas.
"We're going to see (Avatar) as the tipping point," Richards said. "2026 has got an extraordinary number of great films."