Nelly promotes ‘Brass Knuckles’

Even though Nelly had $1 million worth of jewelry stolen from his Aladdin room five years ago, he keeps making our city a frequent stopover, whether it's to play poker or please fans. He was all over Red Rock Resort this weekend, along with friends in fame plus 100 contest-winning fans.

The singer of "Hot in Herre," "Ride wit Me," "Shake Ya Tailfeather" and "Grillz" treated the contest winners to bowling at the hotel on Friday night, followed Sunday by his first full concert in three years (a private show for fans and media).

Those events plus red carpet parties brought other celebs to Red Rock: LeBron James, Jermaine Dupri, Akon, Chingy, Paul Wall, Nelly's St. Lunatics, Floyd Mayweather Jr., Carmelo Anthony, Larry Hughes, Nathan Burton, Criss Angel and of course it wouldn't be a party without Carrot Top.

Nelly was in a great mood, promoting his new album, due Aug. 19. It's called "Brass Knuckles," which sounds a little mean for easygoing Nelly. But in a press conference at Red Rock, he explained "Brass Knuckles" is a metaphor for how the power of it will hit the listener, as did the band Guns N' Roses.

"Guns N' Roses isn't about guns and roses," Nelly said. "You don't' see 'em onstage with guns passing out roses. But I think you get the symbolic meaning."

After the news conference at Red Rock, I asked Nelly why he doesn't own a home here yet. He's thought about it, he said. He loves the wild Strip, but he also enjoyed kicking back in the quieter area around Red Rock.

He's become a better poker player here. Last year, he survived a few hours in a World Series of Poker tournament. He plays smarter than before, he said.

"I used to start with a (crap)load of money. Now I just try to bring a little bit, and it makes me work harder," he said.

Nelly would answer any question I threw at him, so I went deep into his lyrics to ask if he still abides by a line he rapped years ago: "What good is all the fame if you ain't (having sex with) the models?"

Nelly laughed and looked down kind of sheepishly to answer, "You might as well go after the high end!"

HAIRY SITUATIONS

There's an upward trend of musicians rocking mustaches in Weezer, My Morning Jacket and other bands. In the eyes of the latest expert on lip hair, you can credit/blame one celebrity for this development: Las Vegan and Killers singer Brandon Flowers.

"Brandon is responsible for the new wave of young bands growing mustaches," says Jon Chattman, co-author of the "Book of 'Bert,''' which documents the history and current events of celebrity 'staches.

According to Chattman's psychoanalyses, Flowers grew it to signal a new direction for himself and the band, so others are doing the same.

This is hardly the first time Vegas is mired in mustache. Chattman recalls boxing matches in the 1970s, when it was "almost mandatory" to wear one if you were a fighter.

There was also the late Robert Goulet's "amazing" 'stache when he performed on the Strip. Sammy Davis Jr. sported "a nice mustache." And, obviously, there is Wayne Newton, whom Chattman faults for getting rid of his facial accent a while back.

"The way I look at Wayne Newton is the way I look at Alex Trebek. His mustache was his gimmick. It was a selling point, and then he shaved it off. He still has the fake tan, but," Chattman says, "if you're famous with the 'stache, it's hard to accept you without it."

Chattman judges Flowers' mustache to be "pretty decent" and "like a perfect triangle."

"I'm not going to say it's (illusionist) Doug Henning quality. The other guy (in the Killers), Ronnie (Vannucci Jr.), has got the muttonchops, and it's more rugged," he says. "He has a baby face, and it makes him look like a tough guy."

As Chattman ponders all these hairy developments, he comes up with some advice for two of these men:

"Brandon, shave off your mustache, make sure it's intact, put it in a Ziploc bag, and see if you can arrange a trade with Wayne Newton," he says. "Krazy Glue it on Wayne's upper lip."

Doug Elfman's column appears on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Contact him at 702-383-0391 or e-mail him at delfman@reviewjournal.com. He also blogs at reviewjournal.com/elfman.