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After Irv Gotti's "Drink Champs" interview aired, where he talked about his romantic relationship and negative feelings towards his former artist, the singer Ashanti, she told her version of how things happened in a recent interview with Angie Martinez.
Despite the tremendous success as a songwriter and singer that Ashanti brought to Irv's now-defunct record label, Murder Inc., Irv appears to resent Ashanti twenty years after they created the best album of her career. Irv has gone to the media explaining that he "made" Ashanti and that she was not loyal to Murder Inc.
His "Drink Champs" interview was a bit of a bashing session about the songstress. He seemed to have sour grapes about once being in love with her (while separated from his former wife) and finding out that she had started a relationship with the rapper Nelly. In additional media statements, Gotti has also expressed bitter feelings about Ashanti gaining ownership of the albums she recorded with his label. In a social media post, he said, "What she is trying to do is re-record all those great records. And put them out on her label. She can do this under the COVER laws. But she is basically trying to f**k me out of my Masters."
In a very candid discussion with radio personality Angie Martinez on her "IRL" podcast, Ashanti said, "Irv has flat-out lied about a lot of things." The veteran entertainer gave a different account of their relationship and his actions against her, "Was Irv my boyfriend, was I his girlfriend? Never. Never! Irv had several girlfriends. So I'm a little confused by the thought and the label and the description." Ashanti also explained that she was unwilling to participate in the Murder Inc. documentary because of the ongoing disrespect from her former producer. She felt that his "Drink Champs" interview was an opportunity for him to promote the docu-series, which he did in part by throwing mud on her name.
During the hour-long interview, she also mentioned that Gotti tried to sabotage her career: "Irv would not let me come to the studio to record. Irv was telling everyone not to record with me." She also stated that he blocked her from business opportunities by telling deejays not to play her records and threatening to cut ties with anyone who worked with her. The "Rain on Me" singer said, "For the record, I love Murder Inc. It's very unfortunate how Irv decided to handle his documentary. I feel like the Murder Inc. legacy is so much bigger, and we accomplished so much and made amazing history. And I feel like the way that he handled it tarnished and it cheapened the brand. We all worked so hard and for you to be that selfish and throw mud on the name because you might've got a check. It's so selfish! It's so degrading."
The award-winning singer told Martinez she's thankful for recently earning a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and her plans to continue creating music, acting, and moving forward in life.
Best of luck to Ashanti!
Photo Credit: Ashanti via Instagram
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