Nelly has opened up about his decision to marry Ashanti shortly after they rekindled their relationship in 2023.
Speaking with Bootleg Kev on Real 92.3 LA, the rapper revealed that Ashanti’s pregnancy played a key role in their decision to tie the knot.
“Once we found out that she was pregnant… We didn’t even have to talk about it,” Nelly shared. “I was like, ‘Yo, let’s just knock this out because we’re going to be doing so much, and everything’s moving fast.’ I didn’t want her to be a baby mama—we already knew where we were in life. If we got back together like this, then this must be what it’s meant to be.”
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Ashanti gave birth to their son, Kareem Kenkaide Haynes, in July 2024—her first child and Nelly’s fifth. Their journey as a couple has been filled with ups and downs, having first broken up in 2013 before reconciling in 2023. They officially confirmed their reunion in September of that year.
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Kev speculated whether sparks first reignited when the two reunited onstage during the 2021 Verzuz battle between Fat Joe and Ja Rule in New York City. However, Nelly dismissed the idea, explaining that he wasn’t looking to stir any tension.
“When I went to Verzuz, I had someone with me,” he said. “I didn’t want things to be awkward. When I walked in, her mother saw me, and I knew she’d go back and tell Ashanti I was there. We didn’t even speak then. I just went over, gave her a hug to break the ice, and that was it. We didn’t talk again for another eight or nine months—maybe even a year. Everything happens for a reason.”
As for the future, Ashanti recently shared that she hopes to have more children with Nelly, including a daughter.
