Nelly Admits He Rushed To Marry Ashanti To Prevent Her From Being Labeled A ‘Baby Mama’

While opening up about reuniting with Ashanti and getting her pregnant, Nelly admits that he rushed to put a ring on it and marry her to prevent her from being labeled a “baby mama.”

RELATED: Fat Joe Wants Credit For Reuniting Ashanti And Nelly: ‘When They Had The Pregnancy Rumors, I Said ‘I Need 10 Percent Of This Kid’’

During a recent interview with Bootleg Kev, Nelly reflected on his decision to quickly get married after reuniting nearly a decade after the couple first began dating.

Nelly recalled how he ran into Ashanti during the Verzuz battle between Fate Joe and Ja Rule in 2021. The couple had been separated for about eight years at that point. Nelly recalled:

“When I went to Verzuz, I had somebody with me. We didn’t even talk. I just went over, got a hug…break the ice…We didn’t talk for another almost 8-9 months to a year. We didn’t have a conversation.”

RELATED: Ashanti Gives Birth To First Child With Nelly 

Nelly Recalls Getting Ashanti Pregnant And Wanting To Quickly Marry Her

Nelly went on to reveal how he got Ashanti pregnant shortly after rekindling their romance. He said, “Once we found out that she was pregnant, I was just like yeah… We hadn’t talked about any of that yet.”

Nelly then admitted that after knocking up Ashanti, he then rushed to marry her to avoid her being labeled a “baby mama.” He explained:

“But I was like, ‘Yo, you know what. Let’s just knock this out because we’re gonna be doing so much, and everything’s moving so fast.’ And I didn’t want her to be a baby mama.”

RELATED: Nelly Praises Ashanti After Welcoming Baby: ‘Seeing How Dope Ashanti Is As A Mother Is Awesome’

Nelly and Ashanti famously first dated from 2003 to 2013 before getting back together 10 years later in 2023. That year, the two got pregnant and tied the knot n a private ceremony. In July 2024, they welcomed their first child together, a boy named Kareem Kenkaide Haynes.

In a February 2025 interview with E! News, Ashanti confirmed that the two are planning to have more children in the near future. She said:

“We’re going to add some more. Definitely a girl to balance it out. I’m outnumbered in the house right now. So, a girl would be great.”

RELATED: Ashanti Speaks On Having Another Baby With Nelly — Says She Wants A Girl ‘To Balance It Out’

#Socialites, be sure to check out the post below, then leave us your thoughts in a comment after!

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by HOLLYWOOD UNLOCKED (@hollywoodunlocked)