Celebrity
Rapper Nelly and singer Ashanti dated for years back in the early 2000s, but they didn’t get married until after they reconnected in 2022. And Nelly once gave some insight as to why.
Rapper Nelly rose to fame in the early 2000s music industry with hits like “Ride Wit Me” and “Hot in Herre.” He had yet another big hit in 2010, “Just a Dream,” and while people always cared about his music, they also cared about his personal life — specifically, his longtime relationship with singer Ashanti during the early 2000s.
Nelly and Ashanti were in a relationship from 2006 to 2013, but they were friends as far back as 2003 (and many suspect they were dating before the public knew it). Still, despite dating for so long, Nelly insisted at one point that he was not ready for marriage.
Nelly once revealed why he took so long to marry Ashanti
These days, Nelly and Ashanti are happily married. The two rekindled their romance after reconnecting in 2021, and they wed in 2023; Ashanti announced in 2024 that she and Nelly had welcomed their first child, a son named Kareem.
Back in 2010, though, Nelly gave some insight into why he hadn’t married his then-girlfriend despite having dated her for years. “We’re really good friends,” Nelly said when speaking about his relationship with Rap-Up TV. “I think that’s the thing that people don’t understand, and I say that because … Society puts a pressure on you because they want to see a certain kind of relationship.”
Nelly continued, “If that relationship don’t work, then society doesn’t take the responsibility … I think you really have to be friends first.”
He went on to say that he doesn’t want to be “married more than once,” and that it’s “not about how long it takes.” Nelly might have been onto something, considering he did end up marrying Ashanti 20 years after meeting her. They kept things quiet, though, not even announcing their marriage until several months after it happened.
Nelly and Ashanti recently welcomed their first child
The pair have always kept quiet about their relationship, even when they were regularly in the public eye. Nothing changed once they reconnected, and the two were not quick to announce Ashanti’s pregnancy. In July 2024, they announced the birth of their son, Kareem Kenkaide Haynes, though the two have kept him out of the spotlight since.
Nelly and Ashanti are both still making music, with each of them announcing tour dates for 2025. The two seemed happier than ever in November 2024, when Nelly threw his wife a surprise party. It seems that Nelly was right all along about waiting until he was ready.
