Ashanti recently shared the heartwarming details of Nelly’s proposal, expressing her surprise and joy as the couple prepares to welcome their first child together. In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Tonight, the singer opened up about the unexpected proposal and how their relationship has evolved since they rekindled their romance.
“Never in a million years did I think we would be here,” Ashanti said, reflecting on their journey. “Ten years ago — maybe yes — but after our breakup, you know, I didn’t even think we’d ever have a conversation again.” The couple, who initially broke up in 2013, found their way back to each other nearly a decade later, crossing paths at Fat Joe and Ja Rule’s Verzuz battle in 2021. Nelly got Ashanti’s number from DJ City, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Ashanti admitted that she had to confront her feelings when they started talking again. “I had to really, like, be real with myself, like, do I have feelings for him again? Like what’s going on?” she recalled. “Because they were out, you know what I mean. They were gone. I was pleasantly surprised that they were there.”
Three years later, the couple is closer than ever, preparing to walk down the aisle and start a family. Nelly, who already has two children with ex Channetta Valentine and adopted his sister’s two kids after her death in 2005, is excited to welcome a new addition to their blended family.
Ashanti described the proposal as a “beautiful” and “intimate” moment. “We were not dressy,” she said, recounting how they were in bed, in their pajamas, watching TV. She was wearing one of his t-shirts and boxers when he popped the question. “I cried. I gave him the biggest hug and kiss ever,” she shared. “I FaceTimed everyone I know … I was overjoyed and shocked and surprised and happy kind of like all in one.”
The singer confirmed that she will give birth before they tie the knot. As much as she’s looking forward to their baby’s arrival, she’s equally excited about planning their wedding. She envisions a beach wedding with sunshine and palm trees, a perfect setting for their special day.
Ashanti credits the growth in both her and Nelly for the strength of their relationship this time around. “The growth has been like superb, you know, like on both ends,” she said. “We are both at a place where like before, sometimes we would argue and walk out, slam the door, and not talk for a few days.”
Now, their approach to conflict is much healthier. “It’s kind of like, ‘All right, you good?’ You know, give me a kiss goodbye and it’s over … It’s not like holding on and bickering and we find out what the resolution is. We apologize … It used to take me a little longer to apologize.”
The passion they first shared on stage 20 years ago has transcended into their relationship. “I think just we both are so passionate about working and about building family. We are so, so aligned,” Ashanti said.
When it comes to her engagement to Nelly and them expecting a child together, it seems no one is more shocked than Ashanti herself. “Never in a million years did I think we would be here,” she reiterated. “Ten years ago — maybe yes — but after our breakup, you know, I didn’t even think we’d ever have a conversation again.”
As she puts it, “I guess when you go through a breakup, for me personally, I kind of just shut that person out… It’s kinda like, OK, that chapter is closed and you just move on, you know, and there’s nothing there.”
But, after crossing paths in 2021 — nearly a decade after their split — at Fat Joe and Ja Rule’s Verzuz battle, Nelly got Ashanti’s number from DJ City and, well, here she is three years later, engaged and speaking to ET at her maternity shoot with photographer Derek Blanks.
Of those initial phone calls with her former ex, “I had to really, like, be real with myself, like, do I have feelings for him again? Like what’s going on? Because they were out, you know what I mean. They were gone,” she told ET. “I was pleasantly surprised that they were there.”
In April, the pair gave fans double the reasons to smile when they announced they were engaged and expecting their first child together. So how did Nelly ask one of the biggest questions of his life? “It was just such a beautiful, intimate moment,” she recalled. “We were not dressy.” Watching TV in bed while wearing his T-shirt and boxers, Ashanti was “completely” shocked. “I cried. I gave him the biggest hug and kiss ever,” she described. “I FaceTimed everyone I know… I was overjoyed and shocked and surprised and happy kind of like all in one.”
With their little one on the way, Ashanti confirmed she’ll give birth before they tie the knot. As for what those wedding festivities will entail, Ashanti says she has to have a beach, sunshine, and palm trees as she says “I do” to Nelly in a moment decades in the making.
“The growth has been like superb, you know, like on both ends,” she said of their relationship now compared to a decade ago. “We are both at a place where like before, sometimes we would argue and walk out, slam the door, and not talk for a few days.”
“Now,” she said, “it’s kind of like, ‘All right, you good?’ You know, give me a kiss goodbye and it’s over… It’s not like holding on and bickering and we find out what the resolution is. We apologize… It used to take me a little longer to apologize.”
Now, more than 20 years after first gracing a stage together, these music stars are very much in sync. “I think just we both are so passionate about working and about building family,” she said. “We are so, so aligned.”
