Irv Gotti who appeared on Drink Champs was very clear on where he stands on Ashanti claiming she will re-record her debut album and asking for her stems, no!
In the 2000s, Murder Inc Records was on top of the hip hop world. Led by Irv Gotti and Ja Rule, the duo also had the princess of hip hop and R&B, Ashanti. Hits such as ‘Baby,’ ‘Foolish,’ and ‘Rock Wit U’ made Ashanti a huge star. Murder Inc records came to an end and so did the alleged love relationship between Ashanti and Gotti.
Since then, Irv Gotti and Ashanti have not seen eye to eye. Looking to the future, Ashanti is preparing to own her music, as she discussed in an interview with Angie Martinez in 2021. “The thinking behind that is showing the business side of ownership,” Ashanti explained as to why she will re-record her debut album. “And how important it is to own. And once I re-record the first album, [I own it]. When that goes, everything purchased from that moment, I own.”
Irv was quick to hit the comments section as he provided clarification for Angie Martinez and stated he owns the masters. “I produced all those great Ashanti albums,” Gotti wrote. “So I also own a good portion of the Publishing. 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. And make people decide which album to listen too or stream. Hoping her loyal fans will choose her version.”
Now months later, Irv appearing on Drink Champs along with Ja Rule, the former Murder Inc records CEO, did not hold back. “She’s been performing for 20 years. She’s never asked for her stems, now she’s asking for her stems,” Irv Gotti said around the 14 minute mark. “This is what I suggested happened. She went in the studio and tried to redo ‘Baby.’ So, she probably went in the studio and tried to recreate this and failed drastically short. With people saying that don’t sound like like what they did.”
According to Irv Gotti, Ashanti has asked for her stems, claiming it is needed for upcoming shows. Irv on the other hand isn’t buying it. In audio production, a stem is a discrete or grouped collection of audio sources mixed together, usually by one person, to be dealt with downstream as one unit. (Source: Wikipedia)
“So, you want me to give you the stems of your whole album,” Irv explained on Drink Champs. “And now you’re gonna be able to remake your album.” Irv then looked directly into the camera and said, “Let me just give you the answer now, NO!”