Joyner Lucas Confirms He Dated Ashanti Before She Reconciled With Nelly: ‘She’s Gonna Be an Amazing Mom'

Joyner Lucas is opening up for the first time about his relationship with Ashanti.

The rapper, 35, made a guest appearance on an episode of The Jason Lee Podcast where he shared several tidbits about his relationship with the “Foolish” singer, 43.

“It was dope. She’s a really dope person—she really is. She’s an amazing person,” Joyner told Lee at the 1:18:48 mark.

“I’m a private nigga. I don’t talk about it,” Joyner said when asked about when they started dating. “But what I will say is that she’s an amazing person and [I’m] super happy for her. She’s about to have a baby. I know how much she wanted to be a mom.”

Apparently the relationship was serious enough for the pair to talk about having children of their own.

“I mean, we had those conversations. I wasn’t at a place in my life where I wanted that at that time,” added Joyner. “We talked about a lot of shit.”

When asked if he was ever in love with the singer, Joyner said, “Yeah, I would say I loved her, for sure … She’s a very easy person to be in love with though. She’s dope, super dope person, bro. I’m not just saying that.”

“Again, I knew that what she wanted and what she needed? I don’t feel like I could’ve fulfilled that at that time. ‘Shanti been in the game for 25 years; I just got in the game. I know what she wanted and what she needed. I don’t feel like I was in a place in my life where I could commit to that, and that’s about it. But, you know, I’m happy she got [her] way. I’m happy that she ended up going—spun the block with Nelly, and now she’s having a baby. I’m super proud of her … She’s gonna be an amazing mom. I would tell her that all the time.”

“We didn’t really have a lot of problems in our shit, we really vibed, and we really got along. It was a really dope situation, and it lasted about two years,” he added.

Lee then asked Joyner if he would have married Ashanti while pointing out that she was eight years older than him.

“I do feel like it’s something about older women that I gravitate towards, and I just think it’s because older women understand certain shit that young women don’t,” said Joyner. “It’s not even all about sex though; it’s like an intellectual level. I just feel like older women are just on a different level mentally. I’m not saying all older women, but I never looked at the age gap between me and Ashanti. I never really cared about that.”

The exact timeline of Joyner and Ashanti’s romance isn’t perfectly clear, but some believe that their relationship began around the time the couple starred in the music video for “Fall Slowly” in 2020.

During a 2021 interview with The Breakfas​​t Club, Ashanti revealed that her mother and sister approved of the guy she was seeing at that time. However, when Charlamagne tha God asked if it was Joyner Lucas, the singer neither confirmed nor denied the relationship.

“What are you talking about, Charlamagne? Why would you say that?” said Ashanti at the time.

In November 2022, Ashanti tweeted her intentions to start a family, writing, “I wanna have kids next year! Hopefully homie does the right thing! 😩🤦🏽‍♀️🤣 #fallingforyou.”

Last year, Ashanti and Nelly, 49, infamously rekindled their relationship after dating on and off from the early aughts through 2013. Reports that the couple were expecting their first child emerged in December, but neither of them confirmed nor denied the pregnancy.

Tina Douglas, Ashanti’s mother and manager, corrected a host last month for sending her congratulations for their pregnancy.

“There’s been no announcement. It hasn’t come out yet until I hear it from Ashanti and Nelly,” said Douglas.