Early life
Can't Stop (recorded in 1997 but released in 2004)
Ashanti was born on October 13, 1980, in Glen Cove, New York. She inherited a zest for music from her mother Tina, a former dance teacher, and her father Ken-Kaide, a former singer. Her father is half Chinese American and half African American. . Her mother is Dominican and African American. Her grandfather, James, was a civil rights activist who associated with Martin Luther King, Jr. during the 1960s.. Growing up, Ashanti took dance lessons and joined the church choir. Ashanti went to Bernice Johnson Cultural Arts Center where she studied different dance styles including tap, jazz, ballet, African, modern and hip hop. She danced with the Senior Pro Ensemble at Carnegie Hall, the Apollo Theater, Brooklyn Academy of Music, Avery Fisher Hall, and the Black Spectrum Theater. With actress and choreographer Debbie Allen at the helm, Ashanti also performed in the Disney TV film Polly alongside stars Keshia Knight Pulliam and Phylicia Rashad, the 1994 Caribbean Awards and dancing with Judith Jamison of the Alvin Ailey Dance Company.
Ashanti displayed a knack for singing when she was six by singing in a gospel choir. Her love of music continued to rise as she attended high school. Ashanti also wrote songs. As a teenager, she performed in a local talent show and at the Soul Cafe, China Club, Madison Square Garden, Caroline's Comedy Club and Greek Fest 2000. By the time she hit puberty, her mom was sending out demo tapes of her daughter's vocal talents, which led to a record deal with Jive Records in 1994. Unfortunately, this relationship soured when Jive tried to make the soulful singing teen into a run-of-the-mill pop star.
Ashanti regrouped by throwing herself into schoolwork and running on her school's track team, which earned her athletic scholarships to Princeton & Hampton University. But she put college pursuits aside when Epic Records came calling with a contract in 1998. However, the label's management changes quickly left Ashanti out in the cold. Undaunted, she continued to croon at local New York clubs and began hanging out at the Murder Inc. recording studio, hoping for another big break.
Early career
It was when she was noticed by Murder Inc. mastermind Irv Gotti that Ashanti began to blossom. Gotti noted her dancing and acting abilities in addition to her vocal skills. In 2001, Ashanti was first featured as a background vocalist on rapper Big Pun's song "How We Roll". In the same year, Ashanti was featured on fellow labelmate Cadillac Tah's singles "Pov City Anthem" and "Just Like A Thug". She also appeared on the 2001 The Fast and the Furious soundtrack as a featured artist on Vita's 2001 hip hop remake of Madonna's "Justify My Love" and on the solo track "When a Man Does Wrong". She appeared as a background vocalist on "I'm Real (Murder Remix)", a collaboration by labelmate Ja Rule and Jennifer Lopez (she also appeared in the music video for Ain't It Funny (Murder Remix), the 2nd duet between Lopez & Rule), and was featured on Fat Joe's "What's Luv?" and Ja Rule's "Always on Time". "What's Luv?" and "Always on Time" were released simultaneously and became two of the biggest hit songs of 2002. Ashanti became the first female to occupy the top two positions on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart when "Always on Time" and "What's Luv?" were number-one and number-two respectively.
Debut album: Ashanti
Ashanti (2002)
Following the success of her collaborations with Ja Rule and Fat Joe, Ashanti released her debut single, "Foolish", which contained a sample of the 1983 song "Stay With Me" by DeBarge (also utilized by The Notorious B.I.G. in his 1995 hit "One More Chance"). She became the second artist (after the The Beatles) to have their first three chart entries in the top ten of the Hot 100 simultaneously. Ashanti's self-titled debut album, Ashanti, was released on Irv Gotti's Murder Inc. record label in April 2002. It debuted at number-one on the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart, selling over 503,000 copies in its first week (the most successful first week sales for a debut R&B female artist).[6] The album has been certified 3x platinum in the U.S and platinum (300,000 copies) in the UK. The album has sold over 4 million copies worldwide. Ashanti penned all 12 songs on the album, most written on-the-spot in the studio.
Ashanti's follow-up singles, "Happy" and "Baby", were not as successful as her debut single but did peak in the top ten and top twenty in the U.S. respectively. During the summer of 2002, Ashanti appeared on Ja Rule's "Down 4 U" with labelmates, female rappers Vita and Charli Baltimore. The song appeared on a Murder Inc. compilation titled Irv Gotti Presents The Inc. Ashanti's debut album earned her many awards including eight Billboard Music Awards, two American Music Awards, a Lady of Soul Award for "Aretha Franklin Entertainer of the Year," and a Grammy Award.
In September 2002, Ashanti and her sister Kenashia appeared on the first DisneyMania cd which was released under Walt Disney Records. The album featured contemporary Disney classics. Ashanti & her sister sang "Colors of the Wind" from the Disney movie Pocahontas. The album was considered a commercial success, achieving Gold certification in February, 2003.
Ashanti's global appeal became very apparent, as FHM credited her as the "Sexiest Woman in Music" in 2002. In 2003, Ja Rule and Ashanti collaborated on another hit song, "Mesmerize." Its music video was a parody of a scene from the film Grease.
Chapter II (2003)
In July 2003, Ashanti released her second album Chapter II. It debuted at number-one on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 326,000 in the U.S. According to Billboard magazine, the album has been certified Platinum (1.5 million copies) in the U.S. and Gold (100,000 copies) in the UK. Chapter II's first single, "Rock Wit U (Awww Baby)", became a hit, peaking at number-two on the Billboard Hot 100. Its steamy video, which showed Ashanti in a bikini frolicking on a beach and riding an elephant named Bubbles, was nominated for two 2003 MTV Video Music Awards. A remix of the song contained interpolations of Michael Jackson's "Rock with You".
The second single, "Rain on Me," reached the top ten of the Hot 100. In the "Rain on Me" mini-movie music video directed by Hype Williams and co-starring Larenz Tate, Ashanti portrays a troubled young woman in an abusive relationship. Ashanti's powerful song and lyrics combined with William's visuals to impart the power and horror of the cycle of domestic violence. Ashanti partnered with LidRock to distribute this mini-movie using LidRock's unique platform. This promotion, in conjunction with heavy rotation on MTV, BET, and other music video programs, has brought this film and her cause to the attention of millions of fans. It has also helped to raise money for the cause with proceeds from the $5 mini-disc going toward helping to stop domestic violence.[7]
The album has sold over 3 million copies worldwide. Ashanti was scheduled to join Mariah Carey on her "Charmbracelet" US tour but due to schedule issues she was the opening act for R.Kelly's five-date tour in summer 2003 instead.
In May 2003, Ashanti appeared on VH1 Divas and performed her single "Rock Wit U (Awww Baby)." She also participated in duets with Stevie Wonder (who later gave her the nickname Little Libra) performing "Do I Do," and the Isley Brothers performing "Who's That Lady".
Ashanti's Christmas
In November 2003, Ashanti's Christmas album, Ashanti's Christmas The album contained almost an equal amount of new songs to cover songs. The album debuted and peaked at 160 in late 2003.
Concrete Rose (2004)
In 2004, Ashanti was invited back to perform at VH1 Divas 2004. She appeared on stage with Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, Jessica Simpson, and others. She performed Diana Ross' smash hit "I'm Coming Out" and she performed a soulful rendition of Chaka Khan's funk driven hit "Ain't Nobody."
Ashanti appeared on three more collaborations. "Southside," with male R&B newcomer and labelmate Lloyd, was released as his debut single nd was a moderate hit while "Wonderful" with Ja Rule and R.Kelly peaked at #5 in the U.S and at #1 in UK. Ashanti was also featured on Shyne's song "Jimmy Choo".
Ashanti released her third studio album, Concrete Rose, in December 2004. The album debuted at #7 in the U.S with first week sales of 245,000, making this her first studio CD to not debut at #1. The first single, "Only U," reached the top fifteen of the Hot 100 and became her biggest hit in the United Kingdom, peaking at #2. The album has been certified platinum. And the single Only U was certified Gold In January 2005.
Collectables by Ashanti
On December 6,2005, Ashanti released a remix album of Concrete Rose titled Collectables by Ashanti. The album features six remixes of previously released tracks and four newly recorded songs, including the single "Still on It", which featured rappers Paul Wall and Method Man. The album, was only an opportunity for her to fulfill her contract with Def Jam (and have the option of working with another label), managing to debut at #59 on the Billboard 200.
Incredible
On Monday, November 27, 2006, Ashanti appeared on BET's 106 & Park to promote the posthumous release of the song Pac's Life, which features herself and rapper T.I.. During the interview, Ashanti mentioned that her new LP would be coming out some time in 2007 and that some of the producers of her 2007 release included L.T. Hutton, Jermaine Dupri, and Pharrell Williams. She also stated that she recorded a "crazy" record with rapper Snoop Dogg.
Ashanti's next album has been confirmed by a BET interview as being entitled Incredible. This will be Ashanti's fourth studio album. A buzz track has leaked called "You Can't Deny It", featuring Jim Jones. Incredible. Irv Gotti recently appeared in an interview with DJ FlexMaster where he mentioned "Ashanti's album will definantly be out this summer".
Acting career
Ashanti got her first taste of acting as a child extra in the Spike Lee directed movies Malcom X starring Denzel Washington & Who's Da Man. She also started as a dancer in the Disney tv film Polly.[8]
After success with her music career, Ashanti ventured back into acting and in 2004, she appeared in the English-language Bollywood film Bride and Prejudice, in which she sang "My Lips are Waiting" and "Touch My Body'. In January 2005, she made her feature film acting debut in the film Coach Carter alongside Samuel L. Jackson. The movie opened at number-one at the U.S. box office, eventually grossing $70 million in the U.S. In 2005, Ashanti also starred as Dorothy Gale in the made-for-television film The Muppets' Wizard of Oz which pulled in nearly 8 million viewers. Ashanti won the "sexiest lead female in a children's film award" in an internet poll.[citation needed] She starred in the 2006 film John Tucker Must Die, which opened and peaked at #3 at the U.S. box office (competing with Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest and Miami Vice) which grossed $58.7 million worldwide. She has also appeared on the TV show Sabrina the Teenage Witch as herself and Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Lissa.[9] Ashanti will also appear in the 2007 film "Resident Evil: Extinction." Many rumors are floating around...one is that she will work with Quentin Tarantino (director from Muppets: Wizzard of Oz)to revive the 70's show Christy Love and she also up to perform as Eartha Kitt in her autobiography.
Other activities
Ashanti's Perfume "Precious Jewel" (2005)
In 2007 Ashanti will launch her second fragrance titled "Captivating".[citation needed]
In addition to singing, Ashanti has emerged as a songwriter, penning songs for pop and R&B performers Jennifer Lopez, Christina Milian, and Toni Braxton. She released a book of poetry titled Foolish/Unfoolish Reflections on Love in 2002 and a fragrance, "Precious Jewel by Ashanti," in October 2005. In 2005, she signed an exclusive deal with MUDD to promote their brand of jeans titled "Delicious Curves." In early 2006, she released "Ashanti's OPC-3 Beauty Blend," a nutritional supplement. shanti also has a clothing line in Europe for teenage girls titled "Princess." There are rumors floating around that Ashanti will appear at the Kennedy Center to honor non other that Patti Labelle.....but only time will tell.
May 2, 2002 Ashanti received the key to the city of Glen Cove, New York (her hometown and the day was named Ashanti's Day); Ashanti also received a key to the city of Atlantic City, New Jersey (she was crowned princess of hip hop and r & b...Ashanti is to receive the key to the city of Miami, Florida in the future.[citation needed]
Ashanti is set to showcase her style in a book, titled Ashanti Style, which will be released in late 2007. The book, which is being touted as Ashanti's "life and style guide" will offer fans a behind-the-scenes look into her style, both in her personal and professional life. Ashanti Style will be published by Jump at the Sun, an imprint of Disney's Hyperion Books for Children. Another venture Ashanti has enlisted in is her own handbags and pocketbook to be revealed in 2007.[10]
Kelis is also working side by side with R & B singer Ashanti to design shoes for the duo's new shoe-line, KeShany Heels.[11]
Legal dispute
In July 2005, record producer Genard Parker claimed Ashanti owed him money for records that never were completed or distributed.[12] A New York court heard Parker's claims and ordered her to pay Parker $636,000. But as the court stated no time records were ever produced. Parker is claiming over $2.3 million, while Ashanti's lawyers, say Parker never delivered any records and no records were ever distributed.[13] In late 2005 a judge later rejected most of the award, ruling that there was not sufficient facts to determine the proper amount of damages. The case went to court on 17 September, but was dropped in light of the each party voluntarily dropping pending lawsuits against each other.
Personal life
Ashanti has been dating rapper Nelly since 2003. Despite rumors, the couple are not engaged. Ashanti is currently working with Pharrell for her upcoming album Incredible .[14]
Ashanti is 5'3 and her favorite movies are "The Color Purple" and "The Gods Must Be Crazy."
Ashanti also peformed the song "America The Beautiful at WWE WrestleMania XIX at SAFECO Field in Seattle, Washington.
