What did Ray Daniels say about Ashanti? Podcaster regrets his clip about R&B singer using "cheat code" going viral 

After a video of Ray Daniels calling Ashanti "the biggest fake-out" in the history of R&B music went viral last month, the music executive addressed it in his latest appearance on The Danza Project (uploaded on Monday, July 28).

Ray Daniels started by stating that he wasn't an Irv Gotti fan, adding:

"I wasn't a fan of him because I felt like he didn't grow as a man... I respect what he did, but I hate to see someone take that opportunity to minimize him. All I was really trying to tell people was Irv is a genius."

Daniels then went on to say how Gotti discovered Ashanti and laid down a path for her in hip-hop, as opposed to R&B, which was more common for the Black women artists of the time.

Then, referring to his cheat code video about Ashanti that went viral last month, Ray said:

"I hate that it went viral like that, 'cause it was like I was hating on her, but I wasn't. I was just acknowledging what she did to win. And I was acknowledging Irv's genius. I feel like that sh*t was just misinterpreted."

While Daniels acknowledged that Ashanti might have written her own lyrics, it was Irv Gotti who "snuck her in on the radio," calling it the rapper's genius. He continued:

"I don't think Ashanti knew Scarface's 'Mary, Mary'... That's some Southern sh*t, Irv Gotti knew it. And he gave it to her. So all I was saying is sometimes artists be acting like it was them, but you were really the creation of somebody else, and somtimes, just thank that person."

Ray Daniels also mentioned how not every artist was Chris Brown, to write, dance, produce, and sing all on their own, which was completely okay.

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Ashanti's Peacock documentary with Nelly premiered on Peacock last month

Ray Daniels' viral comment about Ashanti came soon after the singer's documentary with husband, Nelly - We Belong Together - was released on Peacock (on June 26).

The couple has had an on-and-off relationship for nearly a decade. They had a major breakup in 2013, being completely out of each other's lives for the next eight years. However, when the duo attended Fat Joe and Ja Rule's Verzuz battle in 2021, their romance rekindled.

As their romance was reignited, the couple got married in December 2023 and welcomed their son, Kareem Kenkaide Hayes, into the world the following year.

In the documentary, the couple also opens up about parenting their 10-month-old. Sharing how Nelly's return to touring has been a bittersweet experience for her, Ashanti said:

"I am split about this tour. My first response is I'm super happy for him for putting it together. The wife and mommy side of me is like, 'f**k'… The wife side of me and the mom side of me is a little sad. You know, daddy's going to be gone for a long time."

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Nelly is currently on the Where The Party At Tour, which celebrates 25 years of his debut album, Country Grammar. The tour will conclude on September 19 in Arkansas.

Edited by Akanksha Mishra