Ashanti Celebrates Mother’s Birthday Amid Nelly Arrest Reactions

Ashanti is in a good mood. The R&B singer took to Instagram to celebrate her mom’s birthday. She posed alongside her mother and various members of her family for a “special night.” The timing of Ashanti’s post was not lost on the internet, though. While the singer was living it up with her family, her husband, Nelly, was being locked up. The rapper was taken into custody on traffic charges the morning of August 7. Fans were shocked by the radically different headlines these two artists prompted. Especially given the way they were shared on social media.

Ashanti has not commented on Nelly’s arrest. Instead, she praised her mother and the recapped the night that she had. “Recap mom’s bday,” she wrote. “This was such a special night. Happy birthday again mom. I love you more than anything.” Ashanti wrote that the date in which the celebration went down was on July 13, so it didn’t actually occur the same night Nelly was taken into custody. Still, the decision to not address the legal elephant in the room seems intentional on the singer’s part.

Nelly was taken into custody at 4:45 am on Wednesday morning. The rapper was initially arrested on a failure-to-appear warrant that went back to a St. Louis traffic charge. After he was arrested, though, the local authorities discovered the rapper had four ecstasy pills on his person. NBC reports that Nelly was subsequently released by Maryland police. The rapper’s lawyer, Scott Rosenblum, issued a statement picking apart the character of the arresting officer. Rosenblum claimed that Nelly was “targeted by an overzealous, out of line officer” who “paraded him through the casino.” The lawyer also asserted that Nelly was not ultimately charged with drug possession.

Ashanti and Nelly have been romantically involved for decades. The two initially dated in the 2000s, before reuniting in 2023. The second time proved the charm, and the artists had a child before tying the knot in December of the same year. “The growth has been like superb, you know, like on both ends,” the singer told Entertainment Tonight. “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.” Ashanti will no doubt help Nelly get through this latest ordeal.