Ashanti and Nelly have welcomed their first baby together! The “Falling for You” singer and “Mad Still” rapper have announced the birth of their baby. The couple confirmed in April that they were expecting after months of speculation.
The news was first revealed following a video Ashanti posted discussing her post-partum experience. The singer shared a picture and video of her wearing Frida Mom underwear and a silky blue bathrobe. In the video she reflected, “Four weeks postpartum. You have no idea what this body can do.” A rep for the couple went on to confirm details about their new baby with PEOPLE. Ashanti and Nelly welcomed a baby boy on July 18th and named him Kareem Kenkaide Haynes. The rep shared, “The proud and happy parents are so in love with KK!”
The “Foolish” singer later shared the inspiration for her son’s name with Entertainment Tonight. She revealed, “His dad [Nelly] named him with a lot of pride. We were going back and forth for a long time on his name and he was very adamant. He was like, ‘This is what I want, I love this.’ I thought it was just so amazing and so thoughtful and so sweet because Kenkaide is my dad’s name and obviously my dad has only girls, so Nelly was just like, ‘I think that would be really dope.’ This was all his idea.” The musicians first met in the early 2000s at the Grammy’s during a press conference. They dated on and off between 2003 and 2013 before separating for nearly a decade. In April 2023, rumors swirled that the couple rekindled their relationship. The following month, the rapper confirmed they were together again.
On her sharing the birth of her son post, the singer reflected on motherhood writing, “Funny how life’s plans aren’t…always on time.. lol. I’ve been waiting to be a mom for a long time now but nothing could prepare me for EVERYTHING motherhood brings! This is what postpartum looks like I’m loving these super cozy @fridamom shorts! I’m so proud of my body for giving me my baby, baby, baby, baby, baby.” While Kareem is Ashanti’s first baby, it is the rapper’s third. Her shares two children with his ex Channetta Valentine: Chanelle and Cornell III. Following his sister Jackie Donahue’s death from leukemia in March 2005, the rapper also adopted her children Shawn and Sydney.
Congratulations to Ashanti and Nelly on the birth of baby Kareem!
Kate Fann (she/her) is the BabyNames.com celebrity blogger, as well as an established content writer, aspiring author, and social media expert. She has been featured in online publications such as Bolde, ManoByte, Medium, The Social Observer, and more. Kate has ghostwritten numerous romance novels and is currently working on publishing her own works in the Young Adult genre.
Kate lives in East Tennessee with her husband Casey and her two sons, Quinn and Noah. When she's not writing or scrolling Instagram, Kate can be found tasting delicious wines, playing with make-up, baking yummy treats, or hiking the beautiful Smoky Mountains.
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