Ashanti: My Stalker Used to Be Lil Wayne's Cellmate
Singer explains obsessed fan’s connection to Weezy in her first-ever Breakfast Club interview.
The BraveHeart songstress didn't shy away from the hard topics brought up during her first ever sit-down with DJ Envy, Angela Yee and Charlamagne tha God. She opened up about label troubles, her relationship status with Nelly (she admits that much of the album is based on her real experiences) and what it felt like to be stalked.
"That was nuts," she said about her accused stalker, Devon Hurd, sending her and her mom inappropriate pictures, tweets, text messages and pictures of her car and house. "It was not cool." But, she added, "What's really crazy is he was in the same cell as Lil Wayne," she exclaimed.
Weezy and Hurd, a 35-year-old Brooklyn resident, coincidentally served time together on Riker's Island, back when Wayne was behind bars on weapons possession. She found out after Weezy got out. Hurd is still at Riker's.
"So when me and Wayne was in Miami, he was like 'Yo sis, this dude is crazy, I was there with your stalker,' and he told me the whole story," she explained.
The "Never Should Have" singer also goes into details about why she chose to go the independent route, even though at one point since her last release, 2008's The Declaration, she had seven offers on the table from major labels. She said the final decision came down to the bottom line. "I felt like I did too much to have them dig that deep into my pocket. Now is my time to be brave about the situation."
Ashanti also noted that, from her perspective, the Murder Inc. deal basically "dissolved" after the company got caught up in financial and legal struggles, and she denied accusations that she wasn't loyal to Irv Gotti and the imprint. She may not have spoken with Gotti in years, but she still considers him family, and Ja Rule, "that's my brother," she said.
Hurd is currently facing charges for felony stalking and harassment. He believes that he has a personal relationship with Ashanti, he said, because, she made eye contact with him at a concert.
