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It’s been five years since Ashanti left Murder Inc., and despite an ugly departure from the label, she has fond memories, especially when a famous husband and wife joined her and Ja Rule for the “Down 4 U” remix video in 2002.
“That was a great time. We were on the yacht for hours,“ she tells Billboard.com. “Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown came to hang out with us. They were in the video. She was a very personable person.”
Another favorite Murder Inc. moment was when there was a petition protesting that she was receiving the Lady of Soul Aretha Franklin Entertainer of the Year Award the same year.
“A lot of people felt that I didn’t deserve the award,” Ashanti recalls. “Ja [Rule], Irv [Gotti, Murder Inc. CEO] and about 30 dudes with no shirts, they came with me on the red carpet just in case something went down. It showed us being family and supporting.”
Ashanti will sing the national anthem before the April 12 Manny Pacquiao–Tim Bradley fight in in Las Vegas, and Thursday she joined Bob Dylan in visiting Pacquiao at his training facility in Hollywood.
She will perform her latest single “Early in the Morning” featuring French Montana April 9 on the Queen Latifah Show and April 18 on Good Morning America.
Copyright 2014 ABC News Radio
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