During Nelly and Ashanti’s interview on Joe and Jada podcast, rap heavyweights Fat Joe and Nelly opened up about a tense moment involving 50 Cent and the long-running friction surrounding Ashanti — a moment that almost turned volatile during an award show.
During a candid back-and-forth, the two longtime friends recalled the night of the MTV Awards in Las Vegas — a wild evening that included drama, celebrity chaos, and a brush with G-Unit energy.
Fat Joe began by reflecting on how various rappers pledged to have his back during a period when tensions with 50 Cent were rising. “All the rappers that I knew, that I seen get up, you was telling me, ‘Yo, I got you,’” Joe said. “I was like, yo, 50 Cent’s dissing me… But you had my back.”
Nelly then jumped in, setting the scene. “We were at the MTV Awards — you remember that one? The one where Kid Rock slapped the shit out of Tommy Lee? Yeah, that one,” he said, with a laugh. “We were sitting right next to them. 50 was right behind us.”
The story took a serious turn when Nelly recalled a fiery moment involving Ashanti, who was then caught in the crosshairs of 50’s public jabs. “I was hyped. I was like, ‘Yo, I’ll make that man apologize to you right now.’ I turned to Ashanti, and I’m thinking she’ll say no,” Nelly said. “But she said, ‘No, babe. Yep.’ So I’m like… oh damn. Now I gotta go.”
Nelly described approaching 50 Cent and his entire table full of G-Unit affiliates with nothing but nerve and loyalty. “I walked up to 50 like, ‘Let me holler at you.’ And I’m thinking to myself, this ain’t gonna go well,” he admitted.
According to Nelly, the exchange ended without incident — a surprising twist given the history between camps. “I said, ‘Man, do me a favor, out of respect for my lady — apologize.’ And 50 looked me in the face, in front of everybody, and said, ‘Ashanti? Man, my bad. I apologize.’”
50 Cent confirmed the entire story to be true.
The moment has since become a story of rap diplomacy — a rare example of how heated rivalries and relationships can sometimes be settled with mutual respect, even in the middle of a rowdy award show crowd.
