Ashanti Speaks On J Lo Almost Taking Her Spot On "What's Luv?"

Amber · January 22, 2021

For many, Fat Joe's "What's Luv?" is an iconic song of their childhood and it is made especially strong by the likes of Ashanti, who delivers a spectacular vocal performance. Surprisingly, Fat Joe revealed earlier in 2020 that Ashanti wasn't always supposed to the one on the track. When Irv Gotti and Ja Rule first showed the track to Fat Joe, they claimed that they wanted Jennifer Lopez to replace Ashanti so that it would be a more Latino record. Fat Joe eventually argued against it, and thus a hit was born.

Now, Ashanti is gearing up to go up against Keyshia Cole in what should be a spectacular Verzuz battle. While speaking to The Shade Room, Ashanti was asked about the J Lo "What's Luv?" connection and what she thought about the whole ordeal. As she explained, Ashanti believes it had a lot to do with wanting more money.

"I feel like as an executive, he was probably chasing the bag more, and at that time, I wasn't even signed to Murder Inc," Ashanti said. "For him I think it was you know J Lo is just a huge huge artist. She still is. So he was probably on 'Let's get the money.'"

J Lo's inclusion in the song is definitely one of those "what if" moments although we're glad it was Ashanti who got the final call. As for her Verzuz tonight, let us know who you think is going to win, in the comments below.