Fat Joe joined R&B legend Ashanti on Instagram Live, Saturday, and revealed that Irv Gotti and Ja Rule originally wanted to swap out Ashanti for Jennifer Lopez, because they wanted “the Latinos on this.”

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“Irv and Ja had called me, and they woke me up [at] like 3 in the morning, and they say, ‘Yo, come down, we made a song for you,” he recalls. “I go to the studio, it was like 4 in the morning. They played ‘What’s Luv?’ and you on it. And they was telling me, ‘Yo, this is for you and J. Lo. We want the Latinos on this.”

Joe says he was taken away by Ashanti’s vocals and said she deserved to be there: “I was like, yo, J. Lo? She [Ashanti] sound amazing on here. I was like, ‘Nah, we leaving her there.'”

The story was news to Ashanti as much as it was news to any of the listeners. She reacted with an emphatic “What?,” after Joe finished.

“What’s Luv?,” featuring Ashanti’s vocals, went to peak at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100, and remained on the charts for 20 weeks. It remains one of the most popular tracks on both artist’s discographies.

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Ever since Terry “Southwest T” Flenory was released from prison this month, 50 Cent has been fighting his battles for him. His brother, the more well-known Big Meech, remains behind bars as his legal counsel fights to get him out due to COVID-19 concerns. Only one half of the brother tandem is free and 50 Cent — being the executive producer of the new series about BMF — stepped up and pressed a number of people about paying off their debts to the drug trafficking organization.

Last week, 50 Cent went after Diddy and Jeezy, who both paid up rather quickly. One man was reluctant to come through though, and that’s Irv Gotti.

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As you surely know, 50 Cent and Irv Gotti don’t have a spot-clean history. In fact, these two men just don’t like each other. Fif tried to get Irv Gotti to connect with Southwest T to deliver on his alleged debt but, according to the Murder Inc. honcho, that just wasn’t the case.

He claimed that he owes Black Mafia Family none of his money, insisting that he’s on good terms with both Big Meech and Southwest T. However, after supposedly checking in with T this week, 50 Cent is still stepping on Irv Gotti’s neck for the cash.

“@irvgotti187 punk ass checked in, so he need to work out his payment plan,” wrote the rapper on Instagram, sharing a vintage photo of Southwest T. “Talking about we in a pandemic. FT where the money.”

So, was Irv Gotti lying about not owing them any money or is this just another manipulated plan for 50 Cent to belittle his rivals?

Today’s the day. If Irv Gotti doesn’t make an effort to reach out to BMF’s co-founder Southwest T, he could be facing a rude awakening.

50 Cent has been stepping up to the plate for Black Mafia Family after Terry “Southwest T” Flenory was released early from prison due to COVID-19 concerns. The rapper is currently producing a series about their notorious drug operation, which is likely the reason why he’s so invested in this story. He knows what Southwest T and Big Meech are capable of so he’s ensuring that he stays on their good side. 

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Last week, Fif called out Diddy and Jeezy, asking them to connect with Southwest T and pay their debts. They both came through quickly, proving their loyalty. However, Irv Gotti has still not responded to the constant call-outs and 50 Cent is giving him until the end of the day to make good on his word.

“Boy you best be coming up with that money you borrowed it’s Monday fool,” said 50 Cent on Instagram. “@irvgotti187 pay your debt @bmfboss_swt_263 #Starz #BMF.”

Irv Gotti is the only person that still has not paid off his debt with BMF, making this a pretty easy battle for 50 Cent to go off on. Since he already hates the man because of his connection to Ja Rule, we’re sure Fif has more artillery loaded up and ready to go.

Irv Gotti is not about to let his name be dragged through the mud. He claims to have a spot-clean relationship with BMF, including the co-founders Big Meech and Southwest T. 50 Cent has suggested that Irv Gotti owes them money, but the Murder Inc. boss says that’s a lie.

“Everyone. Please stop Entertaining Clowns. I do not have any time and energy to Entertain clowns. Irv Gotti does not owe anyone a Penny,” said Irv Gotti on Twitter. “Happy to hear T is home. Hoping my n***a Meech comes home as well. Stop with the NONSENSE.”

He continued on Instagram, going all the way OFF on 50 Cent.

“If y’all don’t know by now that homie is a clown and on my dick and will say or do anything for attention,” he said about Fiddy. “I do not owe T or any man a penny. That’s not who I am. Me and T are cool. Let T say I owe him a penny or he gave me money. That will never happen. Because. Me. Irv Gotti never took 1 penny from him. I have always been super cool with my BMF n***as. That goes for T. And it definitely goes for MEECH. With whom I had a closer relationship with. Nothing but Love and Respect. So until you hear T say something. Stop with the clown shit with the clown.”

50 Cent seemingly doesn’t care about Irv’s claims. He loaded another clip this morning, telling the rap executive that’s today is the day he needs to pay up.

During his rise to hip-hop stardom, 50 Cent was no stranger to calling out names on wax. Songs like “How To Rob” made him an instant nemesis of damn near every rapper on the scene, drawing animosity from the likes of Ghostface Killah, Raekwon, Big Pun, and Jay-Z. All the while, Fif found himself trading shots with his lifelong nemesis — Ja Rule — on songs like “Life’s On The Life” and the incendiary “Back Down.” It didn’t take long for 50 to become one of hip-hop’s deadliest lyricists, especially in a combat setting.

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Alas, those days are long behind him, and the once-mighty wordsmith has since opted for another weapon: the meme. By now, we’re used to seeing Fif unleash crude photoshops and unflattering images upon his foes like a scorned diety out for blood. Especially those indebted to him, inadvertently awakening “Fofty” and forever looking over their shoulder. For Irv Gotti, the man behind Murder Inc and BET’s Tales, such a reality has once again become his fate.

Not long after being threatened by his longtime foe over unpaid debts, Irv has found himself on the receiving end of yet another unflattering attack — it was supposed to be a wholesome day at the pool and nothing more. For 50, even the most innocuous of images can be a weapon. “This goofy ni99a still ain’t check in,” writes Fif, alongside an image of a scantily-clad Irv. “Man where the fuck is the money at, @bmfboss_swt_263 said he want that $1,200 you just got from Trump punk, you ducking ni99a’s.” 

By now, you know the drill. Money. Monday. The Fofty way.

No more Mr. Nice Guy for 50 Cent. The legendary rapper and entrepreneur has not been engaging in too many feuds as of late but, this week, we’re seeing the official return of his alter-ego. It’s been a minute since Fofty, the money-obsessed side of Curtis Jackson, came out to play but now that Terry “Southwest T” Flenory is out of prison, he’s making a return.

Earlier today, he demanded money from the BMF co-founder and gave him until next week to come through with the cash. Now, he’s seemingly trying to get Flenory some extra dough to send his way, coming after Irv Gotti and calling him out.

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Posting an unflattering photo of Irv Gotti, the co-founder of Murder Inc. and a close associate of Fif’s rival Ja Rule, 50 Cent made sure the record label executive got the message straight.

“Yo @irvgotti187 you best be coming up with that bread you borrowed from Big T in Encino you sucker ass n***a,” wrote Fiddy on Instagram. “You didnt go see him or put nothing on his books. yeah he home now so you can stretch out to him or get stretched.”

As we reported earlier today, Southwest T is officially out of prison due to COVID-19 concerns. A television show is currently being made about Black Mafia Family with 50 Cent at the helm. 

The death of Pop Smokeis still fresh on the minds of his fans, peers, and supporters in the rap game. But in wake of his death, many are beginning to notice that we’ve seen a lot more young talent get taken away too soon. Following the murder of Pop, Irv Gotti spoke to TooFab where he spoke on rap artists getting targetted the most.

“It’s sad, it really is sad. It happens in hip-hop a lot. And it’s just — I wish our people was different. I wish our people would think for one second,” he said. “20-years-old… It only happens in hip-hop. And I don’t wish that on nobody, but you know what I’m saying. It’s not like you’re ever gonna see Justin Bieber got smoked, or whatever. It’s only hip-hop.”

Just days before Pop Smoke’s murder, he had celebrated his first top 10 album on the Billboard 200 with Meet The Woo. Although we received two strong projects in a short amount of time, 50 Cent revealed that he’ll be finishing and executive producing the next Pop Smoke album. So far, it appears that he’s got the Roddy Ricch feature on the project but he’s still waiting for Drake to respond. 

Pop Smoke’s family recently held a private gathering for the rapper with his burial expected to take place later this week in Brooklyn. 

The shocking news of Pop Smoke's murder rocked hip hop on Wednesday (February 19). The rapper was killed during a home invasion robbery in the affluent Hollywood Hills community of Los Angeles, and artists have come forward to share their grief over the news of his death. Jadakiss stopped by BET's studio to share his thoughts about the 20-year-old New York artist who lost his life too soon and shared that being young and successful shouldn't make you a target for violence.

After offering condolences and prayers to Pop Smoke's family, Jadakiss revealed that he'd spoken to the young rapper in the past. "It's just senseless, we're losing too many young artists," The Lox rapper said. "I spoke to him a few times on the phone. I was gon' have him rock at my daughter's Sweet 16, but he was overseas. He was very... He showed wild love."

Jadakiss revealed that Pop Smoke was still willing to show up and make an appearance for free. "He got tied up, but then I bumped into him at Barclays, that show they had at the Barclays," Jadakiss recalled. "Same thing, nothin' but love backstage... I was just telling somebody today, we lost probably many young artists in the last year or two than I lost my whole career. That's not good. That's not good at all. We gotta just cut it out."

He then quoted a social media post from Irv Gotti that said hip hop is the only genre where you become a target as soon as you become successful. "That's damn sure true with this," said Jadakiss. "That don't happen with nothin' else. He was a young, successful black man. Just got over being a teenager. Twenty-years-old. He had a lot of living to do. He was able to be successful in this game to get himself out of doing some other dumb stuff. He didn't have to sell drugs. He didn't have to put his family in jeopardy for doing something else senseless. For him to lose his life like that? I just... Horrible."

Watch Jadakiss reflect on the loss of Pop Smoke below. We continue to send out heartfelt condolences to Bashar Barakah Jackson's loved ones through this sorrowful time.

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@jadakiss came by today to talk about the sudden death of Pop Smoke, and sends his condolences to his family ??#BETRemembers #PopSmoke

A post shared by BET Networks (@bet) on Feb 19, 2020 at 5:48pm PST