Ashanti is most famous for her eponymous Grammy Award-winning debut album Ashanti which featured the hit song Foolish. The album set a Soundscan record as the most albums sold by any first-time female artist in the chart's history, outselling debuts by Alicia Keys and Lauryn Hill. Later that year, she was acclaimed as the "Princess of Hip-Hop & R&B" by the media and capped off her successful debut by winning eight Billboard awards and two American Music Awards.
Ashanti cites Mary J. Blige and Ella Fitzgerald as her musical influences. Praised as a gifted songwriter by her peers and critics alike, Ashanti has written/co-written the bulk of all her music. She is currently an independent artist on her own record label entitled Written Entertainment.
It was when she was noticed by Murder Inc. mastermind Irv Gotti that Ashanti began to blossom. Gotti noted her dancing and acting abilities in addition to her vocal skills. In 2001, Ashanti was first featured as a background vocalist on rapper Big Pun's song How We Roll. In the same year, Ashanti was featured on fellow labelmate Caddillac Tah's singles Pov City Anthem and Just Like A Thug. She also appeared on the 2001 The Fast and the Furious soundtrack as a featured artist on Vita's 2001 hip hop remake of Madonna's Justify My Love and on the solo track When a Man Does Wrong. She appeared as a background vocalist on I'm Real (Murder Remix), a collaboration by labelmate Ja Rule and Jennifer Lopez (she also appeared in the music video for Ain't It Funny (Murder Remix), the 2nd duet between Lopez & Rule), and was featured on Fat Joe's What's Luv? and Ja Rule's Always on Time. What's Luv? and Always on Time were released simultaneously and became two of the biggest hit songs of 2002. Ashanti became the first female to occupy the top two positions on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart when Always on Time and What's Luv? were number-one and number-two respectively.
Following the success of her collaborations with Ja Rule and Fat Joe, Ashanti released her debut single, Foolish, which contained a sample of the 1983 song Stay With Me by DeBarge (also utilized by Notorious B.I.G. in his 1995 hit One More Chance). She became the second artist (after the The Beatles) to have their first three chart entries in the top ten of the Hot 100 simultaneously. Ashanti's self-titled debut album, Ashanti, was released on Irv Gotti's Murder Inc. record label in April 2002. It debuted at number-one on the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart, selling over 503,000 copies in its first week (the most successful first week sales for a debut R&B female artist up through that point--record later broken by Mary J. Blige's The Breakthrough). The album has been certified 3x platinum in the U.S and platinum (300,000 copies) in the UK. The album has sold over 6.5 million copies worldwide. Ashanti penned all 12 songs on the album, most written on-the-spot in the studio.
Ashanti's follow-up singles, Happy and Baby, were not as successful as her debut single but did peak in the top ten and top twenty in the U.S. respectively. During the summer of 2002, Ashanti appeared on Ja Rule's Down 4 U with labelmates, female rappers Vita and Charli Baltimore. The song appeared on a Murder Inc. compilation titled Irv Gotti Presents The Inc. Ashanti's debut album earned her many awards including eight Billboard Music Awards, two American Music Awards, a Lady of Soul Award for "Aretha Franklin Entertainer of the Year," and a Grammy Award.
In July 2003, Ashanti released her second album, Chapter II, which debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of 326,000 copies in the U.S.. The album went Platinum, selling 1.5 million copies in U.S. The album's success was somewhat eclipsed, however, by all the negative drama surrounding the Murder Inc. camp at the time (i.e., the FBI investigation and the G-Unit feuding). Chapter II's first single, Rock wit U (Awww Baby), became a hit, peaking at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. Its video, which showed Ashanti in a bikini frolicking on a beach and riding an elephant named Bubbles, was nominated for two 2003 MTV Video Music Awards. A remix of the song contains interpolations of Michael Jackson's Rock with You. The second single, Rain on Me, reached the number-seven spot on the Hot 100 and number two on the Hot 100 R&B Songs chart. Chapter II was nominated for a 2004 Grammy Award for Best Contemporary R&B Album, and Rock wit U (Awww Baby) and Rain on Me were nominated in the categories of Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, respectively. At the end of 2003 in November, Ashanti performed at The American Music Awards and was nominated in two categories.
In November 2003, Ashanti's Christmas album, Ashanti's Christmas was released. The album containing 10 Christmas songs, six classic covers and four she wrote herself. To coincide with the release Ashanti premiered a Christmas Medley video for the album. While on BET's 106 & Park, Ashanti said the concept of the Christmas Album came from a guest spot she did on Steve Harvey's radio show. While playing a game with Stevie Wonder, he began playing Christmas medleys on the piano and Ashanti began singing them, giving her label head the idea to push for a Christmas Album. Ashanti went into the studio to record the album during the summer of 2003. According to soundscan, the album sold just around 100,000 units in the U.S.
Before Concrete Rose was released, Ashanti did some major promotion for her single Only U, when she premiered it at the 2004 Vibe Music Awards. In 2004, Ashanti was invited back to perform at VH1's Divas 2004. She appeared on stage with Patti LaBelle, Gladys Knight, Jessica Simpson, and others. She performed Diana Ross' single "I'm Coming Out", and she performed a soul-influenced rendition of Chaka Khan's funk driven "Ain't Nobody. Later that year Ashanti collaborated with male R&B newcomer and labelmate Lloyd on the song Southside, which was released as his debut single and was a moderate hit. Wonderful—with Ja Rule and R. Kelly—peaked at number five in the U.S. and at number one in the UK, and Jimmy Choo with rapper Shyne reached number fifty-five on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart. Alongside artist such as Wyclef Jean, Mary J. Blige, Eve, Brandy, Fabolous, Jadakiss, Missy Elliott, and many others, Ashanti participated in a cover of "Wake Up Everybody" in support of ACT, the left-leaning political action committee.
In December 2004, Ashanti released her third studio album, Concrete Rose, the title of which took on Tupac Shakur's pseudonym "The Rose That Grew from Concrete". The album debuted at number seven in the U.S with first week sales of 254,000 copies, and eventually became her third platinum certified album; according to Nielsen SoundScan, it has sold 871,000 copies. The first single, the gold-certified Only U, reached number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100 and became her biggest hit in the United Kingdom, peaking at number two. A second single, the ballad Don't Let Them, garnered little chart success after Def Jam refused to fund a music video due to Irv Gotti's legal troubles during his money laundering trial. Ashanti used her own money to deliver the second video to her fans, with Gotti acting as director. The single was released only in the U.S., where it failed to chart, and the UK, where it reached the lower end of the top forty. In 2005, Ashanti graced the stage at the MTV Japan Music Awards, where she performed her hit single, Only U. She also won a Style award during the show. She performed alongside huge acts like Mariah Carey and Korean star Rain.
In December 2005, Ashanti released a remix album of Concrete Rose titled Collectables by Ashanti. It features six remixes of previously released tracks and four newly recorded songs, including the single Still on It, which features rappers Paul Wall and Method Man. The album was an opportunity for her to fulfill her contract with Def Jam (and have the option of working with another label), and did not fare well on the charts.
Her fourth studio album, The Declaration, was released on June 3, 2008. Ashanti ventured out and acquired producers and collaborators primarily outside The Inc. for the first time. She said the album was a representation of the freedom she felt she had at that time in her career. "I'm steering my own ship and taking the lead on everything. You can definitely hear the growth; I'm working with producers I've never worked with before". Irv Gotti was quoted as saying, "she's having her little Janet Jackson Control moment. Every artist has their moment when they feel they need to take over their own music and this is hers".
The album debuted at number six on the Billboard 200 with sales of 86,000 copies, Ashanti's lowest first-week sales for a studio album. As of September 2008, The Declaration had sold 230,000 copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. Two singles released during 2007 in advance of the album's release—Switch featuring Nelly, and Hey Baby (After the Club) featuring Mario Winans—did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Hey Baby (After the Club) reached number eighty-seven on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, and the third single, the L. T. Hutton-produced The Way That I Love You, reached number two on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart and peaked at number thirty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The final single, the Jermaine Dupri-produced Good Good, became a minor urban hit, peaking at number thirty on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. Also featured on The Declaration is the Nelly collaboration Body on Me, which is the third single from his 2008 album Brass Knuckles.
In May 2009, Irv Gotti announced that he was officially releasing Ashanti from The Inc. Records, stating that "The relationship has run its course. The chemistry of what's needed — we're in two totally different places. You're talking to somebody that took her and shaped and molded her and put her out there for the world, and it blew up. We [hold the record] for the [fastest] selling debut by a female R&B artist — 503 [thousand]. We did it! My views and philosophies and her views and philosophies are not meeting up." Gotti also admitted that he and Ashanti have not spoken to each other in a long time. A rep for Ashanti did not respond.
BraveHeart, her fifth album on March 4, 2014. Upon release, the album garnered favorable reviews, with music critics describing Braveheart's sound as an "evolution of R&B" and praising the themes of empowerment, but criticizing the romantic clichés and lack of interesting moments on the album. On the charts, Braveheart opened at number ten on the U.S. Billboard 200, becoming Ashanti's fifth consecutive top-ten album, as well as her first Independent Albums chart topper. It also debuted in the top-thirty of the UK R&B Albums Chart and top-forty of the UK Indie Albums Chart.
In 2017, she announced her seventh studio album, set to be released in 2018 or 2019. On November 6, 2017, she released the first single, “Say Less” feat. Ty Dolla $ign.
Come 2 me
Ashanti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
People talking 'bout the girl who's come to town
Lovely lady pretty as can be
No one knows her name she's just a mystery
I have seen her maybe once or twice
The one thing I can say thought she's very nice
She's a lady one I really want to know
Somehow I've got to let my feeling show
[Chorus:]
She's fresh exciting
She's so exciting to me
She's fresh exciting
She's so inviting to me yeah
I've been thinking about the way you walk
Baby I like the way you talk
Tell you something I really can't hide
Heaven must have sent you to be by my side
Fresh and lovely like a dream come true
I'll give anything to spend the night with you
What a feeling and I can't stop it baby
Miss frisky lady take me away
[Chorus:]
She's fresh as a summer breeze
She'll take you by surprise
She means so much to me
I'll do whatever to make her mine baby
Oh yeah
Oh yeah she's fresh so fresh
She's fresh she's so fresh (x2)
Fresh as a summer breeze
She's fresh she's so fresh
She means so much to me
Yeah I want to take her by the hand
And pray she'll understand
'Cause I love the way she walks
And ooh baby I love the way she talks
I've got something and I hope she'll understand
Miss frisky lady
She's fresh
She's fresh she's so fresh
Thank you for your request!
The Ashanti song "Come 2 Me" is about a woman who has recently arrived in town and has caught the attention of the singer. Although they've only seen her a few times, the singer is infatuated with her and wants to get to know her better. The lyrics describe her as "fresh exciting" and "fresh as a summer breeze," emphasizing her youthfulness and allure.
The singer is clearly smitten with this woman and wants her to know it. They describe her as a "lovely lady" and a "miss frisky lady," indicating that she is both beautiful and playful. The lyrics suggest that the singer wants to pursue a romantic relationship with her, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to win her affection.
Overall, the lyrics to "Come 2 Me" are about the excitement and uncertainty of falling in love with someone new. The singer is drawn to this woman and wants to get to know her better, but they are also unsure about how to approach her. The song captures the feeling of being swept up in a new romance and the desire to connect with someone on a deeper level.
Line by Line Meaning
Conversation is going 'round
Rumors are spreading
People talking 'bout the girl who's come to town
Everyone is talking about the new girl in town
Lovely lady pretty as can be
The girl is beautiful
No one knows her name she's just a mystery
The girl is mysterious and unknown
I have seen her maybe once or twice
The artist has seen the girl a few times
The one thing I can say thought she's very nice
The singer thinks the girl is very nice
She's a lady one I really want to know
The singer wants to get to know the girl
Somehow I've got to let my feeling show
The artist needs to express their feelings to the girl
She's fresh exciting
The girl is new and exciting
She's so exciting to me
The girl is exciting to the artist
I've been thinking about the way you walk
The singer has been thinking about the girl's walk
Baby I like the way you talk
The artist likes the girl's way of speaking
Tell you something I really can't hide
The singer has something to confess
Heaven must have sent you to be by my side
The singer believes that the girl was sent by heaven to be with them
Fresh and lovely like a dream come true
The girl is beautiful and perfect like a dream
I'll give anything to spend the night with you
The artist wants to be with the girl and is willing to do anything for it
What a feeling and I can't stop it baby
The artist has intense feelings for the girl that they can't control
Miss frisky lady take me away
The singer wants the girl to take them away
She's fresh as a summer breeze
The girl is refreshing and new like a summer breeze
She'll take you by surprise
The girl will surprise you
She means so much to me
The girl is important to the artist
I'll do whatever to make her mine baby
The artist is willing to do anything to have the girl
Yeah I want to take her by the hand
The singer wants to hold the girl's hand
And pray she'll understand
The artist hopes the girl will understand their feelings
'Cause I love the way she walks
The singer loves the way the girl walks
And ooh baby I love the way she talks
The singer loves the way the girl talks
I've got something and I hope she'll understand
The singer has feelings for the girl and hopes she'll feel the same
Miss frisky lady
The artist addresses the girl as a playful and fun lady
She's fresh
The girl is new and exciting
Thank you for your request!
Thank you for using our service!
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., TUNECORE INC
Written by: CLAYDES SMITH, RONALD BELL, GEORGE BROWN, ROBERT BELL, JAMES TAYLOR, CURTIS WILLIAMS, JAMES BONNEFORD, SANDY LINZER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@luckyshow98
A baby Shanti! I love seeing an artist unpolished, in the hopeful beginnings of their career. When the studio was their favourite place to be and the immeasurable joy hearing their voice for the first time on a track.
@angholloway5091
Queen ashanti!!!
@TheSound859
Love it !
@gmac2297
Is this sample??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WV58eTVyTWM
@IndieChick8
such a good song :)
@gmac2297
Is this sample??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WV58eTVyTWM
@italianbabiex8
Cute song =)
@gmac2297
Is this sample??
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WV58eTVyTWM