Nelly Sees No Reason to Change His Son’s Diapers

Last year, Ashanti and Nelly announced they were engaged and expecting a baby after getting back together a decade following their earlier breakup. Then, in August, Ashanti shared that they had welcomed their first child together in a post that doubled as postpartum underwear spon. Maybe you’re wondering how things are going. Judging from footage from their new reality show, Nelly & Ashanti: We Belong Together, the answer seems to be: not great.

In the trailer, Nelly — who has four other children — says his parenting style is “just don’t burn down the house.” He elaborated on his views on fatherhood in a recent episode, in which he essentially said he wants nothing to do with his infant son until he’s old enough to walk and talk.

In a clip making the rounds on TikTok, Ashanti laments that Nelly is about to go on tour, noting that “with a baby, it’s a lot” for him to be traveling. Nelly brushes this off, telling Ashanti, “Well, listen, it’s all you.” He adds, “I ain’t even gonna lie. I ain’t got nothing for him.” In case you’re wondering what that means, the producers cut to footage of Nelly explaining to some friends how he sees his role as a parent. “Until he can say ‘I’m hungry,’ until he can say ‘I need to use the bathroom,’ it’s gonna be a lot in your lap,” he says (presumably about Ashanti), laughing. “I say, enjoy, because as soon as he get to walking and talking, he’s with the crew.”

From there, it actually gets worse. Nelly has the nerve to ask Ashanti, “Do y’all really be up at night?” after she asks how he can sleep through their son’s cries. “It’s a gift, I guess,” he says of his ability to tune things out. She says it’s his turn to get up and change their son, but apparently that’s a bridge too far. “Baby, I’ll give you the world,” Nelly says. “I just ain’t changing no diaper.” She responds with an enormous eye roll.

In a follow-up interview with The Shade Room, Nelly clarified that Ashanti “knows whatever she needs, I provide,” adding pointedly that that includes “as many nannies as we can have.” He also said he’s “pretty much on cruise control” when it comes to parenting. Sounds like it.

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