Before Nelly spun the block with Ashanti, he was in a committed relationship with Shantel Jackson.
They were together for over 5 years, and the couple made it sound like they were very serious about each other.
When he was on Dancing With The Stars in 2020, the famously private rapper did a rare interview with Entertainment Tonight about the state of his relationship at the time.
Nelly Confirmed That Ex, Shantel, Was ‘The One’
He revealed that he wouldn’t want his life to not have Shantel in it.
They’d been seeing each other for five or six years by that point.
He described her as sweet and beautiful, and he explained that the more they got to know each other, the more he could see that she was just as beautiful inside.
When he was asked if she was ‘the one,’ Nelly reportedly confirmed that she was, and he said that he knew that because they had so much in common.
He shared that she grew up in the inner city, so she knew what it was like to go through certain things in life when you grow up in the inner city.
She was very driven and very passionate about the things she did, which was exactly what he loved.
However, when he was later asked if marriage was in the cards for him, Nelly gave a more ambiguous answer.
He just told the reporter: “We’re working towards it… When we know, I’ll tell you.”
PEOPLE reported that the pair first got together in 2014.
Nelly told the outlet that the reason their relationship worked was because they’d been friends first, and that being friends helped in any relationship.
Nelly and Shantel’s Relationship Problems
Not long after they began dating, Nelly’s reality TV series Nellyville began airing, and Shantel was on the show alongside her boyfriend and his 4 kids.
In the premiere episode, Nelly explained that whoever he was in a relationship with needed to have a great relationship with his children.
According to Hollywood Mask, the reality program showed that Shantel had become a mother figure to Nelly’s sons and daughters.
The beginning of their relationship wasn’t without its problems, though.
Their biggest issue was dealing with Shantel’s celebrity ex boyfriend, who reportedly wasn’t happy that she’d moved on from with Nelly.
A report by TMZ revealed that she used to go out with boxing champion Floyd Mayweather.
The outlet claimed that the pair broke up in 2013, not long after Floyd had reportedly given her a $10 million dollar diamond engagement ring.
Floyd Mayweather and Shantel Jackson’s Scandalous Headlines
In 2015, Floyd and Shantel made scandalous headlines when Floyd accused his ex of not going through a pregnancy in which she allegedly would’ve delivered twins.
Shantel responded by suing the boxer for invasion of privacy, DV, and defamation.
RELATED: Jeannie Mai and Jeezy Divorce Reveals Domestic Abuse
Court documents obtained by TMZ claimed that Floyd tried to get his ex to get back together with him by giving her this bizarre proposal: “This is what I offer to you. Let’s get married, move in together, you can go back and forth to L.A and stay at the condo.”
Floyd promised Shantel that he would get her in 3 A-list movies that year.
And he even said that he would be willing to go to counseling.
But he also told her that she needed to have a better attitude.
TMZ reported that Shantel turned down the offer and shared some text message conversations they’d had between them to reveal why she didn’t want to be with Floyd.
He allegedly told her things like how he’d had her phone traced, and that he had adult videos of her that he could put on Instagram and Twitter.
The outlet also claimed that the first time she shared a photo of her and Nelly together online, he ordered her to take it down.
When she said no, he reportedly threatened that if she didn’t take down the photo, he would post pictures of her without clothes on social media.
A report by Radar Online said that in 2021, the parties were able to reach a private agreement and that the court officially closed their case after Shantel dismissed all claims against Floyd.
So, Shantel came with some serious baggage when she and Nelly began their relationship.
But the couple survived the drama, and Shantel later made it clear that she was really serious about going the distance.
Shantel Was Ready to Marry Nelly and Have Kids
After Nellyville ended, she went on to star in another reality show called The Platinum Life on E!.
In one episode, Shantel went shopping with a friend and was trying on diamond engagement rings.
She shared that she saw Nelly as someone she would like to marry and have kids with, but she wasn’t trying to rush it.
When her friend asked her if she wanted kids, she revealed that Nelly had baby fever, but she felt like it wasn’t the right time.
Shantel Confessed About Freezing Her Eggs
Shantel explained that she wanted to get married first, and she then confessed to her friend that she was thinking about freezing her eggs.
Hollywood Mask reported that she later brought up the topic in a phone call with Nelly while being filmed for the show and told him that she’d like to do the procedure because she was over 30.
Nelly tried to assure her that her eggs weren’t old, but in the end, he gave her a supportive answer when he said to her: “I’m a natural guy. If it happens, it happens. But it’s your decision, I’m here to be supportive. Either way, I love you, it’s all good.”
Essence also claimed that Shantel explained on The Platinum Life that she didn’t wanna be a baby momma.
She wanted the horse and carriage, the wedding, and the ring before she had a baby.
But it was something that she never got from Nelly in the end.
The outlet pointed out that he was known for being in long-term relationships that didn’t lead to marriage.
In a 2017 interview with PEOPLE, Nelly opened up about how seriously he took the sanctity of marriage.
He said that it was something he was only doing once.
Nelly’s Allegations
Later that same year, TMZ reported that Nelly was accused of forcing himself on a woman on his tour bus.
RELATED: TI and Tiny Seen for First Time Since SA Lawsuit
According to the outlet, Shantel was sticking by him during the case.
Three days after the allegations came out, she posted a black and white photo of the pair together, and captioned it with their star signs, which TMZ claimed was her way of showing that things were good between them.
When other similar accusations surfaced, a 2018 report by TMZ said that Shantel came to her partner’s defense.
She released a statement claiming that she was with Nelly on the dates that he’d allegedly committed the crimes.
Eventually, the lawsuits against him were dropped.
Why Did Nelly and Shantel Break Up?
In July 2021, the news came out that Nelly and Shantel had officially broken up.
RELATED: Cardi B Confirms Break Up With Offset
PEOPLE reported that Shantel told her Instagram followers that they were through when one of them asked her if they were still together in the comments section of a post she’d shared.
She responded that they were just friends.
When The Shade Room posted about the news, they wrote that the couple had been together for 7 years.
Which Essence reported was something that Nelly didn’t agree with, as he commented on the post by saying: “Well actually just 5 years, ended 2019, haven’t been together for the past 2… Ok now y’all know #FACT”
The Rickey Smiley Morning Show pointed out that although Nelly knew his relationship history better than the public did, something about his timeline didn’t really add up.
Because it was in 2020 that he was on Dancing With The Stars and said that he wouldn’t want his life to not have Shantel in it, and that they’d been together for 5 or 6 years by that point.
An article by Hot 97 revealed that in December 2021, Shantel went on The Real and got candid about why things ended between her and Nelly.
She told the chat show hosts that she and her ex didn’t end on bad terms.
And she went on to explain that when they started their relationship, she was always on the road with him.
But then, when it came to a point where she was home more often building her company Shoe Gummi, her being on the road less with him caused them to start to grow apart.
According to PEOPLE, Nelly and Ashanti officially confirmed that they were back together in the fall of 2023.
Shantel still hasn’t commented on her ex’s latest relationship.
