Irv Gotti, Murder Inc. Records Cofounder, Dies at 54

Mar. 15, 2025

Irv Gotti attends the 2022 BET Awards at Microsoft Theater on June 26, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.Photo:Prince Williams/ Getty

Prince Williams/ Getty

Irv Gotti, the famed music producer and cofounder of Murder Inc. Records who worked with artists including Ashanti and Ja Rule, has died at 54, PEOPLE has confirmed.

A cause of death has not been confirmed. However, a source told PEOPLE Gotti had a series of strokes in recent years and was a diabetic.The Hollywood Reporterwas the first to report the news of Gotti’s death.

Gotti was open about his health struggles in the months leading to his death. In August,TMZreported he had a stroke, citing hip-hop record executive and manager Wack 100, who said he had spoken with someone at a stroke recovery facility.

“Irv has been struggling with diabetes for years, which caused him to have a minor stroke over six months ago,” Gotti’s representative told TMZ in August. “He has since changed his diet to eating more healthy. He’s been successful in making a full recovery. Irv is not in a rehab facility. He is at home with his family, enjoying life.”

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“It runs rapid with Black people,” he said of the condition. “What it does is, it starts deteriorating your body.”

Asked if he “had it under control,” he confessed, “No,” explaining that “it is hereditary.”

Although it’s “reversible,” he said it required a lifestyle change that he was hesitant to make.

Gotti, born Irving Domingo Lorenzo Jr., began making his contribution to the music industry in the late ’90s. He first worked A&R for Def Jam Recordings and signed legends likeDMX,Jay-ZandJa Rule. Gotti produced Jay-Z’s “Can I Live” from his debut albumReasonable Doubt,released in 1996.

Gotti later co-founded Murder Inc. Records, a subsidiary of Def Jam, in 1998, which launched the careers of Ja Rule, Ashanti, Lloyd and others.

After renaming the label The Inc., Gotti entered the pop scene when he signedVanessa Carlton. He co-produced her 2007 albumHeroes and Thievesalongside Stephan Jenkins of Third Eye Blind and Rick Rubin.

Throughout his decades-long career, he worked with artists likeMariah Carey,Mary J. Blige,Toni BraxtonandJennifer Lopez, producing hits like Ashanti’s breakout hits “Foolish,” and “Always On Time” as well as Lopez and Ja Rule’s collaborations “I’m Real” and “Ain’t It Funny.”

source: people.com