American music stars Ashanti and Nelly have revealed they are engaged and expecting their first child together.
The award-winning artists – who first dated more than 20 years ago – rekindled their romance last year.
They first met at the Grammy Awards in 2003 and dated for a decade before splitting.
Ashanti shared a video on Instagram, saying she would need “about nine months” to prepare for her next big concert.
Nelly also shared the post, titled “Baby baby baby baby”, on her official Instagram feed.
In the video, Ashanti’s mother, Tina Douglas, asks her how much time Ashanti will need to prepare for the show.
It shows singer Foolish, wearing a sequinned, fur-trimmed outfit, taking a pregnancy test and disappearing backstage, before replying: “I’m going to need about nine months.”
The 43-year-old later confirmed she was engaged to Hot In Herre and Ride Wit Me rapper Nelly, 49, whose real name is Cornell Haynes Jr.
“This new year of my life is such a blessing full of love and hope and anticipation,” Ashanti told Essence magazine.
“Motherhood is something I’ve been looking forward to, and sharing it with my family, my fiancé, and my loyal fans, who have been so supportive of my career, is an incredible experience.”
The baby will be Ashanti’s first child and Nelly’s fifth.
Nelly has a daughter and a son with his former partner, Channetta Valentine, and he adopted the two children of his late sister, Jackie Donahue, after her death from leukemia in 2005.
The rapper’s family starred on the reality TV show Nellyville in 2014 alongside his then-girlfriend Shantel Jackson.