The genius and productions magic of Irv Gotti were felt from Ja Rule’s globe-spanning anthems to Ashanti’s chart-topping classics.
After serving the hip-hop fraternity with hits for decades, it was confirmed on February 5 that the iconic producer and Murder Inc. Records co-founder Irv has passed at the age of 54.
Though official cause of his death has not yet been disclosed, reports say the record producer passed after battling with strokes and issues related to diabetes.
With a career spanning over decades, Gotti, born Irving Domingo Lorenzo Jr. in Queens, New York took part in shaping and polishing the careers of Ja Rule, Ashanti, Vanessa Carlton and many others via his high-level business savvy and experimental merging of genres on wax. Gotti got his breakthrough as a producer for artists such as DMX and Jay Z after starting from a young age. He subsequently launched Murder Inc., a label that solidified his place in the culture’s upper echelon with his brother Chris Gotti.
On how the legendary Large Professor had a major influence on his approach to making beats, the deceased earlier in an interview said ”He used to have the room, hook up the turntable, [and] he’d have his SP-12 and the MP-950… I was in this s**t just [like], ‘I’ma f**king learn this s**t,’”. Explaining further to N.O.R.E. and DJ EFN, he disclosed that over time, the producer-turned-mogul eventually found his signature sound – blending raw street energy with mainstream appeal – and he soon became a key architect of Hip Hop’s golden era.
Expanded his creative vision into television and film, most notably with the “Tales” anthology series, which brought classic rap cuts to life through cinematic storytelling, Gotti was successful beyond music. He revealed a $300 million deal with brand management company Iconoclast for 50 percent of his Murder Inc. Masters in 2022.
Lyor Cohen, currently YouTube’s global head of music, in a statement reacting to the producer’s passing said “Def Jam has lost one of its most creative soldiers who was Hip Hop, When we were on bended knee, he brought the heat and saved our a**es. He comes from a very tight beautiful family from Queens, and it’s an honor and a privilege to have known him. Irv, you will be missed.” Def Jam also shared a tribute on social media.
