Irv Gotti Biography: In His Own Words – Video Exclusive, Photos, News, Age

Irvington Domingo Lorenzo, Jr. is an American DJ, record executive, music producer and television director. He is best known for founding the Murder, Inc. recordand creating the BET series Tales. In this biography, Gotti tells his story in his own words.

Irv Gotti Bio: Age, Early Life, Family, Drug Charges

Gotti was born on June 26, 1970 (Irv Gotti age: 51) to Nee Nee Lorenzo and Irvington Domingo Lorenzo, Sr. They raised their eight children in Hollis, a neighborhood in the Queens borough of New York City. Gotti admits to having briefly hustled crack cocaine as a teenager to make ends meet for his parents, who struggled to support such a large family. However, a run-in with federal agents cut Gotti’s dealing days short, leaving him room to pursue music as a career.

Irv Gotti Bio: Exclusive Interview on His DJing Roots

In July 2019, Gotti sat down with uInterview to discuss how he originally became involved in the music world. “I first got into DJing because a guy who lived around the corner from me … his dad had two turntables and a mixer,” Gotti explained. “So when he was off at work, I used to start DJing with the two turntables and the mixer, and it was love at first sight.”

Gotti described how he never tired of DJing – even when he only practiced one song at a time. “I would literally mix one record,” he said. “Literally, I would do that three to four hours. Just that record! So then when ‘Sucker M.C.’ came out … That record I did for ten hours.”

Gotti pointed to his early days in Queens as a time of self-discovery. He told uInterview exclusively, “My love of music, my love of DJing, my love of everything … It stems from being in that house around the corner.”

Check out the full autobiographical interview here.

Irv Gotti Bio: Career

Gotti’s first professional appearance came in 1995 with Eyes on Hip Hop. Though Gotti only made an appearance in this video, he began building a career for himself and directed Mariah Carey’s “Joy to the World” music video later that year. 

1998 was the start of something bigger for Gotti. He wrote the song “Can I Get a…” for the hit movie Rush Hour. He also penned and produced the songs “Story to Tell” and “Grand Finale” for Hype Williams’ drama Belly. Most notably, Gotti founded Murder, Inc. Records with his brother Chris later in 1998.

Gotti continued to build his musical platform the following year. He wrote the song “How Many Wanna,” featured in Light It Up, as well as an episode of the show Daria. In 2000, he produced the track “We Murderers Baby” for the movie Next Friday, which starred Ice Cube and Mike Epps. Gotti later wrote “Charli” for Bamboozled and produced two songs – “Come Back in One Piece” and “Somebody’s Gonna Die” – for Romeo Must Die. 

2001 was a busy year for Gotti. He appeared in the music video for “Livin’ It Up” by Ja Rule ft. Case and produced “I’m Real (Remix)” by Jennifer Lopez. He also composed music for the movie Angel: One More Road to Cross. Gotti’s writing took flight that year as he penned ten songs. These were featured in the movies Double Take, Down to Earth, Exit Wounds and The Fast and the Furious. Also in 2001, Gotti wrote the first of his many songs for Ashanti, plus an episode of Saturday Night Live.

In 2002, Gotti made waves in the hip-hop world by directing music videos. These included “Foolish” and “Down 4 U” by Ashanti, plus “Baby (Remix),” her collaboration with Crooked I. Gotti’s “Happy” video featured Ashanti and Ja Rule, the two biggest stars signed to Murder, Inc. 

Additional 2002 videos included “Down Ass Chick” by Ja Rule and Charli Baltimore, “Holla Holla” by Hype Williams and “Thug Lovin’” by Ja Rule and Bobby Brown. That same year, Gotti produced a remix of Jennifer Lopez and Ja Rule’s song “Ain’t It Funny.” He also appeared in a musical scene of Ali G Indahouse and wrote an episode for the TV series The Wire.

In 2003, Gotti directed the video “Rain on Me (Remix)” by Ashanti, Ja Rule, Charli Baltimore and Hussein Fatal. He directed Lloyd and Ashanti in their 2004 “Southside” video and remixed the song later that year. Gotti performed his song “Scared” in Barbershop 2: Back in Business and produced “Touch My Body” for the movie Bride & Prejudice. A year later, he directed Ashanti yet again in her video “Don’t Let Them.”

In 2005, Gotti wrote the soundtrack for an episode of the TV series Idols. He also produced “Rewind the Hands of Time” and “Thug Luv” for the movie Animal. The following year, he composed the music for the documentary Mighty D-Block. From 2007 to 2009, Gotti served as executive producer for Gotti’s Way, a reality TV show highlighting his home life and dysfunctional marriage.

Gotti continued to create music while filming his show. He wrote “Megamix” for the Russian TV special Premiya Muz-TV 2008. The next year, his songs “Only You” and “Down 4 U” were featured in the movies Mammoth and Fish Tank, respectively.

Gotti lived relatively under the radar for the next few years. He appeared on a 2011 episode of Conan and wrote “Foolish” for the movie About Time, which starred Rachel McAdams, Domhnall Gleeson and Bill Nighy. In 2014, he remixed “I’m Real” for the documentary Jennifer Lopez: Dance Again and “I’m Coming Out” for the movie The Other Woman. Gotti created one episode of Chewing Gum in 2015 and wrote a song called “Split (Only U)” for the 2016 thriller Collide.

Irv Gotti Bio: Exclusive Interview on ‘Tales,’ Lauryn Hill, Kanye West

In 2017, Gotti introduced his biggest project yet: the BET series Tales. The show typically runs in 80-minute segments, each centered around the message of a particular hip-hop song. Between 2017 and 2019, Gotti created all episodes of Tales, acted in three, directed four, composed music for six and served as executive producer for 17.

In July 2019, Gotti sat down with uInterview to discuss the show’s second season, which aired on July 2. Gotti described the  episode, “Brothers,” as “a storyline of brotherhood and brothers going through some hard times and then reuniting and joining forces and coming back together.” According to Gotti, “Brothers” is “a great father-son and brother-to-brother, family-type episode.” Notable cast members include Elijah Kelley, Thomas Q. Jones, Draya Michele, Isaiah Washington and LisaRaye McCoy.

Gotti explained the process behind choosing songs for the second season of Tales. “I did four new-generation records, four older-generation records, and then BET wanted me to introduce potentially Tales R&B,” he said. “So they let me do two R&B records, of which I picked Lauryn Hill ‘Ex-Factor’ and Mary J. Blige ‘In My Life.’”

Gotti attributed his success in securing Hill’s music to their friendship. “I have a great relationship with Lauryn,” he told uInterview exclusively. “I would say our friendship is a really solid and good friendship. We got a lot of love for each other.”

Watch the full interview below to hear about Gotti’s favorite episode and what it was like to work with Kanye West.

Irv Gotti Bio: Personal Life, Divorce, Trial, Height

Gotti is known to have led a relatively scandalous life. In 2003, over 50 government agents raided the Manhattan offices of his record label. They charged Gotti and his brother with money laundering and affiliating financially with drug lord Kenneth “Supreme” McGriff. Though a 2005 jury acquitted the Gottis of all charges, the trial left their label tainted.

Gotti has also been implicated in a number of relationship scandals. Alleged affairs prompted Gotti’s then-wife, Debbie Lorenzo, to divorce him. The couple had three children together: Sonny, Angie and JJ.

Gotti’s height is 6′-tall.

Irv Gotti Bio: Exclusive Interview on Lil Nas X

In July 2019, he offered uInterview his thoughts on Lil Nas X, a rapper who recently came out of the closet.

When asked whether the rap world was ready for gay artists, Gotti responded, “I mean, was the R&B world ready for Frank Ocean? That had no effect on his career.” He explained that while “of course there’s gonna be a few idiots who say idiot sh*t,” Lil Nas X’s sexual orientation should have no bearing on his career. “Whoever you are, just be who you are, and I think the world will accept you for who you are,” Gotti said.

The producer reflected on how the music industry has changed since he entered it decades ago. He considered how perceptions of gay rappers have shifted over the years and how Lil Nas X might have been received in the 90s. He said, “If we was in 1995, he might have a problem … But 2019? He’s gonna have no problem. Ain’t no one trippin’. I ain’t trippin’ – no one’s trippin’ in the world. It’s commonplace. Like, it’s common. It’s normal!

Check out the full interview below.

Question	Answer
How old is Irv Gotti?	Irv Gotti is 49 years old. He was born on June 26, 1970.
How tall is Irv Gotti?	Irv Gotti is 6’ tall.
Is Irv Gotti married?	No, Irv Gotti is not married. He has one ex-wife, Debbie Lorenzo.
What are Irv Gotti’s social media accounts?	Irv Gotti can be found on Twitter and Instagram at @irvgotti187.
Does Irv Gotti have children?	Yes, Irv Gotti has three children: Angie Gotti, JJ Gotti and Sonny Gotti.
What is Irv Gotti’s ethnicity?	Irv Gotti is of Filipino and African-American descent.
What is Irv Gotti’s full name?	Irv Gotti’s full name is Irving Domingo Lorenzo, Jr.
What is Irv Gotti’s net worth?	Irv Gotti’s net worth is approximately $60 million.
Where is Irv Gotti from?	Irv Gotti was born and raised in Hollis, Queens, New York.
Is Irv Gotti related to John Gotti?	No, Irv Gotti is not related to the infamous mob boss John Gotti.