Ashanti & Nelly Are Already Married, Have Been for Months

Ashanti and Nelly are not just engaged, but they're actually already married -- in fact, they have been for several months now ... and, of course, they got a baby on the way too.

According to public records, the two music stars are legally man and wife -- and their marriage date is listed as having been recorded on December 27, 2023 ... so, a whole 6 months ago.

The paperwork doesn't specify what city they tied the knot in -- but it became official in St. Louis County, so all signs point to them doing the deed in Nelly's hometown. FWIW, they haven't had a public ceremony yet, but have been teasing their wedding in recent weeks.

Of course, this is major news ... especially since these two just keep on surprising us.

Remember, it was a couple months ago that Ashanti confirmed she and Nelly were expecting their first child together -- with her coming out publicly with the pregnancy news amid mounting speculation that she was carrying a child.

Not only did Ashanti come out and say she was preggo -- she also dropped the bombshell she and Nelly were engaged. Now, we're learning they've gone a bit further and made their relationship official in the eyes of the law.

It's a full-circle moment for them -- 'memba, they just rekindled their romance last year after first dating way back in the 2000s, when they were two of the biggest artists in the game.

Before they started truly dating again, they kinda trolled everyone with little reunions here and there in recent years -- doing performances together and acting flirty at shows and events.

As it turned out though, they were all in for one another ... and they've gone the distance. We've reached out to their teams for further comment ... so far, no word back yet.