Among one of hip-hop’s most successful producers, New York’s Irv Gotti is founder and CEO of The Inc. Records, as of 2006 a co-venture with Universal Music Group. His credits include chart-topping albums and singles by Ja Rule, Ashanti, DMX, Jay-Z, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, Mary J. Blige and Fat Joe. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Gotti’s spacious and bass-heavy arrangements often featuring female vocalists were nearly ubiquitous on Top 40 and hip-hop radio. As a measure of his success, at one point in 2002 three Gotti-produced singles simultaneously occupied spots in Billboards’ Top Ten – “Always on Time” (Ja Rule), “What’s Luv?” (Fat Joe) and “Foolish” (Ashanti). -artisthousemusic.org