Irving Domingo Lorenzo Jr. (June 26, 1970 – February 5, 2025), professionally known as Irv Gotti or DJ Irv
He co-founded the record label Murder Inc. Records in 1998, which was an imprint of Def Jam Recordings. Irv is credited with having helped discover or sign rappers Jay-Z, DMX, and Ja Rule, as well as singers Ashanti and Lloyd. He executively produced the debut albums for DMX's It's Dark and Hell Is Hot, Ja Rule's Venni Vetti Vecci, Ashanti's self titled, and Lloyd's Southside. The first album released under Murder Inc. was Ja Rule's debut album, Venni Vetti Vecci. Gotti was the album's executive producer and oversaw the development of all of the album. Gotti also executive produced Ja Rule's second studio album, Rule 3:36.
Irv received production credits for most of the recordings by artists signed to the label-including Ja Rule (Between Me and You, Mesmerize, Thug Lovin', 6 Feet Underground, Livin' It Up, Down Ass Bitch, Always on Time), Lloyd, The Inc. (Down 4 U), and Ashanti (Foolish)-as well as other artists such as Jennifer Lopez, Kanye West, Fat Joe (What's Luv), Memphis Bleek, and Eve, among others.
born in the Hollis neighborhood of Queens, New York City, on June 26, 1970. Lorenzo was of Filipino descent from his paternal grandfather and of African-American descent. His father Irving was a taxicab driver and dispatcher. He was the youngest of eight siblings, including two sisters and an older brother named Christopher, known as Chris Gotti.
His family, which he described as one that didn’t have much money but had plenty of love, recalled him as a “clown” who loved performing, dancing and entertaining, sometimes even for small change. His foray into music began as a preteen, when he played for hours with a turntable and a mixer that his siblings had purchased for him. By the age of 15, he had begun to make a name for himself as a D.J. at local parties.
By the late 1980s and early 1990s, Gotti’s career was on the rise. He began working as a music producer and talent scout, and was credited with helping launch the careers of Jay-Z and DMX. In the BET documentary, Gotti recalled thinking Jay-Z was a star in the making, and told of meeting DMX in Yonkers, N.Y. “When I heard Jay-Z rhyme, same reaction happened with DMX,” he said. “Every word he said, I believed him.”
Gotti later served as an executive producer of DMX’s confessional debut album, “It’s Dark and Hell Is Hot,” which debuted in 1998 at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Gotti and his brother Christopher Lorenzo founded Murder Inc., an imprint of Def Jam, in 1998. The name, he said, was inspired by an A&E documentary on gangsters.
The record label’s reign on the charts and its influence in the world of hip-hop was undeniable. Ja Rule went on to earn three No. 1 Hot 100 hits, and Gotti was credited as a producer on 28 Hot 100 hits for collaborations with Murder Inc. artists as well as Jay-Z, Mary J. Blige, Fat Joe and others, according to Billboard.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation raided Murder Inc.’s offices in New York in 2003. The raid was part of an investigation into whether Gotti’s career had been fueled by drug money. Gotti faced charges of laundering money for Kenneth McGriff, a convicted gang leader known as Supreme.
That same year, amid a campaign to clean up the label’s image, Gotti dropped “Murder” from its name. “Hopefully, everyone will focus on our talent and not on the word of ‘murder,’” Gotti said at a news conference. “People will forget any negative energy and maybe start trying to give us some of the kudos and props I think we deserve.”
Gotti and his brother were acquitted of the criminal charges by a federal jury in 2005. “They took my life from me for three years,” Mr. Gotti said after his acquittal. “But it’s all good. I’m not mad. I love this country. But from Day 1, they had it wrong with me and my brother. I’m no criminal.”
Irv, Ja Rule, and the label Murder Inc. were all involved in a well-publicized feud from 1999 to 2003 with G-Unit Records, Aftermath Records, and Shady Records over history between 50 Cent and Ja Rule.
Lorenzo had suffered a minor stroke in early 2024 as a result of his diabetes, which caused him to change his dietary habits. On February 5, 2025, he died in New York City at the age of 54, following another stroke. His death was confirmed in a statement by Def Jam Recordings, which had been the parent label for Murder Inc., a company that Mr. Gotti and his brother Chris founded in 1998.
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