American music producer Irv Gotti has died at the age of 54. 

The producer, who founded the hip-hop label Murder Inc Records, produced nearly 30 Hot 100 hits in the US charts for artists including Ashanti, Ja Rule, Ye, DMX, Fat Joe, Mary J Blige and Jay-Z.

His death was confirmed by his children – Angie, Sonny and JJ – who posted on his official Instagram page to say that he died on 5 February “surrounded by his family and friends”.

Describing their father as an “incredible man” and “true visionary”, they said he will “leave behind a legacy that will forever resonate in the hearts of those who knew him and the countless lives he touched”.

“As we navigate this difficult time, we kindly ask for privacy while we grieve the loss of our dad, son, brother, uncle, and friend. We take comfort in knowing that his spirit will live on through his music and the love he shared with all of us,” the family statement added.

Gotti’s cause of death has not been revealed.

After founding Murder Inc in 1998, Gotti signed Ashanti and Ja Rule as the record label’s first artists.

Ja Rule landed his first top 40 Billboard Hot 100 hit with Holla Holla from his 1999 debut album Venni Vetti Vecci, while the song Always On Time, which featured both him and Ashanti, became his highest-charting single.

Meanwhile, Ashanti’s 2002 debut single, Foolish, made her only the second artist to simultaneously occupy spots in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100 with her first three charting singles.

The label’s success skyrocketed, and between 1999 and 2005 Ja Rule had a total of 17 Hot 100 hits.

Leading tributes to the producer, Def Jam Recordings – another record label owned by Universal Music Group – posted on social media, writing that Gotti’s work “reshaped the soundscape of hip-hop and R&B”.

“Def Jam Recordings and the extended Def Jam family of artists, executives and employees, are deeply saddened at the loss of Irv Gotti,” Def Jam said.

“His contributions at Def Jam, as both an A&R executive and in partnership with Murder Inc, helped pave the way for the next generation of artists and producers, a force that reshaped the soundscape of hip-hop and R&B.

“His creative genius and unwavering dedication to the culture behind countless hits, defined an era of music that continues to resonate with fans worldwide.”

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Ja Rule also posted, sharing two images, one featuring them together, with the caption: “Love you.”

50 Cent, who appeared to reference his long-running feud with Gotti, also paid tribute, posting a picture of himself smoking next to a gravestone that read RIP.

Liam Payne’s girlfriend has said his death was a “tragic accident” and he was in “such a good headspace” when she left him in Argentina.

Kate Cassidy was with Payne in Buenos Aires but flew back to the US days before the One Direction star was killed in a fall from a hotel balcony.

She told The Sun: “Love is so optimistic, and you just hope that everything will work out at the end.

“Obviously if I knew, if I could see into the future, I would never have left Argentina.”

The American influencer said she had to get back to look after the couple’s dog, Nala.

“I had a responsibility, we had a responsibility. We had our dog and obviously I never, ever thought this event would occur,” she said.

Cassidy added: “It was a tragic accident and no, I never did think [he might die young]. But, you know, we did have our own separate lives – this wasn’t the first time we have travelled separately.

“I just never thought this would have happened, that it would turn out the way it did.”

Payne died aged 31 on 16 October from multiple injuries after falling from the third floor of a hotel in the Argentine capital.

Three people have been charged with manslaughter over his death, and two with supplying cocaine.

Cassidy, 25, said she thinks about Payne “every second of every day” and that she’d had a “childhood crush” on him since she was 10.

The pair got together in 2022 and she told The Sun it still doesn’t seem “fully real for me that he’s not here”.

“From the moment I met Liam, I genuinely believed we were soulmates,” said Cassidy.

“He was the most humble, charming, normal person you could ever hope to come across, and genuinely one of the best people I’ve ever met in my life.”

She said the Wolverhampton-born singer “was in such a good headspace” when she left Argentina.

“We were in such a great place, just full of love; he was so happy and positive. And I just can’t even believe the way things truly ended,” she said.

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Cassidy said she was glad she didn’t discover he’d died via social media, revealing one of Payne’s friends had called her to break the news.

“That moment, it’s like blank; it’s blacked out in my head,” she added.

“I didn’t believe it at first. I thought it was just a rumour. Or something that somebody made up just to get views.”

Payne’s funeral took place in November in Buckinghamshire, with his former bandmates and ex-partner Cheryl among the mourners.

Steve Coogan has avoided a driving ban after pleading with the judge that it would impact his upcoming TV show.

The Alan Partridge actor, 59, was caught doing 97mph on the M6 near Telford on 29 July last year.

Coogan already had six points on his licence – so a further six would have seen him disqualified.

But in a letter to Birmingham Magistrates Court, he stressed that a ban would result in the next series of his sitcom The Trip being “severely impacted”, according to the Evening Standard.

“I am due to appear in a well-established TV series called The Trip (with Rob Brydon) which as the title suggests requires me to drive,” his letter read.

He added that other “important film commitments” this year also require him to drive.

“These projects would be severely impacted, not only affecting my own livelihood but also the many individuals dependent on these productions for work,” he wrote.

“These include camera, sound, and lighting technicians, riggers, and others on modest wages who would face cancellations and financial hardship, as rescheduling such projects is often highly complicated.”

Coogan implored the judge to impose five points instead of six – which after he pleaded guilty – was eventually agreed upon on 30 January.

He was also fined £2,500, given a £1,000 surcharge, and forced to pay £90 in costs.

The Trip’s director Michael Winterbottom has previously said there would not be a fifth series – but Coogan’s court correspondence suggests otherwise.

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The series sees Coogan and Brydon playing caricatures of themselves – travelling around the likes of Italy, Spain and the UK.

He wrote a similar letter in 2019 after he was caught speeding, telling the judge the new series of Alan Partridge would be disrupted if he was disqualified.

Ultimately he was banned – but for only two months instead of the usual six – meaning the show could go ahead.

He was previously banned for 28 days in 2016 for driving almost twice the 30mph speed limit in Brighton.