Ja Rule
Ja Rule |
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Jeffrey Atkins (born February 29 1976), better known by his stage name Ja Rule, is an American rapper from Hollis, Queens, New York City, New York, United States. He rose to fame in the late 90s and early 2000's.
Career
Rule appeared with 0-1 and Chris Black as part of Cash Money Click (not to be confused with Cash Money Records). In 1998, he was signed to Def Jam Recordings, with his first major appearance alongside Jay-Z on the song "Can I Get A...". In 1999, he released his solo debut, Venni Vetti Vecci, and had a hit single "Holla Holla". The album went on to platinum status.
During early 2000 Ja Rule was also featured on Irv Gotti's successful album, "Irv Gotti Presents... The Murderers". This album featured other Murder Inc. record label artists as well as DMX, Jay-Z and Busta Rhymes. In 2000 Ja Rule released Rule 3:36, his second album. The first released single was "Between Me & You" featuring Christina Milian, which proved to be a hit and was followed by another successful single, "Put It On Me" featuring Lil' Mo & Vita. The last single, "I Cry" featured Lil Mo. The album received an unexpected level of support, and went on to become triple platinum.
On October 2 2001, Ja Rule released his third album, Pain Is Love. The first single, "Livin' It Up" was a hit and featured guest vocals by R&B singer Case and sampled Stevie Wonder's "Do I Do". The follow up single, "Always On Time", was released in December of the same year and was yet another mega success for the rapper. The song was notable as it introduced the public to singer Ashanti, who performed on the songs chorus. The album also featured the successful remix "I'm Real" with Jennifer Lopez. Finally, the album included the song "So Much Pain", a tribute to Tupac Shakur, and also went on to become triple platinum.
His fourth studio album The Last Temptation was released on November 19 2002. Although the album was fairly successful (it was certified platinum), it failed to carry the momentum brought by Rule's previous album. Lead singles, "Thug Lovin" (featuring Bobby Brown) and "Mesmerize" (featuring Ashanti) were successful. The video for the latter song amusingly featured a cohort of Ashanti excitedly telling her friends (presumably referring to its Scrabble score) about fellatio - 7 letters, 69 points. Presumably no-one on the shoot worked out that fellatio, as an 8 letter word, must therefore be at least 70 points.
During 2002 Ja Rule also featured on "Irv Gotti Presents... The Inc" and "Irv Gotti Presents: the Remixes" both albums were successful spawning such hits as "Down 4 U" and "Ain't It Funny Remix."
Blood In My Eye was Ja Rule's fifth album and was known for tracks which were aimed at rappers 50 Cent, Eminem, Dr. Dre, Busta Rhymes, Diddy, Snoop, and others.
Ja Rule released "R.U.L.E." On November 9 2004, and had hits with "Wonderful" (featuring R. Kelly), "New York" (featuring Fat Joe and Jadakiss), and "Caught Up" (featuring Ashanti & Lloyd). The album was certified gold in the U.S.
Ja recently released new tracks from his upcoming mixtape on his myspace page, the mixtape features contributions from other artists such as Ashanti, Fat Joe, Nas, Black Child, Caddillac Tah and 0-1 and brand new signees Harry O, Young Life and The Gift. He also is releasing his first single from his upcoming album In The Mirror titled "Free".
He appeared on the remix of "Rakata" by Wisin Y Yandel.
Ja Rule is rumored to be in the upcoming movie Saw IV. It's being filmed now in Toronto and is scheduled to be released October 26, 2007.
Disputes
50 Cent
Even before signing with Interscope, 50 Cent was engaged in a well-publicized dispute with rival rapper Ja Rule and his label Murder Inc. Records. The rappers engaged in numerous mix tape "disses". The conflict stemmed from the rapper's friend allegedly stealing some of Ja Rule's jewelry, which led to a confrontation and 50 Cent's stabbing.
On 50 Cent's album, Get Rich or Die Tryin, 50 Cent hurled verbal shots towards Ja Rule and many other artists affiliated with Murder Inc., even mentioning Rule's wife and children. Towards the end of 2003, Ja Rule dropped his album Blood In My Eye, which was almost exclusively dedicated to firing back to the "disses" that he received earlier (Clap Back and The Crown became successful hits). The battle between G-Unit and Murder Inc. continued on the mixtape level until Ja Rule's release "Loose Change", which targeted 50 Cent and G-Unit, and also mentioned Eminem's daughter and claims that "Dr.Dre is a bisexual." Ja Rule later released the remake of "Who Shot Ya". Ja offered to squash the beef with 50 Cent, but 50 Cent refused to squash the beef because "it was fun". The feud appeared to die down until in early 2006, when Ja Rule along with other Murder Inc. artists released the diss tracks "21 Gunz" and "So Hot".
Eminem
Eminem became involved with Ja Rule for several reasons: over Rule's involvement with popular hip-hop magazine The Source, with Eminem's involvement with 50 Cent, and with Rule's mention of Eminem's daughter Hailie in the track "Loose Change" (On the track, Ja Rule raps "Em, you claim your mother's a crackhead, and Kim is a known slut, so what's Hailie going to be when she grows up?"). Numerous diss tracks were traded back and forth by both rappers.
Ja Rule, Irv Gotti, and other Murder Inc members immediately sided with Benzino since they shared a common beef. They also sided with Benzino when he released 11 year old rap tracks featuring Eminem saying racist comments and disrespecting black women.
It does appear, however, that the feud has ended with both rappers claiming that they want no more problems.
The Game
The feud between Ja Rule and The Game is due to business affiliation since the latter was a member of G-Unit. The Ja Rule/The Game rivalry appeared to have subsided when 50 Cent dismissed The Game from G-Unit. The Game would later release a single called "It's Okay (One Blood)", which features a remix over 11 minutes long with over 20 of rap's most elite MCs. The two have since squashed their beef and Ja Rule raps 16 bars on the remix.
Other
Ja Rule has feuded with other artists such as DMX who claimed that Ja Rule had copied his rough voice. This beef was squashed in 2006 when a representative of Ja Rule visited DMX in prison. DMX originally wanted to sort it out with fists, but the two rappers talked their way through. Ja rule also thinks he is bad ass gangsta but he is just a nobody.
Ja Rule has also beefed with Busta Rhymes after Ja made comments about him in a magazine. Busta Rhymes appeared on a diss track with Eminem and 50 Cent called Hail Mary, which was a rendition of 2pac's original.
Discography
Albums
| Album cover | Album information |
|---|---|
Venni Vetti Vecci
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Rule 3:36
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Pain Is Love
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The Last Temptation
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Blood in My Eye
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R.U.L.E.
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Exodus Greatest Hits
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The Mirror |
Soundtrack albums
| Album cover | Album information |
|---|---|
 |
The Fast and the Furious (Original Soundtrack)
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Singles
| Year | Title | Chart Positions | Album | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| U.S. Hot 100 | U.S. R&B/Hip-Hop | U.S. Rap | Rhythmic Top 40 | |||
| 1999 | "Holla Holla" / "It's Murda" | #35 | #11 | #2 | #20 | Venni Vetti Vecci |
| 1999 | "Daddy's Little Baby" (featuring Ronald Isley) | - | - | - | - | Venni Vetti Vecci |
| 2000 | "Between Me and You" (featuring Christina Milian) | #11 | #5 | #11 | #3 | Rule 3:36 |
| 2000 | "Put it on Me" (featuring Lil' Mo and Vita) | #8 | #2 | #11 | #1 | Rule 3:36 |
| 2001 | "I Cry" (featuring Lil' Mo) | #40 | #11 | #25 | #25 | Rule 3:36 |
| 2001 | "I'm Real (Murder Remix)" (featuring Jennifer Lopez) | #1 | #2 | - | #1 | Pain Is Love |
| 2001 | "Livin' it Up" (featuring Case) | #6 | #4 | #4 | #4 | Pain Is Love |
| 2002 | "Always on Time" (featuring Ashanti) | #1 | #1 | #4 | #1 | Pain Is Love |
| 2002 | "Down Ass Chick" (featuring Charlie Baltimore) | #21 | #8 | #5 | #9 | Pain Is Love |
| 2002 | "Thug Lovin'" (featuring Bobby Brown) | #42 | #16 | #10 | #24 | The Last Temptation |
| 2003 | "Mesmerize" (featuring Ashanti) | #2 | #5 | #2 | #2 | The Last Temptation |
| 2003 | "Reign" | - | - | - | - | The Last Temptation |
| 2003 | "Clap Back" | #44 | #17 | #12 | #25 | Blood in My Eye |
| 2004 | "New York" (featuring Fat Joe and Jadakiss) | #27 | #14 | #10 | #17 | R.U.L.E. |
| 2004 | "Wonderful" (featuring R. Kelly and Ashanti) | #5 | #3 | #2 | #6 | R.U.L.E. |
| 2005 | "Caught Up" (featuring Lloyd) | - | #65 | - | - | R.U.L.E. |
| 2005 | "Exodus (Intro)" (featuring Irv Gotti) | - | - | - | - | Exodus |
| 2007 | "Free" (featuring Ashley) | TBA | TBA | TBA | TBA | The Mirror |
Featured Singles
| Year | Song | U.S. Hot 100 | U.S. R&B | U.S. Rap | UK singles | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | "Can I Get A..." Jay-Z (featuring Amil and Ja Rule) | 19 | - | - | 24 | Vol. 2: Hard Knock Life |
| 2000 | "How Many Wanna" | - | 72 | - | - | Light it Up Soundtrack |
| 2001 | "Ain't It Funny (Murder Remix)" Jennifer Lopez (featuring Ja Rule) | 1 | 4 | 4 | - | J to tha L-O!: The Remixes |
| 2002 | "Rainy Dayz" Mary J. Blige (featuring Ja Rule) | 12 | 8 | - | 17 | No More Drama |
| 2002 | "Down 4 U" Irv Gotti (featuring Ashanti, Ja Rule, Charli Baltimore, & Vita) | 6 | 3 | 3 | 4 | Irv Gotti Presents: The Inc. |
Awards history
| Award | Category | Genre | Song/Album | Year | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Source Hip-Hop Music Award | Single of the Year | Rap/Hip-Hop | "Put It On Me" | 2001 | Won |
| Source Award | R&B/Rap Collboration of the Year | R&B/Rap | "Thug Lovin'" | 2003 | Won |
| Source Award | Fat Tape Song of the Year | Rap/Hip-Hop | "Clap Back" | 2004 | Won |
| MTV Video Music Award | Best Rap Video | Rap | "Put It On Me" | 2001 | Nominated |
| MTV Video Music Award | Best Hip-Hop Video | Hip-Hop | "Im Real (Murder Remix)" | 2002 | Won |
| MTV Video Music Award | Best Hip-Hop Video | Hip-Hop | "Always On Time" | 2002 | Nominated |
| American Music Award | Favorite Rap/Hip-Hop Artist | Rap/Hip-Hop | - | 2002 | Nominated |
| American Music Award | Favorite Hip-Hop/R&B Male Artist | Hip-Hop/R&B | - | 2003 | Nominated |
| Grammy Award | Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group | Rap/Hip-Hop | "Put It On Me" | 2002 | Nominated |
| Grammy Award | Best Rap Album | Rap | "Pain Is Love" | 2002 | Nominated |
| Grammy Award | Best Rap/Sung Collaboration | Rap/Sung | "Livin' It Up" | 2002 | Nominated |
| Grammy Award | Best Rap/Sung Collaboration | Rap/Sung | "Always On Time" | 2003 | Nominated |
| World Music Award | World's Best-Selling Rap Artist | Rap/Hip-Hop | - | 2002 | Won |
| BET Award | Best Male Hip-Hop Artist Artist | Hip-Hop | - | 2002 | Won |
| GQ Men of the Year Award | Musician of the Year | Rap/Hip-Hop | - | 2002 | Won |
| Teen Choice Award | Male Artist of the Year | Rap/Hip-Hop | - | 2002 | Won |
| NAACP Image Award | Best Rap/Hip-Hop Artist | Rap/Hip-Hop | - | 2002 | Won |
| Soul Train Award | Best Rap/Soul or Rap Album of the Year | Rap | "Pain Is Love" | 2002 | Nominated |
Filmography
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Da Hip Hop Witch | Himself | |
| 2000 | Turn it Up | David 'Gage' Williams | |
| 2001 | Crime Partners 2000 | ||
| 2001 | The Fast and the Furious | Edwin | |
| 2002 | Half Past Dead | Nicolas 'Nick' Frazier | |
| 2003 | Scary Movie 3 | Agent Thompson | |
| 2003 | Pauly Shore Is Dead | Himself | |
| 2004 | The Cookout | Bling Bling | |
| 2004 | Shall We Dance? | Hip Hop Bar Performer | |
| 2005 | Back in the Day | Reggie Cooper | |
| 2005 | Assault on Precinct 13 (2005 film) | Smiley | |
| 2007 | Kenny | TBA | post-production |
| 2007 | Furnace | TBA | post-production |
Trivia
- He is a Leap Year baby.
- He married his high school sweetheart Aisha Atkins (Murray) and the couple have three children together, Brittney(11), Jeffrey Jnr(6) and Jordan(3).
- Not only is he a musician and an actor, but he is a mogul as well. As well as co-owning The Inc Records, he has a clothing line "ErvinGeoffrey", a film production company, a deluxe liqour company, real estate and he is the first ever rapper to own an online casino "StarsOnPoker.Com"
- Although he has homes in L.A, Miami and New York, he and his family live in a mansion in New Jersey.
- He did a collaboration with rock band Metallica titled, "We Did It Again."
- He had a sister that died when he was five years old, due to respiratory problems.
- "Ja Rule" is an acronym for, "Jeffery Atkins Represents Unconditional Love's Existence."
- Irv Gotti and Ja Rule recently made peace with rapper The Game.
- He teamed up with associates of 2pac's children organization and founded L.I.F.E Foundation which opens its doors to under privileged kids. Especially those most prone to a street life of drugs and violence. The foundation has various programs which include art, music, poetry and sports.
- He was featured in the 1999 Hard Knock Life Tour, also featuring DMX, Jay Z, DJ Clue, Memphis Bleek, Redman, Method Man and many other mainstream artists.
- Has started his own record label, Mpire Records.
- He has a dispute with Mariah Carey over the track they collaborated on called "If We" for her 2001 flop Glitter (album). He believed the song deserved to be a single.
- Ja Rule and Fat Joe recently collaborated for a remix of Musiq's song entitled "Buddy."
- Ja Rule recently appeared on a remix of Snoop Dogg's song called "Imagine" featuring himself and Dr. Dre.
- Has appeared on MTV Cribs.
- Ja is good friends with both N.O.R.E, Hussein Fatal, Shyne, and Suge Knight.