Ja Rule

At 48 years old, Ja Rule has this physical status:

Career

Atkins started his rap career in 1994 with the Hip Hop band Cash Money Click, as well as members Chris Black and O-1. He took the stage name "Ja Rule," according to MTV News, the name came from a friend who addressed him by the name; other friends simply called him "Ja." They collaborated with producer DJ Irv to produce a number of songs, with their debut single "Get Tha Fortune" released in 1994. The group's first single, "4 My Click," was re-released through TVT Records later this year. Mic Geronimo and became well-known on pirate radio, and Yo!'s "4 My Click" eventually became known on radio, with radio broadcasting on Yo! MTV Raps. After Chris Black was sentenced to five years in jail and the group was dropped from TVT, the group's third single "She Swallowed It" was never released, but it was later bootlegged. The company was disbanded quickly after being dropped without a name.

After being banned from TV, Ja Rule maintained a close friendship with DJ Irv, who was working as an executive producer for Def Jam at the time. DJ Irv Gotti, a.k.a. Irv Gotti, had been hired as an A&R for the brand and had a shot at Def Jam for Ja Rule. He appeared on Mic Geronimo's "Time to Build" with Jay-Z and DMX in 1995, who were also in their early stages of their careers. He appeared on Mic Geronimo's second album "Usual Suspects" in 1997, as well as The Lox, DMX, and Tragedy Khadafi. He appeared on "Walk In New York" by Queens hardcore rap group Onyx for a brief period of time. Irv Gotti, a.k.a. Murder Inc. Records, was given his own imprint from Def Jam in 1997. Ja Rule was featured as the label's flagship artist, and he continued to perform on other artists' songs, including Method Man, Redman, Nas, LL Cool J, and Dru Hill. He appeared on Jay-Z's 1998 hit single "Can I Get A" for which he wrote the hook. It was supposed to be Ja Rule's debut single before Jay-Z heard the song and asked for it for himself. He rapped under the slightly altered stage name Jah at this time.

Holla Holla, the Ja Rule name, was released in March 1999 and became a hit, peaking at #35 on the Billboard Hot 100. Venny Vetti Vecci, Ja Rule's debut album, was boosted by its success in 1999, peaking at #3 on the Billboard 200 with 184,000 copies sold in its first week. Due to the success of "Holla Holla," it earned platinum status in the United States. Later, a remix of "Holla Holla" was later released, starring Jay-Z, Vita, Cadillac Tah, Black Child, Memphis Bleek, and Busta Rhymes.

"Between Me and You," Ja Rule's second single from his second studio album, debuted on June 2000 as the first single from his first major crossover hit, earning top 40 airplay and landing #11 on the Billboard Hot 100. Vita and Lil' Mo's next single, "Put It on Me," was released in December 2000 and became the first top ten hits for both Ja Rule and Vita. After spending more than 60 days on the countdown, the video for "Put It On Me" also topped the MTV Video Countdown for a week, and became the first music video to be removed on BET's 106 & Park. The video also ranked #1 on BET's Notarized: Top 100 Videos of 2001.

Rule 3:36, Ja Rule's second album, was released on October 10, 2000, and it took a somewhat different stylistic direction from Venni Vetti Vecci, from almost exclusively hardcore hip-hop to mainstream-oriented pop-rap, defining its almost ubiquitous hardcore hip-hop sound to mainstream-oriented pop-rap, debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200 in its first week, making it Ja Rule's first top-one hit on the Billboard 200 with 276,000 copies sold in his second album The album later became a triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).

Rule 3:36's success elevated Ja Rule to international prominence, making Murder Inc. one of the country's most popular brands. The same success followed his third album, which produced three top ten singles, two of whom reached #1. Case's first, "Live It Up," was released in July 2001 and debuted at #6 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also did well in the United Kingdom, ranking at #5 on the UK Singles Chart, securing its position as the top performer on the UK Singles Chart. "Always on Time" was released in October 2001 and became Murder Inc's first major guest appearance, and Ja Rule and Ashanti's first song to top the Billboard Hot 100. "I'm Real" featuring Ja Rule was released on the album and topped the Billboard Hot 100 for five weeks, beginning September 8, 2001, and also topped the Hot 100 Airplay chart. During the summer and fall of 2001, the song was a staple of R&B/hip hop and pop radio, earning fifteen weeks in the top five of the Hot 100. The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade in 2009 and was named as the 30th most popular song of the 2000s. Charli Baltimore's fourth single, "Down Ass Bitch," was also well-received, racking #21 on the Hot 100.

On October 2, 2001, Ja Rule's third studio album, Pain Is Love, was released. Pain Is Love debuted in the Billboard 200 with first-week orders of 361,000 copies and has been rated triple platinum by the RIAA. In 2002, the album received a Grammy Award for Best Rap Album. Pain Is Love had sold 3.6 million copies by 2007.

On November 19, 2002, Ja Rule's fourth album, The Last Temptation, was released. It resulted in two hit singles, "Thug Lovin'," starring Bobby Brown, and "Mesmerize," a duet with Ashanti that peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100. The Last Temptation debuted at #4 on the Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 237,000 copies and was named platinum by the RIAA in December 2002.

Ja Rule's continuing feud with fellow Queens rapper 50 Centins reached its peak just short of the album's release, with both artists taking to radio stations almost every day to trade insults and diss tracks. FBI agents and NYPD officers searched Murder Inc. for suspicion of money laundering and drug trafficking against Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff, who was affiliated with Irv Gotti on January 3, 2003. Ja Rule had a late reaction to his beef with 50 percent due to the federal probe. Eminem, Obie Trice, D12, and Ja Rule's ex-coworkers and acquaintances, DMX and Busta Rhymes were all involved in the feud, which was brought into contention by association. In April 2003, Ja Rule, along with Eminem, Busta Rhymes, and Dr. Dre, dropped the diss track "Loose Change" in which he criticizes 50 Cents. 50 Cent eventually responded with "Hail Mary," which used the beat from 2Pac's song of the same name and featured Eminem and Busta Rhymes. The beef remained highly publicised through 2003, eventually leading to Ja Rule's meeting with Minister Louis Farrakhan in October, who wanted to intervene and prevent the conflict from escalating.

Blood in My Eye, Ja Rule's fifth studio album, was released on November 4, 2003, under the Murder Inc. brand, which renamed itself "The Inc" several days after the album was announced. The product was simply a mixtape, but it was released as an album to honor Ja Rule's contractual commitment to Murder Inc.'s promise to release one annually. The album was referred to as a "hate" album directed at various rappers, including 50 Cent, G-Unit, Eminem, Proof, Dr. Dre, Busta Rhymes, and others, and it marked a return to the hardcore style Ja Rule had used in his earlier career. "Clap Back" was the year's best-selling hit single on the Billboard Hot 100 and garnered a Source Award for the year's "Fat Tape" song of the year. It peaked at #6 on the Billboard Hot 200 in its first week of introduction, selling 139,000 copies in the first week of its introduction, and by 2008, it had sold over 468,000 copies in the United States.

R.U.L.E., Ja Rule's sixth studio album, debuted at #7 and selling 166,000 copies in its first week of release in November. The Billboard Hot 100's top single, "Wonderful," starring R. Kelly and Ashanti, debuted at number five. The single was followed by Fat Joe and Jadakiss' "New York," which charted at #27 on the Billboard Hot 100. Lloyd's love song "Caught Up," which had failed to make an impact on Billboard Hot 100, was the third single. R.U.L.E. is a member of the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIAA). Gold was released on January 14, 2005, and the album had sold 68,000 copies by October 2007.

The Inc. unveiled Exodus, a greatest hits album on record, with the exception of the song "Me" and intro and outro tracks. After its debut, Ja Rule's contract with The Incarc was Exodus, Ja Rule's last album. However, The Inc. Records were also under scrutiny because of suspected drug dealings with Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff. Def Jam Recordings refused to renew The Inc.'s deal, which culminated in them not to renew the Inc.'s deal. Gotti started looking for other brands from 2005 to 2006, eventually negotiating a deal with Universal Records (a part of the same firm as Def Jam). A few years ago, Universal Records was sold due to company issues and inability to obtain funding for projects.

Ja Rule had begun working on a new album, Pain Is Love 2, which was released by the original Pain Is Love album's designers to "recreate magic" in February 2011. The bulk of the production was supposed to be produced by 7 Aurelilius (who co-produced "Down Ass Bitch"), while Irv Gotti was to be executive producer. On June 7, 2011, Ja Rule had intended to announce it on June 7, 2011, but decided to postpone the debut in order to improve the "quality and consistency of the information" and avoid "doing an injustice to [his] supporters." A new publication date, which was also postponed, was set for October 11, 2011. During the delay, Ja Rule introduced "Falling to Pieces," a new track that was inspired by 7 Aurelius' "Breakeven." "Spun a Web," another track by 7 Aurelius and sampling Coldplay's "Trouble," was released on October 2, 2011. A teaser video premiered on YouTube the day after, and the official video was announced on October 11. Pain Is Love 2 was officially released on February 28, 2012, just days after Ja Rule was serving a two-year prison term for firearms possession and tax evasion.

On May 7, 2013, Ja Rule was released from jail. He appeared on the remix of the song "She Tried," which appeared on the N.O.R.E.'s album Student of the Game, alongside Lil Wayne and Birdman. "Fresh Out Da Pen" was released by Ja Rule on September 18, 2013. On Hot 97, the track appeared for the first time. He published "Everything" a few days later. Both tracks were produced by Visionary artists Reefa and Myles William. Both tracks were available on iTunes on September 27, 2013. It was announced in September 2013 that Ja Rule and Gotti had relaunched Murder Inc Records.

Ja Rule released Unruly: The Highs and Lows of Becoming a Man, a memoir that reflected on his childhood in New York City and everything that followed, from explosions and crippling rivalries to fatherhood and a two-year prison term. In July 2014, Ja Rule unveiled his eighth studio album, which was later pushed back to a 2016 release. Ja Rule and his family will appear in the forthcoming reality show Follow the Rules, which was co-produced by Queen Latifah, also in 2014. A sneak peek trailer of the show appeared on the internet in September 2014 and the premiere of the show on October 26, 2015. Rule and Gotti had collaborated with Paramount Pictures on a TV drama series based on Murder Inc.'s history, and it was set to premiere in 2016. In February 2016, Ja Rule revealed that Coup De Grâce, his forthcoming eighth studio album, would be his last album. He appeared on The Hamilton Mixtape in December 2016, rapping Hamilton's verse in Ashanti's "Helpless" performance, referring to Lin-Manuel Miranda's depiction of him in the last line of the text. Ashanti revealed on June 26, 2018, that she and Ja Rule are working on a joint album.

Ja Rule released "Sincerely, Jeffrey" on October 15, 2021, in honor of his third studio album's debut, Pain is Love.

Ja Rule, on top of rapping, has worked as an actor. Turn It Up, Pras, Turn It Up, his first film; he appeared in a minor role in The Fast and Furious. He appeared in many films, including Back in the Day with Ving Rhames and Pam Grier and Half Past Dead as Steven Seagal's co-star. On Precinct 13, he appeared in the film The Cookout with Queen Latifah and Assault. He appeared in I'm in Love with a Church Girl in 2013.

In 2004, Ja Rule and Gotti founded ErvinGeoffrey, a luxury clothing collection. The Mojito, Ja Rule's first liquor firm, was founded in 2006.

Ja Rule teamed with Billy McFarland, the CEO of Magnises' credit card service company Magnises, in May 2015 to become its creative head and spokesman. Ja Rule co-authored a new line of men's sneakers, Maven x Madden, which were not available for purchase by fall 2015.

Ja Rule co-founded Fyre Media, Inc., a talent booking company, with Billy McFarland in 2016. The venture marketed its Fyre Festival in Hamilton, Bahamas, as a prestigious affair, but hundreds of ticket buyers had to be dissatisfied. A $100 million class action lawsuit was filed against Rule and McFarland.

Ja Rule founded Flipkick, a software engineering firm that sold physical works of art as non-fungible tokens in 2021. Flipkick claims to be the first company to offer cryptographic verification of physical works of art sold as well as NFTs." Ja Rule's first post on the site was auctioned a painting he commissioned in 2012 by artist Tripp Derrick Barnes depicting the Fyre Media Inc logo. The painting had been listed as $600,000.

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