Ja Rule is one of the music industry's greatest enigmas. Despite selling millions of records,
his career has been anything but smooth sailing, with the rapper often finding himself caught
up in a whirlwind of bad press. This is the shady side of Ja Rule.
Selling drugs is sometimes considered a means of success and survival for many, and celebrating
that lifestyle is deeply ingrained in hip hop culture. Growing up in Hollis, Queens,
Ja Rule began to emulate the local drug dealers at a young age.
Speaking in a 2014 Vlad TV interview, the rapper said -
"That's your first sight of what success is and you figure out how to obtain that success,
and the easiest way is to grab a pack and go out on the block or whatever."
He revealed that he first got into drug dealing around the age of 12 or 13, explaining that
he was inevitably forced into hustling to help him and his mother stay afloat. The occupation
led to some awkward relationships for a young Ja Rule, as he remembers selling to the parents
of his friends, saying -
"You know, our motto was, if they ain't gonna get it from us, they would get it from somebody
else. So, when I look back on those times and situations, I was like, that was like
some crazy s-- to do, sell to your man's moms."
"Ja - what is this new look?"
"I don't know man, she- she wanted me to leave the street life alone, guess that's what I'mma
do."
Before they were trading lyrical shots on the industry's biggest stages, Ja Rule and
50 Cent were just two rappers coming up from nearby neighborhoods in Queens, N.Y. According
to 50, their longtime feud initially started when Ja saw him with the guy who stole his
chain. However, Ja Rule denied this claim, suggesting instead that the beef began when
50 Cent supposedly felt slighted after being left out of the "Murda 4 Life" video shoot
in 1999.
50 alleged to XXL that he did stop by that video shoot to confront Ja, but was pulled
aside by legendary gangster and drug kingpin Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff, who apparently
told him,
"Leave them alone, man. You know they ain't gonna do nothing."
But the young rapper didn't listen. Black Child, one of Ja Rule's collaborators, remembers
their nemesis showing up that day, telling Vlad TV -
"I guess he feel like Ja ain't roll out the red carpet for him [...] He went back to the
hood and wrote a song."
That song was "Your Life's on the Line," in which 50 Cent appears to mock Ja Rule's "Murda"
chant. In another song created during that time, "Ghetto," 50 revealed some information
about Supreme's past illegal activity. The following year, the rapper was shot nine times,
and Supreme was investigated for allegedly plotting his death. While the two feuds may
appear unconnected, Ja Rule later claimed to Hot 97 that 50 Cent told investigators
that there was a link.
A couple of months before the infamous 2000 shooting, both Ja Rule and 50 Cent were set
to perform in Atlanta. All parties involved remember a conversation taking place between
the two rappers that turned into a fight after mutual friend Chaz "Slim" Williams convinced
them to talk ... but the other details differ.
Williams claimed Ja came to speak to 50 with a baseball bat in his hand. After he gestured
with the bat, 50 Cent reportedly took a swing at him and a scuffle broke out. While Williams
alleged that no one was hurt in the fight, Ja Rule had a different story. He told Hot
97 -
"The talk got heated because I got mad and I started screaming at him and telling him
that he was a b-- [...] So he swings at me. He caught me a little bit, but I dipped it
and then hit him with the bat, 'Poom!' So, now we start tussling."
However, Black Child remembers it even more theatrically, telling Vlad TV,
"Me and Ja chased him through the lobby [...] And the elevator doors closed just in time."
According to XXL, 50 Cent claimed that Ja Rule lost a necklace pendant during the fight,
which was snatched up by one of 50's guys and swapped for a Movado watch. However, Ja
Rule denied this particular allegation.
Shortly after the 2000 incident in Atlanta, Ja Rule and 50 Cent came together once again
- this time in New York City at the Hit Factory recording studio. As producer Chris Gotti
later told Vlad TV, Ja, despite being on crutches at the time, reportedly found out 50 was in
the building and was determined to confront him, recalling -
"We have about 40, 50 guys with us [...] We went looking for him in the studio."
The result, per The New York Times, was 50 Cent suffering multiple cuts and stab wounds
on his back.
Gotti and his brother, Irv Gotti, the CEOs of Ja Rule's Murder Inc. record label, were
each charged with gang assault and first-degree assault. Meanwhile, rapper Black Child confessed
to stabbing 50 in the back, but claimed it was in self-defense. Per Complex, the charges
were later dismissed. For his part, 50 Cent claimed that he didn't even go to the hospital
afterward, though The New York Times reported that 50 obtained an order of protection against
his assailants afterward, which put a dent in his street credibility.
While Ja Rule wasn't technically present for the incident, it definitely didn't help this
ongoing feud, with the rappers each releasing diss tracks - including Ja's "Race Against
Time II" and 50 Cent's "Back Down."
In June 2004, Ja Rule was at a nightclub in Toronto when a group of patrons formed near
him and began shouting derogatory statements about his already-infamous feud with 50 Cent,
per USA Today. Becoming frustrated with the crowd, Ja allegedly punched a man in his face,
with the victim receiving a black eye and cuts. He was charged and subsequently released
on $10,000 bail.
Early the following year, Ja Rule pleaded guilty to assault and received a $1,200 fine.
He commented to reporters after his court appearance -
"I'm just sorry about my actions."
"I know I haven't made you proud… How could I with all this mess I got going on?"
The judge also apologized on behalf of Toronto that day, condemning some of the comments
that were allegedly said.
However the incident didn't end there for Ja Rule - the man who was punched filed a
civil suit against him.
A December 2004 party held for Ja Rule at a club in Midtown, New York turned bloody
when a man was shot and killed and another wounded in the after hours. According to the
New York Post, investigators were initially pointed in the direction of the rapper and
his bodyguards after they spoke to the surviving victim.
While the possible motive seemed a little unclear, it was suggested that the shooting
may have been related to another crime. Both victims previously served time behind bars
and were the rumored suspects of a string of robberies, including one on rapper Foxy
Brown's brother. Investigators may have believed that Ja Rule's bodyguards were acting in revenge
for the robberies - or in anger for bringing that kind of heat to the rapper's party.
Regardless of the reason, investigators allegedly possessed surveillance footage, which showed
Ja Rule's vehicle stop outside the club after Moore and Clark walked past it. One of the
rapper's bodyguards was seen approaching the car and reportedly said -
"Come with me, it's coming down."
Then another bodyguard exited the vehicle, and the two men from Ja Rule's security team
apparently shot Moore and Clark.
In her 2005 book, Confessions of a Video Vixen, Karrine Steffans dropped quite a few scandalous
bombshells on the music industry. The former video dancer revealed that she had affairs
with a slew of big-name celebrities, many of them in relationships with other women
at the time. She was even married to hip hop pioneer, Kool G. Rap ... but it was her alleged
time with Ja Rule that impacted her most, telling The New York Times -
"After the thing was over with Ja, I think I went a little crazy searching for his replacement
[...] Once something was over with one of them, even if it ended horribly, that would
only make me want to regain what I thought I had."
But Ja Rule, who had been in a relationship with the same woman since high school, denied
Steffans' allegations. During a 2013 HipHollywood interview, the rapper guessed at Steffans'
motives, claiming,
"I'm a target for fallacious women that want to not see me and my wife happy [...] So they'll
make up stories and do whatever they have to do to sell books, or be on TV shows."
Steffans took some flak by members of the industry for the book being a blatant fame
grab, but over the years has commented that the criticism comes with a double standard.
"But here's the thing - when MEN do it, it's expected. When a woman does it- it's a problem."
In the early 2000s, Lil' Mo and Ja Rule collaborated to make two massive hits, "I Cry" and "Put
It on Me." While they were two of the biggest songs of Ja Rule's career at that point, Lil'
Mo then turned that success into records with artists like Jay-Z and the late Tupac. However,
the singer didn't look back too fondly on her dealings with Ja, saying to MTV News -
"Two hit record smashes [...] Those two records ruled 2001. The whole world knows that."
Not only did she claim that she wasn't paid for her contributions, but that she didn't
even get a proper recognition going on to say -
"I helped that brother sell 3 million records, and I don't have a plaque [for the Rule 3:36
album]. I did 'Parking Lot Pimpin'' and Jay-Z sent me a plaque for every song he's done,
a thank you card and a bottle of Cris."
In 2005, Lil' Mo decided to file a lawsuit against Ja Rule, Murder Inc. Records, and
Def Jam for $15 million. While speaking at All Hip Hop, she claimed that she owns 10
percent of "Put It on Me," saying,
"This is beyond personal, this is business. This is my livelihood as an artist. We don't
make money until the label makes money so as a songwriter that was a part of my career
that I was supposed to receive a substantial amount of money."
Luckily, Lil' Mo and Ja Rule did later reconcile and release another song together.
In July 2007, Ja Rule joined Lil Wayne on stage during a concert in Manhattan. Later
that evening, Ja was pulled over for speeding. Per CNN, police then found, hidden in the
backseat of his Maybach, a loaded firearm with the serial number scratched off.
"Would you like to tell me why there was a GUN in your CAR?!"
According to MTV News, the rapper pleaded guilty to attempted criminal possession of
a weapon and was sentenced to two years in prison in 2010.
While serving that time, Ja Rule was hit with tax evasion charges. Fox News reports that
the rapper admitted to failing to pay taxes on over $3 million in earnings from 2004 to
2006. As a result, he was sentenced to 28 months in prison, most of which could be completed
while serving his previous sentence. While addressing the court before his second sentencing,
Ja Rule said -
"I in no way attempted to deceive the government or do anything illegal. I was a young man
who made a lot of money - I'm getting a little choked up - I didn't know how to deal with
these finances, and I didn't have people to guide me, so I made mistakes."
Just 20 months into his two-year gun charge sentence Ja Rule was released from prison,
allowing him to finish the remaining time left on his tax evasion sentence on house
arrest.
"I thought it was gonna be a lot different, but when I got there people actually had a
lot of admiration for me lot of love for me -"
"Yeah."
"-So it was a really… different experience."
In 2015, Ja Rule joined CEO Billy McFarland to help promote Magnises, a fancy Black Card
that allegedly came with special perks and VIP access for millennials. The rapper was
named Creative Head and spokesman for the company and said of his business venture -
"We all have eyes, but not everyone has vision [...] You have to have that vision to see
what's going to be hot tomorrow. I think that's what makes people great: being able to see
what the public needs and wants tomorrow, not today."
The card first opened for members in New York, then expanded into other states across the
country. According to Fortune,
"For $250-per-year, members would gain entry to exclusive celebrity events, a concierge
service to score hard-to-get concert tickets and restaurant reservations and access to
a swanky, shared hangout pad."
How the company made money was a mystery. The WeFunder page alleged it was mostly funded
by membership fees, but a member of the Magnises management team said it was fueled primarily
by branded events.
Ja Rule's role in the company was allegedly inflated as well.
"They gave him a role - like a title technically, but like, just so when he was on camera he
would be associated with Magnises. He had NOTHING to do with Magnises."
In the end, members began to complain about broken promises, overcharges, and bad business
dealings, per Fortune. Magnises earned an "F" grade with the Better Business Bureau
- and that wasn't even their most famous failure.
Magnises CEO Billy McFarland told Rolling Stone that the plan for the ill-fated Fyre
Festival was hatched in early 2016 by himself and his business partner, Ja Rule. It all
sounded amazing: They shot a beautiful promotional video that featured the likes of Bella Hadid
and Emily Ratajkowski, promising -
"Yoga on the beach, water trampolines, seabobbing [...] music, art, food and [...] $1 million
of real treasure and jewels hidden around the island."
The event also had a slick list of musical acts lined up, including Lil Yachty, Blink-182,
and Migos.
What guests got, however, was something much less than promised. Not long before the event's
highly-anticipated start in April 2017, The Wall Street Journal warned that some musical
acts were not yet paid and guests were worried about the lack of communication. According
to Billboard, flights full of guests who'd paid up to $1200 headed to Exumas were delayed
then cancelled. Those who did make it to the island were met with disaster tent setups,
given little support, and fed with cheese on bread.
Speaking with Rolling Stone, McFarland said,
"We were a little naïve in thinking for the first time we could do this ourselves. Next
year, we will definitely start earlier."
By the following year, however, McFarland was slammed with a $100 million lawsuit and
sentenced to six years in prison for fraud. His partner, Ja Rule, was deemed ignorant
of the festival's wrongdoings in July 2019.
"Uh, biggest misconception about your involvement in Fyre Festival."
"Is that I committed a crime."
"OK."
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Nicki Swift videos about your
favorite rappers are coming soon. Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so
you don't miss a single one.