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Ja Rule
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Murder Inc./Def Jam franchise artist Jeff "Ja
Rule" Atkins has become the undisputed King of the street anthem. The
24 year-old’s fiery, melodic baritone growls incite everyone from the grittiest
thugs to the prissiest ghetto-fab glamour queens to chant along in a tribal-like
call-and-response with his tracks like "How Many Wanna Die?," and
the Murder Inc. featured "We Don’t Give a F***." Other hip hop heavyweights
such as LL Cool J, Da Brat, Redman and Method Man and Warren G. have enlisted
his services to raise the level of intensity on their songs with his highly
distinguishable vocals.
After years of paying his dues and learning firsthand about the ills of the
music industry with the underground, New York based rhyme crew, Cash Money
Click (not to be confused with New Orleans Cash Money Records), things finally
fell into place for the Hollis, Queens native in 1998. It all started with
his breakthrough, show stealing appearance on Jay-Z’s club scorcher "Can
I Get A," (for which he wrote the hook). Almost overnight, he went from
being on the threshold of superstardom to simultaneously having the streets
and the mainstream firmly in his clutches with his superior debut, Venni,
Vetti Vecci.
Living up to the translated title (he came, he saw, he conquered), Venni almost
immediately went platinum, debuting at number three on the Billboard pop charts
and spawning the runaway blockbuster "Holla, Holla." But to let
Ja tell it, a hit record can sometimes be a curse.
"A lot of muthaf***as be like ‘why don’t you make another record like
"Holla, Holla?’" laments the father of two. "As an artist,
I want to elevate. It’s about selling records, but it’s also about making
records you feel in your heart."
Recorded solely in LA to get a more universal vibe feeling, Ja’s supreme sophomore
LP, Rule 3:36, solidifies his spot as a hip hop icon while bringing everything
you would expect. Soul bearing stories of Ja’s tribulations and triumphs,
life, party joints that’ll have club-goers flooding dance floors across the
country, and thought provoking explication of the hood’s state of affairs.
"Being a competitive muthaf****, I challenged myself to come crazier
and harder," says Ja of his latest musical expedition.
"Between Me and You," featuring newcomer Christina Milian, is already
raging uncontrollably across the airwaves. Ja’s playful ode to lust and late
night creeping is almost hypnotic, a tasty sample of things to come. Exchanging
verses with Def Jam family member Jayo Felony and fellow Murderers Black Child
and Ty Murder over a revamped sample of Barry White’s "Ecstasy"
is guaranteed to blow out your car speakers on the way to the hip hop dancehalls.
But what would a Ja Rule album be without those murdeeeerrrrrrrrrrrous cuts
we crave? "Six Feet Underground" is pure bedlam on wax. With a sample
from the classic Broadway hit Evita, you can almost see the venom dripping
from his teeth as the line slinger shoots barbs towards his haters over maniacal
synths and violins. "I would love for nothing more than to see my ni***s
eat with me/But my enemies wanna see me (six feet underground)."
Speaking of those haters, the album’s title is dedicated not only to them,
but the people who Ja Rule holds dearest to his heart as well. "I got
my set of rules," he explains. "One of them is ‘He who believes
in Ja shall have everlasting love. He who does not shall not see life, but
the wrath of my vengeance.’"
And living up to the unwritten rule of superstardom, Ja is conquering multiple
mediums. Ja has made his introduction to Tinseltown, starring in and participating
in numerous film projects. To top things off, Ja is part of designer Calvin
Klein’s national campaign. While all this may seem overwhelming to the average
person, Ja is excited to be living out his dreams. "All I ever wanted
is for people to look at me and be like ‘that’s Ja,’" he says with humility.
"Now that I’m in their sights, I’m going give them something to look
at as well as hear." The Murder spree continues.
Ja Rule Media
"Thug Loving" featuring Bobby Brown (video stream) (Win Hi) (Win Low) (Real Hi) (Quicktime Hi) (Quicktime Low)
Last Temptation Track Listing
1/A1. Intro
2/A2. Thug Lovin' feat. Bobby Brown
3/A3. Mesmerize feat. Ashanti
4/A4. Pop Ni***s
5/A5. The Pledge Remix feat. Ashanti, Ja Rule, Nas and 2Pac
6/A6. Murder Reigns
7/A7. Last Temptation feat. Charli Baltimore
8/B1. Murder Me feat. Caddillac Tah and Alexi
9/B2. The Warning
10/B3. Connected feat. Eastwood and Crooked I
11/B4. Emerica feat. Young Life and Chink Santana
12/B5. Rock Star
13/B6. Destiny (Outro)
Buy Pain Is Love
