Ja Rule Biography

Date of Birth: February 29, 1976

Birth Name: Jeffrey Atkins

A native of Queens, NY, Ja Rule began a rapping career when, at the age of 19, he guested on a recording by Mic Geronimo. His performance led him to land a recording deal for his group, the Cash Money Click. However, after releasing only one single, Chris Black, a member of the group, was arrested and incarcerated. In 1998 Ja Rule signed a new deal with Def Jam records.

The following year, Rule released a debut solo album called Vetti, Venni, Vecci. His single Holla, Holla went gold and he joined Def Jam's Hard Knock Life Tour, the highest grossing rap tour in history. His album went multi-platinum, establishing Rule as a solid success. His next album, Rule 3:36 went straight to the top of the US Album charts in October 2000, as did his follow up, Pain Is Love. In 2001 he collaborated with Jennifer Lopez on the songs I'm Real and Ain't It Funny.

Ja Rule made his acting debut in the film Turn it Up (2000). He followed that up with a role in the box office smash The Fast and the Furious (2001), which cleared over US $40 million in its opening weekend. In Rule's third film, he starred alongside Steven Seagal in Half Past Dead (2002). He continues to work steadily with roles in Scary Movie 3 (2002), The Cookout (2004) and Assault on Precinct 13 (2004).

Married to Aisha Atkins, the couple have a daughter, Britney and a son, Jeff Jr.

Filmography:

Assault on Precinct 13 (2005)
Back in the Day (2004)
The Cookout (2004)
Scary Movie 3 (2002)
Half Past Dead (2002)
The Fast and the Furious (2001)
Turn It Up (2000)