Ja Rule

Rough yet lovable Ja Rule emerged during hip-hop's late-'90s boom and evolved into a pop phenomenon for nearly all platforms.

Born Jeffrey Bruce Atkins in Queens, New York, in 1976, the gravel-voiced MC kicked off his career making boom-bap with Cash Money Click.

He then cut his teeth as a guest alongside a rap rogue’s gallery—from Jay-Z and DMX to Method Man and LL Cool J—that pointed toward his future dual status as rugged spitter and gruff crooner.