Ja Rule Speaks On How 50 Cent Crushed Murder Inc

Back in the late 90s and early 2000s, when the Hip Hop scene was still dominated by east coast rappers, Murder Inc was one of the biggest labels out. The label had Ja Rule, and Ashanti, and their duets from back then were infectious and always turned to instant hits. Ja had back to back multi platinum selling albums from 99 to 2002. Irv Gotti (Murder Inc C.E.O) was even looking at signing Nas back in 2002. That was before 50 Cent came on the scene and aimed his lyrical oozy at Murder Inc...he kept firing till they were dust.


But it really wasn't just the music that 50 Cent used to destroy the Inc, he also...okay, let me let Ja Rule speak...



"It was a lot going on in that time frame. You got the federal indictment -- he was a part of the juggernauts at that moments. Eminem. Dre. They were very, very big in what they do and what we're doing as well so as we were big on our side, they were big on their side. As everything started to crumble for us, as far as we didn't have a label as a home anymore -- there was a lot of things falling apart for us. It was easy for him to get people to turn on [us]. And there were things behind the scenes that y'all don't see that made it seem more irrelevant. Like, we couldn't go to awards shows. They'd make calls. 'Well, if Murder Inc. is in the building, they're not going to perform this year. Em's not going to perform.' So we would get calls from MTV, BET like 'Yo, we love you guys, but guys, they're doing their thing this year and we don't want y'all in the building.' So now, as the fans, they're looking like, 'Yo, this dude is really crushing them. They don't even show up at the awards anymore.'" ("The Angie Martinez Show")



A quick recap- 50 Cent and Ja Rule beef started a long time before 50 blew up. It happened that Ja was in south side Jamaica Queens (50 cent's hood) to shoot a video and 50 claimed he didn't greet him properly or maybe he snubbed him or something, so he went and made a diss song going at Ja and Murder Inc. There is another story that the whole beef started when one of 50 cent's homies stole Ja's chain. Which ever way, and in which ever order, it escalated to the point where Irv Gotti and the crew went to the studio where 50 was recording music, and beat him up...50 Cent ended up being treated for multiple stab wounds, which Black Child (murder inc artist) claimed responsibility for.

This was around 2000, and 50 was a nobody at the time. So, when he made it big with Dre and Eminem, he went all out for revenge.