Article: Ja Rule: rap star rules hearts & charts.(Jeffrey Atkins)

ALMOST overnight, music fans around the world were bombarded with the sights and sounds of Ja Rule. The 25-year-old rap artist with devilish eyes, a 5-foot-6 muscled frame, deep, forceful, voice (think Barry White with a perpetual sore throat) and an irresistible pout stormed the recording industry with an audacity that would shame Napoleon. And his message is clear: Ja Rule is on top of the world, and plans to stay there for a while.

Ja Rule emerged from obscurity in 1998 when he rapped a few lyrics on Jay-Z's single, "Can I Get A ..." In 1999, he released his debut album, Venni Vetti Vecci (his version of the Latin quote "I came, I saw, I conquered") and it ...

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