Ja Rule knew he didn’t have much time to record the last cuts of his long anticipated-album, “PAIN IS LOVE 2”. Cops had found a gun in his Maybach and he’d been convicted of attempted gun possession. He was about to start his sentence.
“My back was against the wall,” Ja Rule told the Daily News in an exclusive interview Tuesday. “I didn’t think we’d have time to do what I set out to do, but it came together much better than I could ever imagine.”
Ja’s fans couldn’t agree more. In 24 hours, Hype Williams’ music video of “Real Life Fantasy”, his duet with Anita Louise, got 3 million hits on WorldStarHipHop.com. Fans will soon hear the rest, like his virtuosic rap “Pray for the Day”, the heartfelt “Drown”, and the lushly produced “Superstar”, Ja’s musing on fame, when the album drops Feb. 28.
Channel 7, who produced “PAIN IS LOVE 2”, told The News there was a synergy in the studio that felt “supernatural”.
“Anyone who was a part of those sessions felt the intense creative energy in the room, and knew we were on a mission”, 7 recalled. “I remember at the last session, at one point the studio assistant got really choked up and emotional. He admitted that witnessing Ja record this album with everything happening with the prison bid looming, yet still staying so focused, inspired him to have the strength to deal with his own issues. I felt that... we all did."
‘Pray For the Day’ was playing on the big speakers and Ja was like, ‘I said what I needed to say to the fans. I’m ready.’
“We all knew he was going to prison the next day. It was a heavy moment. I think everyone in the room was pretty overwhelmed.”
"This record is a labor of love," said Ja's spokeswoman Melanie Bonvicino. "He knew he was going to jail."
At Mid-State Correctional Facility, the steel doors slam with a jarring clang. They’ve shut behind Cormega, Prodigy, a Supreme Court judge, and CEO Dennis Kozlowski, who all got out, as Ja Rule will in a year.
Turning Stone Resort and Casino is just down the road, but for now, Ja’s luck has temporarily run out. In those unmistakable stentorian tones, he tells The News he’s making the best of it.
“I didn’t know how strong I was,” Ja says. “My uncle sent me a poem about an oak tree doing battle with the wind, which breaks its limbs and tears its bark, but it’s still standing, because of its strong roots. It’s a metaphor for life.”
Ja’s roots are in Hollis, Queens, where he was born Jeffrey Atkins on Leap Day 36 years ago.
Courtesy Of NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
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