50 Cent and Ja Rule’s beef has simmered down in recent years, but there was a point in its two-plus decades when the rivalry was far more serious than it is today.
During a recent appearance on the Back Stories Podcast, Murder Inc. Records marketing executive Dex Diamond revealed details about the rivalry when tensions were at their peak.
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“Some of these DJs thought it was a game and they was playing diss records while we there,” he said, recalling some of Ja’s past club appearances. “While we in the club, they go from the commercial shit, they go into the diss records ’cause they think it’s a game.”
Diamond was clear about having no problem with the people behind the turntables playing hit records, regardless of who they were by, but putting on a non-commercial track that took aim at his artist was something he and his team did not tolerate.
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The Murder Inc. crew would take over the DJ’s spot in such instances, and even hand them a beating sometimes.
“We was tappin’ n-ggas asses,” he said, then pointed at an injured finger on his right hand. “This was from throwing down in fuckin’ Miami and shit. We walkin’ down Ocean [Drive] and a bunch of muthafuckas, with all of us there, talkin’ bout G-G-G-G-Unit and try to snuff a n-gga, next thing there’s five-on-five and shit.”
The Fif and Ja beef — which spawned 50 Cent disses such as “Wanksta,” “Back Down,” and Ja Rule cuts “So Hot” and “The Wrap” — eventually turned into a G-Unit and Murder Inc. battle, pulling in members from the outer circles of each entity.
As a result, Ja released “21 Gunz” and “New York,” featuring Jadakiss and Fat Joe on the latter. 50 also took shots at his fellow Queens rapper on “Piggy Bank” and “Return of Ja Fool,” the second of which was featured on Lloyd Banks’s mixtape.
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On the periphery of the feud, Murder Inc. MCs also got involved with releases like “There’s a Snitch in the Club” by Cadillac Tah and “The Real Wanksta” by Black Child.
Despite all the years of heat, Ja recently suggested that the pair’s current relationship might not be what people expect.
During a chat with The Shade Room in April, the Hip Hop veteran was asked about his relationship with the G-Unit mogul, to which he responded: “If 50 Cent was to walk in here right now, what do you think would happen?”
“Well, nothing, obviously,” the interviewer replied.
“Exactly!” he shouted in response. “That’s what the fuck I’m saying. We don’t have an issue. We don’t have a problem.”
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The interviewer then brought up the previously suggested Verzuz between the pair and how Fif shut the idea down because he didn’t want to help make Ja Rule relevant again.
“Like, c’mon dog. I’m very relevant out here,” Ja responded. “I don’t have nothing to prove to anybody. I just, you know, I just want people to understand my side. My side of it is, I really don’t give a fuck.”
