Editing Ja Rule (section)

===''Rule 3:36'', ''Pain Is Love'', and ''The Last Temptation'' (2000–2002)===
[[File:Vita&Ja.jpg|thumb|214x214px|Ja Rule and [[Vita (rapper)|Vita]] in 2001]]
Ja Rule's second single, "[[Between Me and You]]", featuring [[Christina Milian]], was released in June 2000 as the first single from his second studio album and became his first major crossover hit, earning Top 40 airplay and reaching number 11 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The album's next single, "[[Put It on Me (Ja Rule song)|Put It on Me]]", featuring [[Vita (rapper)|Vita]] and [[Lil' Mo]], was released in December 2000 and became one of the biggest hits of 2001, reaching number 8 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and becoming the first top-10 hit for both Ja Rule and Vita.<ref name="singles charts"/><ref>{{cite web|title=Ja Rule Talks Creation of 'Put It on Me'|url=http://www.hip-hopvibe.com/2012/02/29/ja-rule-talks-creation-of-put-it-on-me-in-vibe-interview/|website=Hip-hopvibe.com|date=February 29, 2012|access-date=May 23, 2013}}</ref> The video for "Put It on Me" also topped the MTV Video Countdown for a week, and became the first music video to be retired on [[Black Entertainment Television|BET]]'s ''[[106 & Park]]'' after spending more than 60 days on the countdown. The video also ranked number 1 on BET's ''Notarized: Top 100 Videos of 2001''.<ref>{{cite web|title=BET: Notarized – Season 1, episode 3: 2001|url=http://www.tv.com/shows/bet-notarized/2001-1298170/|publisher=[[TV.com]]|access-date=January 17, 2014|archive-date=October 2, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131002010436/http://www.tv.com/shows/bet-notarized/2001-1298170/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Ja Rule's second album, ''[[Rule 3:36]]'', was released on October 10, 2000, and went in a much different stylistic direction from ''Venni Vetti Vecci'', changing his almost trademark hardcore hip-hop sound to mainstream-oriented [[pop-rap]], debuting at number 1 on the [[Billboard 200|''Billboard'' 200]] with 276,000 copies sold in its first week, making it Ja Rule's first number-one album. The album later went on to be certified triple platinum by the [[Recording Industry Association of America]] (RIAA).<ref name="RIAA"/> A week later, Ja Rule featured on [[Cuban Link]]'s song "Murda Murda" from Cuban's ''24K'' album. It was released on October 22, 2000, by [[Atlantic Records]] and [[Terror Squad Entertainment]] as the B-side to Cuban's "Still Telling Lies" single.<ref>{{cite web|title=Cuban Link – Still Telling Lies|url=https://www.discogs.com/release/2281032-Cuban-Link-Still-Telling-Lies|publisher=[[Discogs]]|access-date=November 9, 2024}}</ref>

The success of ''Rule 3:36'' promoted Ja Rule to international status, and made Murder Inc. one of the biggest labels in the United States. The same success followed with his third album, which spawned three top-10 singles, two of them reaching number 1. The first, "[[Livin' It Up (Ja Rule song)|Livin' It Up]]", featuring [[Case (singer)|Case]], was released in July 2001 and reached number 6 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.billboard.com/artist/ja-rule/chart-history/hsi/|title=Ja Rule|website=Billboard.com}}</ref> It also achieved success in the United Kingdom, reaching number 5 on the [[UK Singles Chart]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/charts/singles-chart/20020728/7501/|title=Official Singles Chart Top 100 {{pipe}} Official Charts Company|website=Officialcharts.com}}</ref> The second single, "[[Always on Time]]", was released in October 2001 and marked the first major guest appearance for Murder Inc's youngest artist [[Ashanti (singer)|Ashanti]], and became both Ja Rule and Ashanti's first song to top the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.<ref name="singles charts"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.complex.com/music/2014/05/ashanti-tbt-complex-tv|title=Watch Ashanti Talk About Her Career Highlights and Working with Ja Rule and Fat Joe |work=[[Complex magazine|Complex]]|date=May 1, 2014|access-date=January 8, 2018}}</ref> The remix of [[Jennifer Lopez]]'s "[[I'm Real (Jennifer Lopez song)|I'm Real]]" featuring Ja Rule was included on the album and topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for five non-consecutive weeks, beginning September 8, 2001, and also topped the Hot 100 Airplay chart. The song was a staple of [[contemporary R&B|R&B]]/[[hip hop music|hip hop]] and [[pop music|pop]] radio during the summer and fall of 2001, spending fifteen weeks total in the top five of the Hot 100. In 2009 the single was named the 30th most successful song of the 2000s, on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 Songs of the Decade.<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/bbcom/charts/chart_display.jsp?g=Singles&f=Greece#/charts-decade-end/hot-100-songs?year=2009&begin=21&order=position |title=Hot 100 Decade Songs |magazine=Billboard |access-date=May 4, 2012}}</ref> The album's fourth single, "[[Down Ass Bitch]]" featuring [[Charli Baltimore]] was also successful, reaching number 21 on the Hot 100.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.billboard.com/artist/276599/ja+rule/chart |title=Ja Rule – Chart history {{pipe}} Billboard |website=www.billboard.com |access-date=14 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206205955/http://www.billboard.com/artist/276599/ja+rule/chart |archive-date=6 February 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Ja Rule released his third studio album, ''[[Pain Is Love]]'', on October 2, 2001. Like its predecessor, ''Pain Is Love'' topped the ''Billboard'' 200 with first-week sales of 361,000 copies and is certified triple platinum by the RIAA.<ref name="RIAA"/> The album also received a [[Grammy Award|Grammy]] nomination in 2002 for [[Grammy Award for Best Rap Album|Best Rap Album]]. By 2007, 3.6 million copies of ''Pain Is Love'' had been sold.<ref name=reuters />

''[[The Last Temptation (Ja Rule album)|The Last Temptation]]'', Ja Rule's fourth album, was released on November 19, 2002. It spawned two hit singles, "[[Thug Lovin']]", featuring [[Bobby Brown]], which peaked at number 42 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and "[[Mesmerize (Ja Rule song)|Mesmerize]]", a duet with Ashanti that peaked at number 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.<ref name="singles charts"/> ''The Last Temptation'' debuted at number 4 on the ''Billboard'' 200 with first-week sales of 237,000 copies and was certified platinum by the RIAA in December 2002.<ref name="RIAA"/><ref name="album charts"/>