Ja Rule Married His Wife After ‘She Tried to Play’ Him in High School
It seems like we hear a ton of gossip and headline-grabbing news about celebrities with tumultuous love lives. Sometimes it feels like there is an endless stream of reports about affairs, divorces, and multiple marriages. It can be refreshing, then, to hear about a celebrity relationship that’s lasted for years and even more shocking to see a pair that’s stood against the odds and stayed together since high school.
That’s the case for Ja Rule and his wife. The two have been together for decades, and the tale of how they met includes an anecdote about her trying to “play” the now-famous rapper.
Ja Rule married Aisha Atkins in 2001
Many have speculated that Ja Rule had a relationship with fellow musical artist Ashanti. Though the collaborators clearly respect and admire one another, they never dated. In fact, Ja Rule has been off the market for years since he met his wife Aisha Atkins when he was still a teen.
As Essence reports, the pair tied the knot back in 2001, and Ja Rule was famously sporting a du rag during the ceremony. Ja Rule spoke with Blender back in 2002 and gave some more details about the wedding: “We did it ’40s-style gangster. We had 800 people. It was like mafia weddings in the movies. We didn’t come down the aisle to the Godfather theme, but we had our tuxes and tails and cigars, and a lot of champagne.”
Ja Rule said Aisha Atkins tried to ‘play’ him when they first met
Speaking with Blender, the rapper opened up about his memory of first spotting his future wife all those years ago. As he remembers it, she was the new girl in school, and he caught a peek at her getting off the bus. “She was cute, but she tried to play me at first,” Ja Rule recalled. What exactly “playing him” entailed wasn’t clear, but it didn’t last long. “Then she realized I was one of the cool guys at school, and got with the program,” he added.
Getting with the program in this case meant starting a relationship before the rapper became world-renowned for his impact on the hip-hop world. As All Music reports, Ja Rule’s discography begins with his first album back in 1999. It was his second album, however, that really helped him solidify his style — as well as fuel some famous feuds with rappers like Eminem and 50 Cent.
As he collaborated with female R&B vocalists, his hardcore image got a bit softer around the edges, creating a unique and popular mix. Ja Rule and Atkins tied the knot at the height of his fame in 2002.
There are some ups and downs to marrying your high school sweetheart
For celebrities, marrying someone who knew you before you were famous is a bit surreal. As Ja Rule explained to Blender, “The best thing is that y’all know each other. She knows Jeffrey Atkins, not Ja Rule.”
The image he has for the public and the one he brings home to his wife and kids is sometimes at odds. As he explains, “But my wife sometimes has a problem with Ja Rule. She feels like she doesn’t know this guy with no shirt on, rapping about sex and drugs and partying. I tell her it’s not my fault that I have such a great job!”
It just goes to show that the public persona put on by celebrities isn’t always aligned with what goes on behind closed doors. Plenty of the most buttoned-up “family-oriented” figures have been through numerous affairs and divorces while someone who raps about sex and drugs has maintained a long-lasting relationship since his teens.
