Unruly: The High and Lows of Becoming a Man

In this memoir, Ja Rule, an internationally known rapper-actor, offers revealing insights into his life, including a bitter lockdown at Oneida Correctional Facility in upstate New York, as well as escapades in his hometown of Queens, N.Y., where he enjoyed pot-smoking, easy sex, and the lure of the gang life in the projects. Yet he survived the hazards of drug dealing to emerge as a defining force in hip-hop, featuring political and cultural messages in his sound. A high school dropout, the entertainer, now 38 years old, first won roaring success in 1999 when his debut album Venni Vetti Vecci sold nearly two million copies. At that time, he joined the legendary 1999 Hard Knock Tour with DMX, Jay Z, Redman, and Method Man; he feuded with fellow rapper 50 Cent—a feud that only ended when Minister Louis Farrakhan brokered a truce; experienced a career downturn; and received death threats from old rivals in the drug game. Ja Rule’s candid, unvarnished view of guns, drugs, depression, fame, lust, love, and family and that makes this a remarkable memoir and a worthy read. (July)