Father’s Day was two months ago. I wonder if any rappers sent Ja a card. More after the jump.

Previously: Hip-Hop Confessions: So Far So Late

I’m a Ja Rule fan.  Wait, that came out wrong. Correction: I like some Ja Rule songs.  More on that later. In case you missed it, this past Friday, Loki took to the ‘net and put out his shelved album, The Mirror, as a free download. As I contemplated on clicking the zshare link, I thought about Ja’s influence on the game. And after thinking about it, he doesn’t get enough credit.

Before 50 Cent maimed his career, Rule was the king of rap. Following Venni Vetti Vecci, Ja switched his style and made the Gotti’s rich with those damn sing-a-longs. Secretly, I dug a couple of them like, “Rainy Days” and “Always On Time.

Numbers don’t lie. Ja sold millions. In fact, Murder Inc were keeping the lights on at Def Jam. It got to a point where it seemed as if Ja was the only rapper getting radio airplay. Eventually fans (including myself) couldn’t stomach anymore of Ja’s crooning combated it with some serious backlash.

Despite some attempts, (“Clapback”, “New York”) Ja couldn’t recover. And for nearly three years, The Mirror sat on Sylvia Rhone’s mantle. But even though Rule’s a shell of his former self, still, you can’t flout his contribution to the game. After all, most of the artists that ridiculed him singing, have all test driven their falsettos. When Kanye West dropped 808s & Heartbreak last year, some fans championed his “creativity.” Meanwhile, Drake’s crooning has earned him critical praise.

I think I’m going to pass on downloading The Mirror. Hopefully some of his haters take a long look at one.