Ja Rule was a very popular and beloved rapper in the late 90's and early 2000's.  He sold millions by blending different styles of music into his songs.  He wasn't confined to just rapping -- he was one of the earliest rappers to use his own vocals to sing hooks on his songs. 

Ja Rule called in to Ear Candy Mornings from prison to voice his support for rappers like Drake and Kanye West who have adopted that style into their own music.

"I mean, I love it. I love to hear the melodies in the records. Music is music. I think people get that twisted. 'Ah this is Hip Hop' or 'This is rock' or 'This is R&B.' Hip Hop is the only form of music that can mess with all of those sounds and make for good music.  So when I hear it in the music, I smile. I love to hear it, I love to listen to Drake, I love Kanye - all of these artists who make good music, because that's what it's all about."

"It's not about putting on a break beat and rhyming over it. That's where it started, but things elevate, things change. I think I kind of was in that zone. I wouldn't say I was ahead of my time, because I sold plenty of records doing that.  I've got all the accolades for it, so I wouldn't exactly say it was before anyone's time. I think people enjoyed it and they loved it, and they're still loving it. I just think it was a situation that I went through and people were led astray, led to believe that the style wasn't the hot style or whatever. It's funny, because it's like someone told you pizza's disgusting, pizza's nasty, pizza's wack. And then they went and sold pizza, and everybody bought it. It's kind of that scenario, but I'm glad to hear it in the music."

His career suffered some major damage during his feud with 50 Cent, where he was ridiculed for singing instead of just rapping, but now it seems his style has become widely accepted by the mainstream audience, without having to worry about sounding "soft" for singing.

When Ja Rule is released from prison, maybe he'll be able to jump back into the music industry with a fresh start and incorporate any style of music that he wants to try.

Source: hiphopdx.com