Ja rule rules. "Pain Is Love," the third album from the thug-rapper turned loveman, entered the charts at Number One, his second album in a year to do so. Ja also had a role in the summer sleeper hit The Fast and the Furious and a TRL-topping collaboration with J.Lo, "I'm Real."

Love is a big theme for you this year.

Pain is love, baby. The world needs more love; that's why I named my album Pain Is Love - I came up with that title when I got it tattooed across my chest. On the inside cover - the "pain" cover - I'm praying for the world, and I have all these photos of tragic world events of the past alongside me. On the front - the "love" cover - it's just a picture of me, as a product of what "pain is love" is.

What does "Pain Is Love" mean to you?

It's about the sacrifices you go through for the ones that come next, all the pain and the suffering you experience so that they receive a little love. "Pain is love" is like what Malcolm X and Martin Luther King did for black people, what Jesus Christ did for mankind. That's sacrifice.

What sacrifices did you make this year?

Just being in this industry is a sacrifice. I don't get to see my family, and I have two kids; I'm always on the road, but I gotta do it to make sure they get good schooling. It's all about sacrificin'.

How about your most memorable personal encounter this year?

Me and J.Lo was the best hookup this year. It worked so well: The chemistry worked like magic between us. We got a lot of things in common. We're basically from the same place: She's from the Bronx, I'm from Queens. It's a New York thing - we're real witty, you know? She's smart. After the record came out so hot, they wanted to shoot the video right away. We had a lot of fun - she's just a round-the-way chick in that video, and she would do little funny, stupid stuff. The idea was to take her back to her roots, but she's still the same: mad cool.

Any resolutions for 2002?

Stop drinking so much. When I'm drunk, I usually pass out somewhere. I passed out at Puff's birthday party - I had to throw up, and they had to get me up out of there. It was a lot of Cristal poppin', lot of R?my bottles getting opened. It was a good time, but it got too crazy between that fourth and fifth bottle. I'm wild and crazy like that - I might take my shirt off and get up on the bar. My drink of choice used to be R?my Martin, but that was killing me - it was too strong at times, and I'd wake up in the morning hurtin'. So now I'm back on my champagne thing.

I hear your buzz of choice is Ecstasy.

Aaaaaah! It is! I'm being framed! Yeah, I've tried that a couple of times. It's a fun high - being drunk sometimes gets you riled up, but Ecstasy's more relaxed, like a trip. I say funny shit when I'm on it.

What changes in pop culture would you like to see?

I'd like to see the different musics merge more - get Staind on BET or have some videos that only get played on BET onto MTV. Let's mix it up. I like Staind, and if they were being played on black stations, people would like it. I listen to everything - I got everything from Alicia Keys to Staind to Jay-Z's album. I definitely like Garbage, and I like a lot of Alanis Morissette, too.

It seems like rap is moving away from the bling-bling to a new social consciousness.

I agree 100 percent. We're taking steps in a conscious direction. I think artists are smart enough to get together and talk out problems they've had in the past; there's a lot of bigger issues than beefs. Hip-hop itself is just growing up. A lot is going on, so you want to be more conscious of what you say, anyway. My lyrical direction has become more uplifting, more spiritual, more passionate; I'm looking to live, but I'm not afraid of death. It's inspired by the things going on in the world, period.

What are your thoughts about the events of September 11th?

It's real crazy. I'm just trying to keep my eyes open. You want to know what's going on, but you never really know. You have to pray for the best. Someday, hopefully, there'll be world peace, although it doesn't look like it anytime soon.

[From Issue 883/884 — December 6, 2001]