It’s lit! Hip-hop icons Ja Rule and Fat Joe are set to face off in an all-new Verzuz battle on Sept. 14. The friendly competition will take place in person, live from New York. Tickets will be available for purchase beginning Tuesday, Sept. 7.
“The summer ain’t over!!” Verzuz co-creator Swizz Beatz wrote on Instagram revealing the news.
In a separate announcement post on Instagram, Ja Rule wrote, “#ICONN.” Meanwhile, Fat Joe captioned his identical post, “The price just went [up] @fatjoe @verzuz @jarule.”
This marks the first Verzuz battle since last month, when The LOX and Dipset hit the stage to deliver some fan-favorite hit songs.
Over the course of his decades-long career, Ja Rule has released eight No. 1 Billboard Hot 100 singles, including “Always On Time,” featuring Ashanti, which peaked at No. 1 in February 2002 and charted for 27 weeks. The hitmaker has released a total of 17 Hot 100 songs. His debut studio album, Venni Vetti Vecci, peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, where it charted for 31 weeks.
Fat Joe, who began his career in music as a member of hip-hop group Diggin’ in the Crates Crew (D.I.T.C.), released his debut solo album Represent in 1993. His single from the album, “Flow Joe,” reached No. 1 on the Hot Rap Songs chart.
Ja Rule’s collaborative hit track “New York,” featuring Fat Joe and Jadakiss, was a top 30 Hot 100 song. It peaked at No. 27 on the list in 2004, where it charted for 14 weeks.
Hip-hop fans can catch the newly announced Verzuz battle between Fat Joe and Ja Rule on Sept. 14 at 9 p.m. ET, which will be available for live streaming via the Triller app, FITE TV or on the Verzuz TV Instagram account.