10 Most Important Beefs In Hip-hop History

A case of guilt by association for many of the parties involved, the initial spark which ignited the colossal and highly personal feud between Eminem's Shady/Aftermath records crew and Murder Inc initially began with barbs thrown by 50 Cent and the latter's flagship star Ja Rule.

Having been shot nine times little more than a few years prior to international superstardom, the early stage of 50's career bore many resemblances to the treacherous life that he'd led whilst selling drugs on the streets of Jamaica, Queens. With insults between the rising star and the more established Ja continuing for some time, the tensions came to a head in 2000 when 50 Cent was stabbed at New York's Hit Factory studios by Ja Rule's label mate Black Child.

With 50 Cent allegedly filing a protection order against many of the label's employees, the rapper claimed that this was forged by Murder Inc in order to bolster Ja Rule's dwindling credibility as a gangsta rapper in an era where he would duet with Ashanti, Jennifer Lopez and other pop-leaning R&B starlets.

As 50's popularity skyrocketed three years later after he was signed by Eminem's Shady Records and brought under Dr Dre's Aftermath/Interscope umbrella, Ja Rule not only resumed his campaign against the New York MC but made the fateful mistake of making things personal between himself and Eminem.

His track 'Loose Change' may have been atypical in its bashing of 50 but he also turned his sights towards Marshall Mathers by attacking his beloved daughter with the line 'Em, you claim your mother's a crackhead and Kim is a known slut so what's Hailie gon' be when she grows up?'

Initially refraining from involvement in the bubbling hatred between the two, this instantaneously changed things and prompted Slim Shady and his D-12 crew to release the seething 'Doe Rae Me' which verbally decimated the Murder Inc label in response to Ja crossing the line.

As expected, Ja Rule and Murder Inc never recovered from this war with the world's most successful hip-hop artist and Em later spoke with clarity about the situation on the pacifistic 'Like Toy Soldiers.'