Ja Rule says failing to report about $3 million in cash payments helped send him to federal prison for tax evasion.
The rapper detailed the costly mistake during a recent appearance on “Earn Your Leisure,” explaining that he once believed cash he received from concert promoters did not count as taxable income.
“I would do shit like, ‘Yo, you’re giving me $250,000 for the show. Bet. Give me $50,000 in cash and send the other $200,000 to the shit,’” he recalled.
Ja admitted he treated the cash portion as money that would remain off the government’s radar.
“In my mind, that 50 is free cash,” he said. “I don’t know why I thought that. I just thought if you gave it to me in cash, it ain’t on the books.”
The payments eventually totaled $3 million, according to the “Always on Time” rapper.
“I was doing some crazy s–t. I didn’t understand money at the time,” he said.
Ja also recalled being taken into federal custody immediately after completing his state sentence on a gun charge.
“I did my state time for the gun charge, and then as soon as I got released, the feds came and got me for failure to file taxes,” he said.
He believes authorities began examining his finances while investigating his other legal troubles.
Ja Rule rose to fame in the late 1990s and became one of Murder Inc. Records’ biggest stars. He is known for hits including “Always on Time,” “Mesmerize,” “Put It on Me” and “Livin’ It Up,” as well as collaborations with Ashanti and Jennifer Lopez.