Irv Gotti sadly passed away from a stroke last February, leaving his Murder Inc. family like Ja Rule to celebrate his life and legacy under the circumstances. He recently did so in a big way during his HOT 97 Summer Jam set, and brought Jadakiss, Charli Baltimore, Lloyd, and more.
According to app, Ja performed a lot of classic 2000s Murder Inc. hits on Friday (June 20) at Newark, New Jersey's Prudential Center. "Irv crafted the soundtrack to the 2000s," Ja Rule said of Irv Gotti in a pre-recorded segment. "He never stopped pushing the culture forward." The performance included hits like "New York," "I'm Real," "Put It On Me," and "Always On Time."
Other hot names on the Summer Jam lineup included GloRilla, Gunna, Jim Jones, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Muni Long, Cash Cobain, Kash Doll, and many more. Asake and Ayra Starr also switched things up genre-wise, and Meek Mill emerged during Capo's set as a special guest performer. He treated audiences to an impromptu version of his classic hit "Dreams And Nightmares," which was electric to see.
Irv Gotti Tribute
"I felt he was getting better," Ja Rule said of Irv Gotti's passing during a Breakfast Club appearance. "Something happened. I think he had like a mini-stroke, and went back to see the doctor. And then it just kind of, his health just started kind of deteriorating from there. And it just kind of happened fast, and I'm like, 'God damn.' But again, it puts things in perspective. It puts life in perspective, it puts health in perspective, it puts money in perspective."
"We all out here chasing the money, the this, the that," he continued. "Money ain't nothing if your health ain't good."
Elsewhere, Ja Rule still has to deal with beefs, as his long-running saga with 50 Cent only got more contentious after Irv Gotti's passing. He said that he almost went "nuclear" on Fif for disrespecting the producer and executive after he passed away. Since then, things have been much more positive, as this Summer Jam set shows. It's a tough tragedy to handle, but Irv's loved ones will keep his spirit alive.
