Rappers Ja Rule and Tony Yayo Clash in Delta Flight Confrontation
Rapper Ja Rule and fellow rapper Tony Yayo were involved in a heated verbal dispute aboard a Delta Air Lines flight from San Francisco to New York City on Sunday morning, with both men briefly removed from the aircraft before departure.
Video footage obtained by TMZ captured the confrontation shortly after boarding, showing raised voices as passengers turned toward the back of the aircraft where the argument unfolded. The incident involved Tony Yayo and another rapper, Uncle Murda, both affiliates of 50 Cent’s G Unit collective, seated one row behind Ja Rule in business class.
According to witnesses cited by TMZ, Ja Rule initiated the confrontation with a remark directed at Yayo and Uncle Murda as they settled into their seats. The exchange quickly escalated into shouting across rows, with Ja Rule reportedly using profanities and stating he wanted to fight. Witnesses said he threw a pillow toward Yayo during the dispute.
Yayo responded by noting that aircraft are federal offense territory and maintained he had done nothing wrong. Uncle Murda recorded portions of the altercation and later posted video clips to Instagram, where the footage attracted millions of views.
Cabin crew intervened and both Ja Rule and Yayo were escorted off the aircraft briefly while the situation was addressed. A Delta Air Lines spokesperson confirmed that two customers were spoken to by crew members following a disagreement and that one passenger was rebooked on a later flight. The airline confirmed the aircraft continued to John F Kennedy International Airport (JFK) without further incident.
Delta declined to specify which passenger was rebooked. However, follow up video posted by Uncle Murda appeared to show Ja Rule’s seat empty, with Murda claiming in his caption that Ja Rule left the plane and joking that he took his seat.
Ja Rule addressed the incident on X, formerly known as Twitter, appearing unapologetic about the altercation. He wrote that he threw the pillow at Yayo’s head and described the situation as hilarious. In subsequent posts responding to TMZ’s inquiry, he stated that he saw the two men when he boarded and decided to address them because they were always talking.
Representatives for Tony Yayo have not publicly commented on the incident. The confrontation adds another chapter to the decades long feud between Ja Rule and 50 Cent’s crew, which dates back to the early 2000s and has included diss tracks, social media exchanges, and disputed claims about physical altercations.
50 Cent, who has 38 million Instagram followers, shared the footage and mocked Ja Rule, suggesting he made a scene so crew would remove him. The public rivalry between the artists has remained active for more than two decades, shaping both their careers and hip hop culture during that period.