The past is coming back to haunt Ja Rule. The 34-year-old spitter, whose real name is Jeffrey Atkins, plead guilty to a 2007 gun charge this morning in a New York City courtroom.

The incident in question took place more than three years ago after the rapper's chauffeured Maybach was pulled over following a concert at the Beacon Theater in Manhattan. After smelling marijuana emanating from the whip, police found a loaded semiautomatic gun in the vehicle and charged him with gun possession. A judge later dismissed his statement to police that he had a "little bit of weed" on him. Originally, Ja Rule claimed that the stop was unjustified and questioned the use of a certain type of DNA analysis in the case.

If convicted, the platinum-selling rapper faced up to four years in prison. By pleading guilty today, Ja Rule will only serve two years in prison when he is sentenced in February.

Ja Rule's change of mind may have something to do with Lil Wayne's verdict on a similar gun possession charge earlier this year. Lil Wayne was also nabbed on criminal weapons possession following the 2007 concert. The two had performed earlier that evening during a rendition of the track 'Uh Oh,' after which the emcee was pulled over and arrested. Weezy ended up spending eight months in prison for the charges after pleading guilty, and was released last month.

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