A court is telling Ja Rule to book a date in New York City this summer - for a trial in his three-year-old gun case.
A Manhattan judge set an Aug. 18 trial date on Tuesday.
The judge had turned down the platinum-selling rapper's request for a hearing on scientific issues surrounding DNA evidence.
Ja Rule was allowed to skip Tuesday's court date for a movie shoot out of town.
He has pleaded not guilty to weapon possession. Police said they found a loaded semiautomatic gun in his luxury sports car as he was being driven away from a July 2007 concert.
Ja Rule's "Pain is Love'' was nominated for a best rap album Grammy Award in 2002. His movie acting credits include 2001's "The Fast and the Furious."
His real name is Jeffrey Atkins.
Copyright AP - Associated Press