ARTIST: Ludacris
ALBUM: Ludaverse
LABEL: Def Jam
RELEASE DATE: March 31, 2015
Back Grindin’
Written by Jeremy Weeden
Ludacris has been missing from the rap game for the past few years with some critics claiming he had “gone Hollywood” (since he has been starring in the Fast and Furious series) and has not released an album since 2010’s Battle of the Sexes. With Ludaversal, however, Ludacris is out to prove the doubters wrong and show he’s still one of hip-hop’s top acts.
Ludaversal begins with “Ludaversal Intro” produced by David Banner. Over this track with no hook Ludacris wastes no time in reminding everyone how lyrically talented he is by dropping rhymes “They like Luda why you rapping so fast?/I’m like Bitch why you listen too slow/I’m the truth in the booth and they can’t keep up hardly cause I always hit em with a new flow/In the two door with the coup low/With the Hublot off the window/With the two low blades from the top like judo/Listening to Bruno on the way to school though.”
“The Grass is Greener” finds Ludacris rapping about his wishy-washy nature and how people are always searching for something different in life. He raps about some things he has done with the lines “Did some movies and started missing this rap shit/Back to rap and starting missing them movies/Left these hoes to settle down with just one chick/Get with one chick started missing them groupies/Stop drinking for a year and I was all sober/Next year I got drunk and did it all over/Yesterday I quit smoking and swore I had enough/Till I smelt it in the club and had to take a puff.”
“Lyrical Healing” is a one-verse song where Ludacris calls out sensitive rappers who take to social media to air out there beefs. This song is over a 70’s soul-inspired beat and has a smooth quality to it. The song is followed immediately by another one-verse track, “Beast Mode,” a cut that is much harder than “Lyrical Healing” and much longer, clocking in at 3:36 minutes. This is the album’s latest single and features Marshawn “Beast Mode” Lynch in the video for the song.
“Come and See” features Big Krit and the two MCs play off of each other well on this slow, bass-heavy track produced by Mike Will Made It. “Good Lovin” is Ludaversal’s first single and features Miguel.
“Ocean Bridges” is a tribute to Luda’s father, Wayne Bridges. The song starts off with a clip of Ludacris accepting his award for Best Rap Album at the 2007 Grammy Awards where he asked everyone in the audience to pray for his father whom, at the time, was in a critical-health condition. Ludacris quickly gets to the root of his father’s problems and what killed him by rapping: “Look, I lost my father to the bottle/I’d hug him every day like I might not see him tomorrow/Got a enough sorrow for a lifetime/Cause when he was living I’m thinking how do I get him to listen/When he was seldom in his right mind/My early years I was too young to understand/But I remember the smell of beer and seeing all the empty cans.” Monica sings the hook on this touching tribute.
“Charge it to the Rap Game” finds Ludacris discussing some of the bad things about the hip-hop game. On “This Has Been My World” Ludacris raps about the positive side of being a rich and famous rapper including getting free Jordans from Michael Jordan and waking up in different cities in fancy hotels on the regular. Conversely, on “Money” Rick Ross joins Ludacris in rapping about the problems they have encountered since becoming rich. Ludaversal ends with “Burning Bridges” featuring country singer Jason Aldean.
Ludaversal is a good return to the game for Ludacris. Many rapper’s entire careers don’t last five years, so too be able to take five years off between albums is a testament to Luda’s staying power and fan base in and of itself. Rap music has changed since Ludacris’s last 2010 album, but Ludaversal shows there is still a place at the table for a legend like Luda.