Ludacris appears on VIBE Magazine’s latest digital cover.
Within the cover story, the rapper-turned-actor details his involvement in the Fast & Furious franchise, his upcomingLudaversal album and the new Atlanta Hip Hop scene.
Luda says he didn’t intend on his forthcoming Ludaversal album being delayed. It’s been pushed back several times since it was initially scheduled for a 2012 release but Luda believes “everything ended up working out perfectly.”
“I didn’t mean for it to be like this,” Luda says to VIBE. “I took a little time off because after seven consecutive albums you need to get inspired again to have some shit to write about. However, I didn’t mean for it to be five years—more like three. When we were shooting Furious 7, of course there was the untimely death of our friend Paul Walker. Production got shut down and everything got pushed back an entire year.
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“I was able to get rid of some records and continue to record and make the greatest body of work possible,” he added.
In the early 2000s, Luda was at the forefront of the “Dirty South” movement and an ambassador for his own city, Atlanta. Now, the Hip Hop hotbed has churned out a fresh class of rappers that have labeled their movement “New Atlanta.”
“I’m always embracing what’s new because I have to continue to keep afloat and I’m in competition to a degree with new artists as well as the ones that have been in the game as long as I have,” Luda says of “New Atlanta” rappers Rich Homie Quan, Migos, Young Thug and Father. “So it’s definitely something that still inspires me, even if it’s not necessarily my type of music. I hear the hunger and the tone in their voice and I love their creativity and artistry…Especially Migos. They’re extremely aggressive on the record. You can’t help but to pay attention.”
Ludaversal is scheduled for March 31, while Furious 7 is slated to hit theaters April 3.
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Check out VIBE’s Ludacris digital cover below:
