Ludacris

He has often been the topic of controversy due to the excessive use of sexual and violent content in his songs and has been criticized for causing disrespect to women and promoting a violent lifestyle.

He became involved with Dosomething.org and Better World Books in 2011 which aim to collect books for restocking library shelves in New Orleans.

He was born to Wayne Brian Bridges and Roberta Shields. He is of African American and Native American descent.

The musically inclined youngster began rapping from the age of nine and joined an amateur rap group when he was 12. Sensing his interest, his father ensured that he got exposed to a variety of music.

He graduated from Banneker High School in 1995. He studied music management in Georgia State University for one term from 1998 to 1999.

He worked for a brief period as a disc jockey. He then became acquainted with Timbaland and worked with him on the track ‘Phat Rabbit’ which went on to become a big hit. During the initial days of his career he worked in collaboration with artists like Dallas Austin and Jermaine Dupri.

He released his major label debut ‘Back for the First Time’ in 2000. The album was a major success and helped to launch his career. The album featured the songs ‘Southern Hospitality’ and ‘What’s Your Fantasy’.

The success of his debut prompted him to bring out another album the very next year. ‘Word of Mouf’ (2001) debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 chart and went on to be certified multi-platinum; it is the artist’s best selling album till date.

In 2003, he released the album ‘Chicken-n-Beer’ which had a Southern hip hop sound with a fast and wild flow of music. The album was controversial because of its high sexual content though it became very popular with the masses.

He branched out into acting with a main role in the movie ‘2 Fast 2 Furious’ (2003). He played Tej Parker, an ex-street racer, in the street racing action film directed by John Singleton.

His debut album ‘Back for the First Time’ introduced the rapping superstar to the music world. The album featured the super hit songs ‘Phat Rabbit’, ‘What’s Your Fantasy’ and ‘Southern Hospitality’. The album was an exceptional success for a debut and sold over 6.5 million copies.

The album ‘Chicken-n-beer’ peaked at No.1 on the U.S. Billboard 200 and was a critical as well as commercial success. The album became popular not just in the U.S. but also in several other countries like Germany and U.K.