Ludacris' Ludaversal Album Review

Hip hop is universal. I've preached this sort of thing countless times, always have, always will. Some things begin to sound like a broken record, no matter how differently these things are said, but depending how you hear these things, they certainly have the potential to hit your ear differently, and maybe even persuade you in some type of way. The father of crunk music dripping southern swagger and diamond encrusted necklaces can only say the same things so many times and have people still want to hear it. You like to believe artists have the ability to grow and branch out of their usual subject matter, but after so long you start to wonder... is what their saying becoming a universal language, or is it played out?  Ludacris' latest album might have hit your ear a bit different than his past efforts.

The "Ludaversal Intro" is probably the biggest stand out of the album, though it'd be wrong to say the album goes downhill from here. Luda starts off the album as good as he possibly can with this intro, and his flow on the song is absolutely ridiculous. It's pretty safe to say that if you ever doubted Luda or thought he had lost a step, "Ludaversal Intro" is the track to prove you wrong.

Luda keeps the spitting coming like hot fire (Dylan) on the intro and other tracks like "Beast Mode" and "This Has Been My World," but Luda also switches it up and instills some life lessons in some tracks, the biggest stand out being "Grass Is Always Greener." This track keeps a steady paced, snap-ya-fingas type of vibe that would probably bump pretty well in the car. Ludacris has always been known as the poster rapper for turn up music, but tracks like "Grass Is Always Greener" and "Ocean Skies" show that Ludacris is very capable of making you think, even though he chooses to take that route less often than people might like.

Ludacris has been known as one of the funniest rappers of his time, and you can't help but get a good laugh out of his "Viagra Skit." Luda goes on to call the Viagra people about his "hard problem" during the skit, and to his luck a very lonely woman answers and drives over to help Luda out with his problem. It cuts off at the part where the lady asks "where the drank at", but I think we all know what happens after the fact. Obviously the lady got her drank and was very happy.

A Big K.R.I.T feature is always one to boast and bump, and Ludacris did just that on his K.R.I.T-assisted track "Come And See Me." This is the Ludacris that old fans love to hear, his descriptiveness talking about his cars and his women has always been able to catch fans' ear, and the thump of the bass in "Come And See Me" along with a couple of K.R.I.T verses helps to do exactly that.

                                         (*I do not own these songs, or the rights to them*)

Ludacris keeps the features to a minimum on Ludaversal, and it's kind of a welcoming back feel you get from Luda's music on Ludaversal, although the features he boasts (K.R.I.T, Miguel, Usher) fit in very well with the sounds of each song, and as a whole on the album. Hearing Luda and Ursher on a track again brings back great memories of club and booty bouncing jams, although they both do a great job of giving fans more of a jazzy feel on their track "Not Long."

So is Luda back?  That feeling that you get listening to a Ludacris song; you know, the getting hyped up over a fast beat with some banging drums, Luda's light speed flows and wordplay and the head bobbing and trying to keep up with the words; you can only get that feel from a Ludacris song. The beats are top notch, the lyrics are just as appetizing and catch your ear as fast as ever (you have to keep up with him, though that's where the fun lies), and Luda still has things to talk about. Ludacris has become a staple in the game, and even when you think he's down and out and ready to throw in the towel and give up, he shows you that he's still able to keep up with todays young guns. Yes I believe that Luda has become universal, and his latest effort is one that every fan of him, old and new, can respect. Some new music can be refreshing, yet give you that same old feel that you got the first time you heard the old music.