October was to be the month of all months for Atlanta based rapper Ludacris. 'Luda' who was born Christopher Bridges in Champagne, Illinois had a strategically mapped out plan which would include the release of Theater of the Mind. The album was to be cohesively released to coincide with Ludcris’s return to the silver screen in two movies to be released this month.
However it became known this week that the album would not be hitting the shelves until November 25th, more than a month later than anticipated.
Theater of the Mind
After his Grammy won in 2007 for his album Release Therapy, there has been quite a lot of industry speculation as to whether the highly anticipated Theater of the Mind will match up to his last project.
Appearances on the album are said to include Common, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross and a collaboration with the self proclaimed King of the South TI has also put end to rumors of a feud between the two Atlanta heavyweights. An altercation between TI and Chaka Zulu, Ludacris’s business partner and manager in June of 2007 was said to have been one of the major factors in the break down between the two performers.
Production on the album will fall into the safe hands of ‘a who’s who’ in the production world. Atlanta producers Don Cannon and DJ Toomp are both present, with Cannon earning two spots on the album. Rodney Jerkins, Just Blaze, DJ Premier and 9th Wonder are just a few more names that have worked with Ludacris on this project.
The rapper claims that when listening to the album you will be able to imagine every single track being from the scene of a movie. Reasons as to why the album has been pushed back are not known and representatives from Def Jam were unable to comment on the change in release date.
The Silver Screen
Ludacris is no novice when it comes to standing in front of a camera. His first movie role, albeit a very minor role was in The Wash which featured fellow rappers Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre in 2001. His resume as an actor has gone from strength to strength having appeared in movies such as Hustle and Flow, Crash and various TV shows. October sees him hit the stage again in two highly publicized films.
RocknRolla
Directed by the man who brought us Snatch, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and more commonly known as Madonna’s husband, Guy Richie cast Ludacris in his tale of crime as a Mickey. Mickey is an American artist who is trying to advance his career in the UK. RocknRolla, which has already topped the box office in the first week of its release in the UK, will hit selected screens on October 8th stateside
Max Payne
Based on the video game of the same title Max Payne that stars Mark Wahlberg as the title character, Ludacris plays the role of Jim Bravura, an internal affairs agent. The movie whish is to premier on October 17th also features singer Nelly Furtado.
There had been some speculation that Ludacris was to retire from making music and concentrate on his movie career. This was quickly rebuked by the actor who insisted that music would always be at the top of his list of priorities. However with movies such as these to add to his ever-expanding resume it is obvious he is enjoying playing the role of Chris Bridges, the Hollywood star.
