Evolving Taste - A Quotable Conversation

Theres something sexy about talking Hip Hop with a dope chick whose knowlegeable about The Culture. D and I fall into these deep, occassionally theoretical, often anger enducing conversations on a fairly regular basis. This one took place over gmail chat the week 808s & Heartbreak (click here for review) and Theatre of the Mind (click here for review) dropped, and evolves from an album-quality-discussion into album-taste-discussion. Pretty interesting. Read on.

(...begins right after reading The Quotable's review of 808s & Heartbreak.)

TCM: so thats what i thought
Danielle: got it. i agreed with most of what you said.
i don't think his content is necessarily bad, i just don't think people will really listen
TCM: i didn't think the content was bad
i thought a quarter of the album was suspect
and the rest was pretty dope
its about the beats in my opinion
Danielle: i agree, but i have a feeling it wont do very well
TCM: not by his standards...i agree
it'll go plat though
i think it will expand his fan base
Danielle: b/c it has his name on it
TCM: while pissing off the core
Danielle: yup
we learned that in marketing
disruption of your core consumer base can be a problem when its a highly competitive market
TCM: but its not that competitive right now
Danielle: that's what i was going to say. lucky for him
overall i probably wouldn't listen to it more than a couple of times
i like some of the tracks and there are a few lines that i really really like
TCM: Amazing is amazing
or maybe - amazing is Amazing
Danielle: yup. amazing. love lockdown.
and heartless.
TCM: welcome to heartbreak
Danielle: it actually makes me a little sad
to be honest
TCM: me too...
thats what i like about it
Danielle: but you don't like sad stuff
TCM: i don't gravitate towards it
Danielle: no. do you really feel like you are missing something in your life not having love and family? that was a sad part of your quotable
TCM: i do. but at the sametime i don't think thats something i should rush into until I'm absolutely ready
Danielle: so you have no need to be sad about it
b/c in someways its voluntary and a product of your own personal timing
TCM: but i'm not sad about it
i didn't mean for it to translate that way
Danielle: are you going to do one for luda?
TCM: preliminary reviewing now
MVP is crazy!
i've listened to it 4 times now
in a row
Danielle: hmm. you know, i might actually take back what i said about kanye's album
TCM: what do you mean
Danielle: i agree with you. it might do well not just with the same people
but i don't know if that's a good long term strategy
sorry...always putting on the b-school approach to things
lol
TCM: thats cool though...always teaching me something
i think he'll be cool cause he's still dropping freestyles and guest appearances consistently
go hard
swagger like us
stay up
estelle's joint
he's still rhymin this isn't permanent
lollipop remix
common's new joint
John Legend's album
Danielle: listening to mvp to see what you are referring to
TCM: mvp is illllllll
Danielle: luda is always telling people how great he is
napoleon complex or something
TCM: thats hip hop
braggadacio
bravado
he can take it other places too
but freestyle tracks are my favorite
Danielle: u think still? that hip hop is still about bravado?
i don't know if i still believe that now
TCM: sure it is...
all the biggest emcees stay on that shit
its just not put out there commercially in the same way
labels steer it towards the club
Danielle: i dunno j. mvp is ok.
i don't see him doing anything really different on this track
TCM: what???
the beat is sick
luda is droppin lines on that!!
I'm going back to it right now
Danielle: the beat is cool (for me it holds the song up) but that's about it
it reminds me of a slower version of that Virgo song he did with Nas for some reason
TCM: that song was hot too
Danielle: yup. introduced you to that song
the beat is a little old school, no?
its a cool beat but...
TCM: ''damn man, what the hell you smokin' on / its ludacris, i got more cheese than provolone''
yeah...thats why the beat is dope
thats Premiere
Danielle: i swear he has said a similar line to something like that before
TCM: i love the beat
Danielle: maybe thats what not working for me with the song then
TCM: "takin' shots like Kennedy!!!!"
Danielle: tight old school beat with same luda lines
TCM: whooooaaaaa
Danielle: is the whole cd like this?
TCM: ouch
nah..theres a lot of story telling and perspective rhymes
i don't know what happened to you, D. i thought you'd love this song
i got that one all wrong
Danielle: haha. yeah. i think you thought i would like it a lot for the beat
TCM: the scratches are ridiculous
aight...here's a song you'll like
Lets stay together
Danielle: you know what it is
TCM: what is it
Danielle: i think i "hear" a lot more than i used to in the past
TCM: You'll love Do The Right Thang...infact...listen to that one now
Danielle: i like this one better
TCM: yeah...thats your ish
back on track
Danielle: maybe i'm leaning more towards conscious hip hop in my old age?
TCM: yeah...you are
i am too
its more intellectually stimulating
but i still love ill cypher rhymes
Danielle: yeah. i think in terms of order of listening
i hear what folks are sayin first
then i hear how they are saying it (ie: flow, rhyme etc)
then lastly i listen to beat
i think when i was younger that order was reversed
TCM: yeah...i can tolerate a wack beat if the lyrics are dope
but not as often the other way around
Danielle: precisely - well those are mostly club songs so you can shake ur ass to it regardless of what they say - u know "till the sweat drip down my balls" type stuff. which is maybe why i didn't gravitate to MVP. i heard what he was saying first and it just reminded me of some of his older albums
TCM: HAHAHA!!
that shit was funny
"til the sweat drip down my balls!!"
"now drown a bitch! drown a bitch!!"
Danielle: lol
TCM: yeah...but MVP isn't sweat drip down my balls type shit
Danielle: im not saying it is
what i'm saying is that i heard what he was saying
rather than listening to the beat first
whereas a couple of years ago.
i would have listened to the beat first
TCM: but what he's saying is dope
Danielle: and probably would have liked it more
i'm not saying what he says isn't good. its just typical luda
perhaps i was looking for something more?
i'm not sure what...
TCM: luda's always been like that
freestyle tracks
Danielle: i know. which is why i'm not sure why i was expecting more.
TCM: and concept tracks
and just recently started adding emotional tracks
Danielle: yeah. at first i wasn't sure how i liked luda and emotion but it works ok
if i want to think about heartache and longing though, i'll go to kanye's album
TCM: LOL
thats the truth
full circle
Danielle: yup.

The Quotable Reviews: Theatre of the Mind

"Cause this is Theatre of the Mind. / Consider it a sign / of whats to come next." - "I Do It For Hip Hop"

After 8 years and 6 studio LPs, there are certain expectations we here at The Quotable have for each new Ludacris album:

We expect him to come hard from the left with his big, baritone voice, and even bigger videos and production ("Southern Hospitality," "Roll Out," "Stand Up!," "Get Back," "Move Bitch").

We expect him to down shift into mack-mode for a track or three (a la Busta Rhymes), using his tongue-twister-slash-late-night-phone-tone to seduce the fairer sex ("Phat Rabbit," "P-Poppin," "Splash Waterfalls," "Hoes In My Room").

We expect a healthy amount of comic relief ("Ho," "Area Codes," "Blow It Out").

We expect an ill 16 bar cipher cut to open each album ("Southern Fried Intro," "Intro," "Warning").

But what keeps the respect flowing in Luda's direction is his visceral focus on lyricism. And we expect him to drop lines like 'Enter' each and every time out the gate.

FACT.

So as expected, we here at The Quotable were more than amped about Luda's sixth studio album, Theatre of the Mind. Although he's never been one of my default Emcees (artists that you listen to during those times when you don't know what you want to listen to), Ludacris consistently brings that heat when its cold outside. Does Theatre of the Mind meet the standard? Walk with us as...

The Quotable Reviews: Theatre of the Mind

Theatre of the Mind is basically made up of three types of tracks: cipher cuts, chick/club songs, and concept records - all intended to provide that scene-from-a-movie feel.

The album opener, "Intro," represents the obligatory, ill, 16-bar, cipher cut where Luda reintroduces himself while laying out the premise of his latest release (a staple found on each of his LPs). Over The Runners heavy bass line, bouncing snare drums, and medieval choir, Ludacris drops one of the most honest quotables of his career - "Give me 16 bars / on another n***** song / and you know that I'm gonna fuckin' kill it!" 'Cris has arguably the hottest intros in the game. Each of his LPs opens with some big, triumphant, back-the-muttaskut-up-cause-you-can't-handle-me-lyrically intro that immediately reminds you why Luda's necessary to Hip Hop right now - because he holds every other MC accountable for his craft. "Intro" is no different, and equally refreshing.



And to be honest, this is the side of Chris Lova Lova thats had us here at TQ so eagerly anticipating this latest release. I mean, tracks like the hilarious, T-Pain assisted "One More Drink," or the club anthem, Chris Brown featured, "What Them Girls Like," or even the R&B-throwback, Scott Storch produced "Contagious" (featuring Jamie Foxx) suitably fill the chick/club track quota (none of which are bad listens). And concept records such as the 9th Wonder produced "Do The Right Thang" (where Luda and Common team up to remind cats to walk the right path or be prepared to face life's consequences), "Call Up The Homies" (featuring The Game), or the trap-certified, 808 bass-lined, "Southern Gangsta" (Rick Ross and Playaz Circle join Luda to wax poetic about their hustler credentials), or even the highly anticipated T.I. collaboration, "Wish You Would" help to round out the album. But Theatre of the Mind's true value is found in its cipher cuts.

"Bow down to greatness / before I get pist-n' / run up in the stands like the Indiana Pacers." - "Undisputed"



"Undisputed" and "Everybody Hates Chris" (with Chris Rock) are the albums first 2 examples, each showcasing Luda's brolic, battle-ready lyrical demeanor. The latter's lively horns and hand claps invoke an immediate head-nod while 'Cris rides the track to perfection. Then, after a brief detour down chick-track-avenue, Theatre of the Mind breaks left onto freestyle expressway. "Last of a Dying Breed" is an epic, scratch-heavy, track that Luda and Lil' Wayne use to put on an exhibition in lyrical exercise.

"Top 5 dead or alive / but really it just hit me / that 3 out of your 5's too scared to f*ck with me. / So how can I advance if you don't give me no opponents? / How can you see the future if you're living for the moment? / Hip Hop couldn't die, / I never offer my condolence. / But I offer ya'll day of atonement."

Luda's arguably at his best on the DJ Premiere produced "MVP," which is also arguably the album's best beat. Premo provides that classic boom-bap nostalgia, and Luda laces this one with some of the albums dopest quotables:

"And my delivery's invading your vicinity. / Hennessey is my remedy. / Taking shots like Kennedy. / And I been a G / for a long time. / To these streets I'm connected like I'm on-line. / On time for whatever. / And every time an album drop, / I drop B.I.G. like Voletta."

I drop B.I.G. like Voletta???? It doesn't get much iller than that!!! It doesn't get much more visual than that!!! And, since The Notorious BIG was a large muttaskutta and giving birth to him must have been exceptionally uncomfortable (Voletta Wallace is Biggie's mother), it doesn't get much bigger than that!!! Now add the fact that Luda's sold over 15 million records world wide (no easy feat for any artist at any point in history, let alone during the recent record-sales recession), it doesn't get much truer than that. Ludacris is a beast. Ludacris is a beast.

"I don't do it for the cars and the fancy drops. / I do it for Hip Hop." - "I Do it for Hip Hop."

Rounding out Theatre of the Mind's best run is "I Do It For Hip Hop" - an ill, scratch-heavy cipher cut enlisting 2 of rap's titans - Jay-Z and Nas. Another great track. Each Emcee gets busy here, but in the end, Ludacris outshines both. Jay appears to have an interesting strategy though. Rather than attempt to go straight at Luda lyrically, he instead uses an old school flow, invoking Hip Hop nostalgia to leave his mark on the track ("Hip Hop / started out in the park. / We used to do it to avoid the narcs."). My cousin Sha pointed that one out. Nas kicks a cool little bumble bee analogy to describe how he's "as live as a hive full of predators," successfully netting him 3rd place.

"And their almost extinct / so I'm sayin' it loud. / MC means 'move the crowd'" - "Last of a Dying Breed"

15 tracks. Loads of guest appearances. 0 interludes.

All in all, Theatre of the Mind is a balanced, enjoyable, LP that will have your head-nodding as soon as you press play. You can clean to it. You can pre-party to it. Might be tough to slide into mack-mode, but you can definitely drive to it. Its combination of chick/club tracks, concept records, and cipher cuts adds up to a solid, diverse listen. Theatre of the Mind is one of the year's best Hip Hop albums, and arguably the most potent of his career.

And the more I think about it - I'm a bi-album Ludacris fan; meaning that I tend to get excited about every-other Ludacris album. Back For The First Time caught me off guard in a good way which made me excited about Word of Mouf (2001). But Chicken & Beer (2003), although more-than-nice in retrospect, wasn't on the priority list at the time. Then The Red Light District (2004) dropped and of course I had to cop that the first day. But I damn-near ignored 2006's Release Therapy, which is his most critically successful LP to date. Now here we are, late in '08, and for some reason I couldn't wait for this album. And thats because, for me, less is more with Ludacris. He's such a larger-than-life presence on every song, that it doesn't take much to OD. Theatre of the Mind's diverse sound scape does a solid job of minimalizing that trait, signalling replay-value potential (and it doesn't get any more important than replay value).

Furthermore, the fact that there is nothing ground-breaking, or career redefining here, or that Luda doesn't show us a new side of his person, his thoughts, his lifestyle, his anything isn't necessarily a bad thing. He still delivers a top-shelf product that embodies all of the reasons why you love Luda in the first place. His diversity. His ability to make you laugh, to make you bounce, to make you feel OK about screaming "move bitch, get out the way!" And most notably, the fact that he's a lyricist to the death - and he's got what you need. Ludacris, the last of a dying breed.

Rating: QQQQ