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Christopher Brian BridgesΒ (born September 11, 1977), known professionally asΒ Ludacris(/ΛluΛdΙkrΙͺs/), is an American rapper and actor. Born inΒ Champaign, Illinois, Ludacris moved toΒ Atlanta, Georgia, where he first began rapping. Starting with a brief stint as aΒ DJ, he formed his own record label,Β Disturbing tha Peace, in the late 1990s to release his debut studio album, IncognegroΒ (1999), independently. After its single, "What's Your Fantasy" (featuringΒ Shawnna), became a top 40 hit on theΒ BillboardΒ Hot 100, the album was re-released byΒ Def Jam RecordingsΒ as his major label debut,Β Back for the First TimeΒ (2000). The latter album peaked at number four on theΒ BillboardΒ 200 and spawned his second top 40 single, "Southern Hospitality" (featuringΒ Pharrell).
Ludacris' subsequent albumsβWord of Mouf (2001),Β Chicken-n-BeerΒ (2003) andΒ The Red Light DistrictΒ (2004)βwere each met with continued success, receiving multi-platinum certifications by theΒ Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). His fifth and sixth albums,Β Release TherapyΒ (2006) andΒ Theater of the MindΒ (2008), explored more serious subject matter than their predecessors. His seventh album,Β Battle of the SexesΒ (2010), featured a return to the more lighthearted tone of his earlier albums. Throughout his career, Ludacris has scored two number-one singles on theΒ BillboardΒ Hot 100 as a lead artist: "Stand Up" (featuring Shawnna) and "Money Maker" (featuring Pharrell), as well as three singles which did so as a guest performer:Β Usher's "Yeah!" in 2004,Β Fergie's "Glamorous" in 2007, andΒ Taio Cruz's "Break Your Heart" in 2009. The following year, he guest featured onΒ Justin Bieber's single "Baby", which remains one of theΒ highest-certified singlesΒ of all time in the United States.
Ludacris is named among the firstΒ Dirty South rappers to achieve mainstream success in the early 2000s. He is the recipient of threeΒ Grammy Awards, aΒ Screen Actors Guild Award, aΒ Critics' Choice AwardΒ and anΒ MTV Video Music Award. Outside of music, he has portrayed the characterΒ Tej ParkerΒ in theΒ Fast & FuriousΒ film seriesβfirst appearing in its second film,Β 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003). His other notable acting roles includeΒ CrashΒ (2004),Β GamerΒ (2009), andΒ New Year's Eve (2011). In 2021, he created and starred in the children's animated seriesΒ Karma's WorldΒ forΒ Netflix. Ludacris is also aΒ private pilot.
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