Christopher Brian Bridges (born September 11, 1977) is an American rapper, actor, and record executive better known as Ludacris (homophone for ‘ludicrous’ in American English). Ludacris was born in Champaign, Illinois, and relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, at the age of nine, when he began rapping. Beginning with a brief career as a DJ. In the late 1990s, he founded his own record label, Disturbing the Peace, and released his first album, Incognegro (1999). After signing with Def Jam Recordings, the album was repackaged and re-released for his major label debut, Back for the First Time.
“Southern Hospitality” (with Pharrell) and “What’s Your Dream” (featuring Shawnna) charted in the top 40 on the Billboard Hot 100. The Recording Industry Association of America certified his albums Word of Mouf (2001), Chicken-n-Beer (2003), and The Red Light District (2004) as multi-platinum (RIAA). His last two albums, Release Therapy (2006) and Theater of the Mind (2008), were more serious in nature than their predecessors. In 2010, he appeared on Justin Bieber’s hit “Baby,” which went on to become one of the highest-certified singles of all time in the United States and a defining song in modern-day popular music. Battle of the Sexes (2010), his seventh album, marked a return to the lighter tone of his earlier albums.
With many commercially and critically successful studio albums, he is sometimes considered one of the first Dirty South rappers to reach mainstream success in the twenty-first century. Ludacris has received three Grammy Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, a Critic’s Choice Award, and an MTV Video Music Award during his career.