Ludacris Didn’t Know This Song Was Going To Be A Hit Single
Ludacris has revealed that he didn’t think “Southern Hospitality” would be a hit single. During an interview with All The Smoke, the Atlanta legend spoke about his collaborations with The Neptunes before telling the story of how the cut came to be.
“So, Incognegro was my independent album, and when we signed to Def Jam, we repackaged it and added three songs to it, taking three songs off of it—repackaged for the world instead of being sold out of my trunk. And ‘[Southern Hospitality]’ was one of those records [actually].
“If anybody can give you a hit at the last minute, it’s Pharrell, Chad, and The Neptunes. He throws on this beat, and I’m vibing to it. I’m thinking ‘it’s cool.’ I’m not like thinking, ‘This is a hit…’ I did not know that it was the hit that it became.”
As the video continues, Luda detailed that the track became the second single for his Def Jam debut album, Back For the First Time. “Southern Hospitality” made waves when released, peaking at No. 23 on the Billboard 100 and No. 5 atop the Billboard Rap Songs chart in 2001.
Elsewhere, the Word of Mouf emcee was recently honored with a Hollywood Walk Of Fame motion picture star. On May 18, Vin Diesel, LL Cool J, and Queen Latifah joined the entertainer, né Christopher Brian Bridges, to commemorate the event.
“Chris you wrong to try to keep me to two minutes. I could take two lifetimes explaining to the world the significance, your significance both to the world and to my family,” Diesel said in his speech, CBS News reports. “There’s so much to say, but there is so much you already know. You know his unmatched accomplishments. We’ve never seen anybody dominate the music world and then come and dominate cinema while being entrepreneurial in the way that he is.”
“It’s almost hard for me to put into words. LL was the person who made me wanna rap. Vin has changed my life forever through the gift that keeps on giving, this franchise Fast and Furious. It meant everything to have them show up for me today,” Luda remarked.
“I was just saying [that] I’ll put my cast up against any other cast in film history. We are the closest-knit family off-camera and on-camera. Compared to anybody, 100 percent…I was fighting tears. Seriously, I was glad that I had my sunglasses on today.”
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