Common Sense Note
This CD (please get the edited version for younger teens if you're going to buy it!) contains some songs that are clever send-ups. But Ludicris, talented as he is, is all about shock value with language and image and this CD doesn't depart from his past.
Families can talk about why so many rappers have to be shocking in order to gain attention.
Common Sense Review
Reviewed By: Kathi Kamen Goldmark
There's no doubt about it--Ludacris is funny. He's also a sexist potty-mouth. But there's more to this CD than sex jokes and posturing.
He jumps right in with "Blow It" -- a song on which he disses Fox News pundit Bill O'Reilly, who convinced the Pepsi marketing brain trust to dump Ludacris from their ad campaigns because of his lyrical irresponsibility. Again, in "Hoes in My Room," he wonders who's responsible for the trashy women who have somehow appeared in his hotel room after a show--why, Bill O'Reilly, of course. Whatever you may think of O'Reilly, the lack of restraint is kind of refreshing.
There's no getting around Ludacris's enthusiasm for tasteless humor, and you should avoid even the edited version of this CD if that's something that yanks your particular chain. But there's also a lot of charm, a bit of stand-up social commentary, and the sense that if you met this guy at a dinner party you'd have a truly delightful evening--and that's what saves the day.
Rate It!
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| CS | adults | kids | ||
Sexual Content"You in between the sheets, lickin' and eating sweets" -- and that's on the edited version. There's a lot of explicit sex here. |
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ViolenceThere's moren-your-face language than violence. |
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LanguageIt's pretty obvious which words are edited out, on the edited version. |
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Message |
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Social BehaviorThere's no high social consciousness here, but there's also no racism. Sexism is a whole other story. |
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CommercialismThere are references to conservative pundit Bill O'Reilly's efforts to get Pepsi to cut Ludacris off their payroll. |
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Drug/Alcohol/TobaccoDrugs are mentioned more than once. "Diamond in the Back" is a poignant peek inside the thoughts of a wanna-be drug dealer, and kind of a heart-tugger. |
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