Hip-hop is celebrating 50 years as a music genre, and Ludacris feels proud to have played his part in its success.
The 45-year-old rap star — whose real name is Christopher Bridges — told People: “Well, it is a big deal.”
The three-time Grammy winner described the feeling as “surreal, because you could say it’s like I’m growing up with hip-hop and I didn’t know anything else when I was born. So to realize that it’s still — in my opinion — so young and so dominant, it is the best thing that could ever happen in the world, because it is so omnipresent in every single aspect of life, not only mine, but it seems to be the rest of the world as well. It’s like global domination, man.”
“The impact,” Ludacris continues, “in only 50 years is beyond my wildest imagination. That’s what I’m trying to say.”
Born in Champaign, Illinois, and raised in Atlanta, Ludacris says one of the keys to his success is authenticity.
“I stayed true to myself and who I am in all shape, forms and fashion of the word,” said the star — noting that his life has changed dramatically since the start of his career.
The married father of four says his creative material shifted as he grew up and had different experiences. Ludacris married his wife Eudoxie in 2014.
I went from ‘h— in different area codes’ to being married. So the progression and evolution of an artist and him not only reflecting the times in his music but talking about his reality, that’s the best way to put it. It’s a beautiful thing, man,” he said.
