Battle of the Sexes (album)

Battle of the Sexes is the seventh studio album by American rapper Ludacris, released March 9, 2010 on Disturbing tha Peace and Def Jam Recordings. The album was recorded during 2008 to 2010 and its production was handled by several producers, including T-Minus, Bangladesh, Swizz Beatz, The Neptunes, and The Runners.

Battle of the Sexes
Studio album by
Ludacris
ReleasedMarch 9, 2010
Recorded2008–2010
GenreHip hop
Length61:52
Label
ProducerChristopher "Ludacris" Bridges (exec.), Chaka Zulu (exec.), Jeff Dixon (exec.), T-Minus, Bangladesh, Swizz Beatz, The Neptunes, The Runners, Xcel, The Legendary Traxster, DJ Montay, B Crucial & Tony Dinero, Kajun, Infinity, Khao, Gaggie
Ludacris chronology
Theater of the Mind
(2008)		 Battle of the Sexes
(2010)		 Burning Bridges
(2014)
Singles from Battle of the Sexes
  1. "How Low"
    Released: December 8, 2009
  2. "Hey Ho"
    Released: February 16, 2010
  3. "My Chick Bad"
    Released: February 23, 2010
  4. "Sex Room"
    Released: May 18, 2010[1]
  5. "Everybody Drunk"
    Released: September 24, 2010[2]

Upon its release, Battle of the Sexes received generally positive reviews from most music critics.

Background

Battle of the Sexes was tagged as a collaboration album by Ludacris and label-mate Shawnna.[3] In April 2009, the promotional single titled "Everybody Drunk" which features vocals from Shawnna was released.[4] Shawnna reportedly split from Disturbing tha Peace in 2009 and signed to Nappy Boy Entertainment. It was later reported that Shawnna was removed from the album and became a solo album by Ludacris with guest appearances.[5]

Recording

In 2008, it was reported that recording for the album had started.[6] After Shawnna was removed, Ludacris stated that he still wanted the album to highlight different view points from males and females, so he recorded tracks with Nicki Minaj, Lil' Kim, Eve,[7] Trina, Shawnna, Ciara, Ne-Yo, Monica,[8] Flo Rida and Gucci Mane.[9] Pharrell has been recording with Ludacris and will contribute production and vocals.[10] It was confirmed in mid-2009 and in early 2010 that Bangladesh, Swizz Beatz and J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League had all contributed production to the album.[3][9]

Release and promotion

After several projected release dates, the album was finally released on March 9, 2010 through Disturbing tha Peace and its distributing label Def Jam Recordings.[11]

In April 2009, Ludacris released a promotional single for the album, titled "Everybody Drunk", which featured Shawnna. The single failed to chart, and though it appears on the album, the album version features new Disturbing tha Peace signee Lil Scrappy, instead of Shawnna. Official promotion for the album began when Ludacris debuted the first single "How Low" on October 10, 2009, when he performed it at the 2009 BET Hip-Hop Awards.[12] It was made available for digital download on iTunes in December 2009.[13] Ludacris next released three remixes to United States radio stations help promote the song. One of which features Ciara and Pitbull was made available on iTunes on February 9, 2010. He has also filmed a video for the album's second official single, "My Chick Bad" with female rapper Nicki Minaj, and the remix, which featured Eve, Diamond, and Trina.[12] Shawnna provides "additional vocals" on the songs "I Do It All Night", "BOTS Radio" (featuring I-20), "Feelin' So Sexy", and the bonus track "Rollercoaster" (featuring Dru Hill).[14]

Singles

Apart from its official singles, "Hey Ho", which features Lil' Kim and Lil Fate, was released as a promotional single prior to the release of the album on February 16, 2010 as part of iTunes' countdown to Battle of the Sexes.[15]

  • "How Low" was released as the first official single on December 8, 2009. It became a huge mainstream success, peaking at number six in the United States. It went on to achieve double platinum status.
  • "My Chick Bad", which features Nicki Minaj, was released as the second official single on February 23, 2010.[16] This single was also a big success, peaking at #11 in the United States and later going platinum.
  • "Sex Room", which features Trey Songz, was released as the third single on May 18, 2010. On the week ending April 10, 2010, "Sex Room" debuted on the U.S. Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs at 28.[17]
  • In September 2010, Billboard announced that "Everybody Drunk" with Lil Scrappy, is due out soon and will be tied into promotion of Conjure, the cognac brand he launched last year with the Norwegian distillery Birkedal Hartmann.[2] The video was released on September 24, 2010.[18]

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[19]
The A.V. ClubB+[20]
Entertainment WeeklyB−[21]
Los Angeles Times[22]
NewsdayB[23]
NOW[24]
RapReviews(5.5/10)[25]
USA Today[26]
The Washington Postmixed[27]
XXL (XL)[28]

Upon its release, the album received generally positive reviews from most music critics, based on an aggregate score of 68/100 from Metacritic.[29] Allmusic writer David Jeffries gave it 3 out of 5 stars and viewed it as a "porno-style album", stating "Limited and a little patched together, but if cheap thrills are what you’re after, this one puts the dirty back in dirty south".[19] The A.V. Club's Nathan Rabin viewed its "R&B heavy" material as a weakness, but gave the album a B+ rating and praised Ludacris's lyricism, writing "Ludacris remains an underrated lyricist with unparalleled verbal dexterity. His liquid flow crams an awful lot of polysyllabic words into even the tawdriest sex jam, and no rapper alive conveys joy as effortlessly or infectiously".[20] Giving it ​2 1⁄2 out of 4 stars, Los Angeles Times critic August Brown called Battle of the Sexes "another welcome occasion to listen to Luda enjoying the real love of his life -- the sound of his own voice", and described its music as "fizzy pillow talk and respectfully tawdry club fodder".[22] Despite viewing Ludacris's lyrics as from the male perspective, USA Today's Elysa Gardner commended him for his humor and wrote that the album is "more appealing, and more artful, when Ludacris directs his crude, breezy rhymes where they're best suited: into unabashed displays of loopy lust and boneheaded bravado".[26] XXL writer Rondell Conway gave Battle of the Sexes an XL rating and shared a similar sentiment, stating "Luda may not have evened the playing field, but he certainly created an excellent musical forum for the sexes to air out their differences".[28] Newsday's Glenn Gamboa gave the album a B rating and commended Ludacris for his musical balance, writing "Not only does Luda know when a song needs an R&B crooner or a female voice, he knows when he needs to speed up a flow or rough up a rhyme".[23]

However, Sarah Godfrey of The Washington Post found its "sexed-up, party-oriented music - catchy but hardly groundbreaking" and viewed the female lyrical perspective as minimal, stating "There is plenty of fun happening on 'Battle of the Sexes', but still, the fellas clearly run it; the ladies are hardly even given a chance".[27] NOW's Jason Richards gave the album 1 out of 5 stars and wrote "Battle seems like an opportunity for the rapper to be more ignorant than ever".[24] HipHopDX writer Kathy Iandoli gave it {{frac|2|1|2} out of 5 stars and shared a similar sentiment, calling it "an idea that lost momentum somewhere in the middle of its inception, and the result is a haphazard collection of cuts with no clear direction".[30] Jesal Padania of RapReviews gave Battle of the Sexes a 5.5/10 rating and perceived its lyrics as "instantly forgettable".[25] The Harvard Crimson's Araba A. Appiagyei-Dankah gave it ​2 1⁄2 out of 5 stars and wrote "When the album remembers to be a “battle” rather than an endless string of mildly memorable dance tunes and awkward sex songs, it presents a one-sided and misogynistic view of women".[31] Despite noting that "there really isn't much of a battle at all", Exclaim!'s Neil Acharya commended Ludacris for his performance on the album, stating "he seems content to do what he does best: make a pretty run-of-the-mill topic enjoyable with his off-kilter humour and exceptional flow".[32] The Boston Globe writer Ken Capobianco called it "a riotous, raucous set" and wrote favorably of Ludacris's "good-humoured" lyrics.[33] Entertainment Weekly's Simon Vozick-Levinson gave Battle of the Sexes a B- rating and expressed a mixed response towards its themes, but commended Ludacris for his rapping, stating "his gymnastic flow and irrepressible personality redeem more tracks than not".[21]

Commercial performance

The album debuted at number one on Billboard 200, selling 137,300 copies in its first week. This makes it Ludacris' fourth #1 album.[34] In its second week, it dropped to #2, selling 61,200 copies. In its third week, the album dropped to #6, moving 45,000 units. In its fourth week the album sold 40,000 units. The fifth week it sold 25,000 more copies. It has spent six straight weeks at the top of the Top Rap Albums chart. As of March 16, 2015, the album has sold 632,000 copies in the United States.[35] The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America in June 2010.[36]

Track listing
No.TitleProducer(s)Length
1."Intro"Xcel1:28
2."How Low"T-Minus3:21
3."My Chick Bad" (featuring Nicki Minaj)The Legendary Traxster3:36
4."Everybody Drunk" (featuring Lil Scrappy)DJ Montay4:10
5."I Do It All Night" (featuring Shawnna)B Crucial, Tony Dinero4:41
6."Sex Room" (featuring Trey Songz)Kajun5:30
7."I Know You Got a Man" (featuring Flo Rida and Ester Dean)Infinity4:03
8."Hey Ho" (featuring Lil' Kim and Lil Fate)Khao4:12
9."Party No Mo'" (featuring Gucci Mane)Bangladesh4:21
10."B.O.T.S. Radio" (featuring I-20 and Shawnna)The Runners4:56
11."Can't Live with You" (featuring Monica)Khao4:19
12."Feelin' So Sexy" (featuring Shawnna)Gaggie3:29
13."Tell Me a Secret" (featuring Ne-Yo)Swizz Beatz4:18
14."My Chick Bad (Remix)" (featuring Diamond, Trina and Eve)The Legendary Traxster3:23
15."Sexting" (Bonus Track)The Neptunes4:43
Sample credits

Charts

Chart positions
Chart (2010) Peak
position
Canadian Albums (Billboard)[37] 17
Swiss Albums Chart[38] 82
UK R&B Albums Chart[39] 14
UK Albums (OCC)[40] 58
US Billboard 200[41] 1
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[42] 1
US Top Rap Albums (Billboard)[43] 1

Year-end charts
Chart (2010) Position
US Billboard 200 45[44]
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gollark: Specifically, they kept shooting each other and because of claims issues also my GPS server.
gollark: Sadly, the orbital lasers are shut down due to safety issues.
gollark: You saying "I am right about this somewhat subjective issue" is very unlikely to convince me that you're actually right about Windows' spying.
gollark: I dislike it more than you do.

See also

References
  1. "®R&R :: Going For Adds™ :: Rhythmic". Gfa.radioandrecords.com. 2010-05-18. Archived from the original on 2014-01-06. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
  2. http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/956487/ludacris-scratching-surface-on-new-album-ludaversal
  3. Ludacris & Shawnna Prepare for ‘Battle’. Rap-Up.
  4. Atlanta MC Ludacris Trades Lyrical Blows With Shawnna On Battle Of The Sexes. MTV News.
  5. Ludacris’ Battle Of The Sexes Lives On After Shawnna. Archived 2010-04-20 at the Wayback Machine Hip-hop DX.
  6. Ludacris: Audio Cinematic. Hip-hop DX.
  7. Ludacris & Shawnna Reportedly Part Ways, "Battle Of The Sexes" Album To Move Forward. Archived February 10, 2010, at the Wayback Machine SOHH.
  8. Ludacris Promises "Battle Of The Sexes" LP Still On Deck, "Ne-Yo Is On There Representing For The Dudes" [Video]. Archived November 25, 2009, at the Wayback Machine SOHH.
  9. Ludacris Spars with Female Rappers on ‘Battle of the Sexes’. Rap-Up. Retrieved 2010-01-25
  10. Ludacris and Pharrell In The Studio. Island Def Jam.
  11. "Battle Of The Sexes: Ludacris: Music". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
  12. BET Recap: Nicki Minaj Kills & Luda's 'How Low Can U Go'. Archived December 31, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
  13. Ludacris - How Low Archived June 2, 2014, at the Wayback Machine iTunes.
  14. "Ludacris' 'Battle of the Sexes' Production Credits". Rap-Up.com. 2010-02-20. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
  15. iTune's Countdown to Battle of the Sexes. iTunes.
  16. "Urban/UAC Future Releases | R&B, Hip Hop, Release Schedule and Street Dates |". Allaccess.com. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
  17. "®R&R :: Going For Adds™ :: Urban". Gfa.radioandrecords.com. 2010-04-20. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
  18. "Video: Ludacris f/ Lil Scrappy – 'Everybody Drunk'". Rap-Up.com. 2010-09-24. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
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  21. Vozick-Levinson, Simon. Review: Battle of the Sexes. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2010-03-10.
  22. Brown, August. Review: Battle of the Sexes. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2010-03-09.
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  29. Battle of the Sexes (2010): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2010-03-11.
  30. Iandoli, Kathy. Review: Battle of the Sexes. HipHopDX. Retrieved on 2010-03-09.
  31. Appliagyei-Dankah, Araba A. Review: Battle of the Sexes. The Harvard Crimson. Retrieved on 2010-05-16.
  32. Acharya, Neil. Review: Battle of the Sexes. Exclaim!. Retrieved on 2010-03-09.
  33. Capobianco, Ken. Review: Battle of the Sexes. The Boston Globe. Retrieved on 2010-05-16.
  34. "Latest Music News, Band, Artist, Musician & Music Video News". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-08-05.
  35. "Upcoming Releases". Hits Daily Double. HITS Digital Ventures. Archived from the original on March 21, 2015.
  36. "RIAA – Searchable Database". RIAA. June 4, 2010. Archived from the original on 2007-06-26. Retrieved 2010-06-11.
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  44. "Best of 2010 - Billboard Top 200". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Archived from the original on 30 December 2010. Retrieved 2010-12-31.
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