Ludacris Teases Return to Music After Eight-Year Hiatus: ‘Sometimes You Gotta Step Back and Live Some Life’

Ludacris has done a lot of living in the past eight years. But the one thing he hasn’t done during that time is release any new music. But in a new interview with BET, Luda said it’s time to get back into the game.

“Yeah, some music projects will be coming out next year. I don’t wanna fake, I don’t wanna stutter-step,” Ludacris said. “It’s definitely some music coming next year, but I don’t know if it’s like an EP or an LP. We’re going to figure it out.”

Asked why he’s been off the radar since his ninth LP, 2015’s Ludaversal — which debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and included features from Usher, Miguel and Monica — the rapper said his acting has definitely kept him out of the studio. Since his last album, he’s appeared in four Fast & Furious movies, as well as The Ride, End of the Road and the new holiday movie, Dashing Through the Snow.

“These movie projects like Fast & Furious and doing a lot of things like the Karma’s World project that’s on Netflix. You know, doing other art forms where I’m creative, where I’m putting my heart into that, I want to make sure that I leave a legacy on this earth,” said the MC who also got a honorary bachelor’s degree in music from Georgia State last summer. “So it was just taking a step back and getting hungry again, living some life. ‘Cause when you put out music, in order for it to be organic and real, you gotta talk about what goes on in your life. So if I had like nine consistent albums, sometimes you gotta take a step back and live some life so that you have a lot more to talk about and that’s what I was doing.”

As for what the new tunes will sound like, Luda said it’s a “little premature” to talk about it because he’s working on “a lot of stuff.” In the meantime, he’s been dropping freestyles on his social feeds, including a killer one on 4/20 and one last November in which he caught fans up on his prodigious career achievements.

Given his impressive movie resume, Ludacris said he still has some boxes he’d like to check on that side, including playing a villain on the big screen. “I definitely would love to be a part of the Marvel universe or DC universe, but I wouldn’t mind playing the villain that doesn’t die,” he said. “That’s what I’m looking for — one of those roles or like a Training Day villain-type role.”