Since Ludacris hit the scene three years ago with his platinum Def Jam South debut, his popularity and fan base have expanded substantially. With his fourth album, (his first album was the indie release, Incognegro, that was later packaged as “Back for the First Time”), Luda is making an official pitch to join the big league of major name ringers in the game like Eminem, Jay-Z, Nas etc. By even picking to name his latest opus “Chicken-N-Beer” – you can already tell that Ludacris’ aim is to make this album as accessible as possible.

The term “accessible” is key in talking about this album, because accessibility proves to be the driving force as well as the Achilles heel for Chicken-N-Beer. The set jumps off strong with “Southern Fried Intro” – a song that starts off sounding like a pimp’s theme music, and then morphs into a quick paced, club-ready, crunked out romp. The song is expertly followed by “Blow It Out,” another upbeat tune, and that in turn precedes the excellent Kanye West-produced first single “Stand Up.” On this track, Kanye shows why he’s the next hot hip-hop producer vying for the position the Neptunes currently hold. Old school heads will appreciate Luda’s reference to Chi Ali, the young rap hero from the early 90’s on this track.

But just when the album seems to be going on all cylinders, the flow of the disc completely unravels and transforms into a veritable vehicle for possible Ludacris singles. Tracks like the X–rated “Splash Waterfalls” and the 70’s R&B sounding “Diamond in the Back” sound like they belong on different discs. And for some odd reason, a whole bunch of useless skits pop up that wreck the album’s flow even more.

But putting the continuity and flow of the album aside, most of the songs on the album definitely “stand up” on their own – especially the tracks with featured guests. Space age pimps Eightball and MJG show up and spit some real life vernacular on the melancholy and soulful “Hard Times;” H-town representative Lil’ Flip shows up strong on “Screwed Up,” an ode to drankin, poppin’ pills, and smokin’ tress named after deceased Houston legend DJ Screw; Snoop comes off real smooth on the laid back, g-funk track “Hoes in my Bedroom,” – one listen to the track’s mellow groove, and you’re transported right back to the days of Warren G’s “Regulator” and Snoop’s “Gin and Juice.”

The disc comes to a formidable close with the retrospective track “Eyebrows down” on which the Southern MC breaks down the grind he had to endure to get to the spot he’s at today. Even though the concept is an obvious rip-off of the Nas’ song “Last Real Nigga Alive” off the God’s Son album, Ludacris does the track justice and recounts an engrossing autobiographical tale.

The album consists of 17 tracks (about 4 of those being skits), and out of the tracks remaining, about 7 of them are definite keepers – so the album is definitely worth checking out. Fans of Ludacris know that he isn’t exactly the foremost lyricist, but his delivery, presence on the mic, and forceful flow are almost unmatched in the game – and all these qualities are on full display throughout the album.

One thing for sure is that radio singles abound on this album, so if mass appeal is what Ludacris is looking for, he’s definitely on the right track.

by George Hagan, Hip Hop DX