On his song “Number One Spot”, he claims to be worth “a million, c’zillion, f’fillion dollars” attributed to the large quantities of records he’s sold. Chart victories and Sound Scan popularity are clearly visible of this rap star from the south, but to see his overwhelming failure one needs to look closer.

Ludacris has failed to release a solo album that sold less than one million copies.

“I love what I do,” Ludacris admitted during a recent interview. “If I don’t get it now my attitude is that I’ll get it eventually. It just makes me work harder in the future. I’m not one of those MCs who get jealous or mad about anything.”

Releasing four consecutive albums since his national debut in 2000, the Atlanta native has become a huge success. His fourth album “The Red Light District” has been certified platinum, increasing his number of total albums sold to 11 million domestically. Bearing a name that suggests humor, Ludacris is laughing all the way to the bank. With the critical acclaim received thus far for “The Red Light District”, the rapper is being called one of the ten best rappers alive today. Just don’t expect him to get an inflated ego though.

“I’m really a humble person,” Ludacris began, “so I really believed in longevity and consistency before I would start ranking myself at the top of any list.”

“As far as my lyrics, I do think I was underrated before, but I think I’m starting to be in that top ten percentile of current MCs that are out there. I would definitely rank myself somewhere in there.”

Lyrics are important to Ludacris, and he feels that too many artists have forgotten what writing a good song is about. He also feels the importance of growth.

“Success gets better with every album,” Ludacris said. “I’m just having fun right now. A lot of people don’t even make it past their first or second album.”

Ludacris scored a hit earlier in 2005 with his first single titled “Get Back.” Since then Ludacris has released current hit “Number One Spot,” as well as re-teaming with Usher and Lil Jon for the smash hit “Lovers & Friends.” All three singles were different in style, tempo, and content.

“It’s important to be real versatile and give everybody something,” Ludacris said. “I’m a fan of a lot of different kinds of music, so I’ll have a club song, and then I’ll have the lyrics, and then I’ll have something you can ride to. As long as I’m being myself and give everybody what they want, then I should be alright.”

Ludacris understands that the larger he becomes, the more he is put under the microscope. One of things he’s been questioned on recently is whether he will ever write more socially conscience material. The 27-year hip-hop mogul said he is motivated by not only beats and the culture of hip-hop, but by what’s going on in the world. He chooses to write more fun songs because that is what he feels he should do now. According to Ludacris, a change in content will come in time.

“What is going to make me get more political is just coming into myself and growing with age,” Ludacris said. “Age brings everything. You start getting more of a perspective on the world; you focus on different things. There were a lot of other things I had to get off my chest first. It’s been about displaying my personality and my life, so I’m going to take my time because I still feel like I’m just getting started. There is a lot of material I haven’t done yet, and I look forward to doing it.”

Since his debut, Ludacris has generated some negative talk concerning his song content. His debut single, “What’s Your Fantasy”, created a stir with numerous parental organizations, even though, as Ludacris stated, the radio stations fueled its popularity. With verses targeting a more adult audience, Ludacris was scrutinized by the likes of Bill O’Reilly in a highly publicized dispute that cost Ludacris an endorsement with Pepsi.

“We do understand [as artists] that we’re in the public eye, so we have parental advisory stickers on our music,” Ludacris said. “So once it gets in the stores, we can’t really control whose hands it gets into. At the same time, we have to be an artist. And being an artist means being yourself.