Ludacris goes gold with "Battle of the Sexes"

Ludacris had almost fallen out of love with the rap game after the release of Release Therapy. His name was being called for film roles and television roles. In some ways, Ludacris felt he had outgrown the rap game. There was a time when he released an album every year because he was hungry. He released that album because he felt obligated.

In 2008, Ludacris released Theater of the Mind and again seemed bored with recording music. He announced he would record a sequel to the album and release it in 2009. But, Luda announced the album would be his final release. Aside from a new solo album, Ludacris announced a collaboration album with Shawnna. Battle of the Sexes had been talked about since 2007.

Two years after the initial announcement, Ludacris began working on his part of the album. When it was Shawnna's turn to record music for the album, she declined. For the past few months, she had been talking with T-Pain's Nappy Boy Music about a new record deal. Upset, Ludacris allowed her to leave the label and he removed her from the album. Battle of the Sexes became his seventh studio album and Ludacris fell back in love with the rap game. In many ways, he reverted back to his trademark style.

The album featured two chart-topping singles with "How Low," the lead, and "My Chick Bad." Ludacris collaborated with many of the top females in the game. His list of collaborators includes Nicki Minaj, Lil' Kim, and Monica. These female artists were brought in to fill the void Shawnna left on the album. The album becomes the eighth-consecutive album from Ludacris to certify gold. Additionally, the album is his seventh solo album to go gold. To date, Ludacris has yet to have an album not certify. Ludacris joins Lil Wayne as the only other rapper to release an album in 2010 and have it certify gold.