Chicken & Beer

Personnel includes: Ludacris, Shawnna, 8 Ball, MJG, Carl Thomas, Lil' Flip, Lil' Fate, Snoop Dogg, Chingy, I-20, Tity Boi, Dolla Boi.
"Stand Up" was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Male Rap Solo Performance.
In the year leading up to the release of his third disc, CHICKEN & BEER, Ludacris' distinguished drawl could be heard all over the radio on commanding guest appearance after guest appearance, most notably on Missy Elliott's smash "Gossip Folks." Not that he needed any more airplay--his first two major releases already had the Georgian rapper well established as one of the most accomplished Dirty South crossover acts.
CHICKEN & BEER is an apt title for the ravenously hungry record with few moments of sobriety, as Ludacris unleashes his most gentle of furies. In "Southern Fried Intro," he unabashedly admits to throwing all styles, even pop, into his musical stew, before firing the full-out assault of "Blow It Out," a measured, righteous, anthemic response to his doubters and detractors, including an on-point slap at talk show host Bill O'Reilly over their much-chronicled Pepsi flap. He then switches to seduction of the most swaggering brand on the hook-laden, dance-floor bound "Stand Up." As with Eminem, the way he allows his goofiness to take sway, it's easy to forget his similarly supreme ability as a wordsmith, but this forgotten secret to his success is evident throughout CHICKEN & BEER, another appealing record from the Dirty South icon.