In this article: Sit down with Ludacris and Toby Keith At a glance: Ludacris and Toby Keith

American Rapsody

It's a first! USA WEEKEND brings together rapper Ludacris and country's Toby Keith.

This isn't the most likely venue for a rapper or a country star. It's in the heart of New York's SoHo district, in a photo studio dominated by the blue-jean/black-shirt-clad art-scene set. But one by one, the entourage for two of music's biggest stars -- country's Toby Keith and rap's Ludacris -- filters in as the USA WEEKEND Magazine photo shoot is about to begin.

Says Keith: "I get more respect from rap artists than I do from my own industry."

At first, the two parties go about business separately. Then the mix is on. A Keith handler starts swaying in rhythm to an Outkast tune blasting in the background. One of Ludacris' offensive-linemen-sized bodyguards trades show-tour war stories with an equally imposing bodyguard for Keith. Then it's time for the shoot: "OK, let's go!" Ludacris says.

"Where do you want me?" Keith asks.

Keith gets word that Ludacris is from Atlanta, a place where he's spent some quality time. "Ever been to The Varsity?" he asks as Ludacris nods. "If I have one of those good chili dogs there, I gotta work out for two weeks to sweat it off," Keith says.

At first glance, given their musical genres, you'd think that Keith and Ludacris would have as much in common as the NRA and PETA. And that's where you'd be wrong. Both men believe that rap and country produce the most honest music today -- both genres are rooted in real stories about real people. And they present a convincing case that rap and country are the most authentic American music genres today. Here's more on what Ludacris and Keith had to say about songwriting, technology's impact on music, and the best kind of venue in which to play live:

Sitting down with the artists

Many of our readers are probably asking themselves: What in the heck are these two guys doing in the same room? But is there more common ground here than you'd think?
Keith: Absolutely. I get more respect from rap artists than I do from my own industry. I don't always write the kind of music that country executives want. Rappers are like that, too. My words come from the street, and their words come from the street. That slicked-up pop stuff doesn't come from the street. It's all pre-fab. I did a Super Bowl special once, and Darryl McDaniels from Run DMC came up to me and said he liked my lyrics and understood my frustration about being an outsider in country circles.

Ludacris: Right. People only think these are two different genres. But they're very much the same. When Whitney Houston takes a Dolly Parton song like "I Will Always Love You" and makes a big hit out of it, the hip-hop culture definitely takes notice and says, "Man, she got that from a country artist!" It opens your eyes. Rap and hip-hop are about bringing people together to your neighborhood and talking about what happens there. Country music is about the same thing -- writing about where you're from.

Do you guys spend much time listening to each others' type of music?
Keith: Sure. I'm a huge fan of Snoop. He's a poet.

Ludacris: I do, too. I look at the "Billboard" charts, and I see Snoop and me, and then I see Toby climbing up the charts. I'm like, who is that guy? You don't care what kind of music it is. You gotta respect him, because he's selling a ton of records right now. It makes you want to learn more about his music.

What about the impact of technology on your music?
Keith: It's been great for the unknown artist who needs exposure. The Internet is going to give him that. But, at the same time, all of the people who are stealing music online aren't hurting me as much as they're hurting the little guy, the songwriter who's waited tables to survive. He finally hits it, and because of online theft, he loses 30% to 40% of what he should have gotten. Me? I can make money six or seven different ways. I can sell T-shirts or make Ford truck commercials. But the struggling songwriter can't do that.

You've both lived in the South as well. Why is the South -- whether we're talking music, film or literature -- such a great breeding ground for writers?
Ludacris: The South is about struggle, and struggle only makes you stronger. When people are down, they like to express themselves. But it's not just about the South. It's universal. I've had people come up to me saying that they were really depressed and felt better after listening to one of my songs. That's gratifying.

Keith: Yeah, I'm amazed at how often people walk up to me and just mention one line that struck a chord with them. I wrote "How Do You Like Me Now?" to dis on some girl I knew. But I've had all kinds of people come up to me with their own interpretation of the song. I had one say that it reminded her of her boss, somebody who said she'd never amount to anything. Then she became CEO of her own company, and he came up to her looking for a job. So she could tell him, "How do you like me now?"

Which performing venue do you prefer: the small club or the big arena?
Ludacris: Well, obviously, you reach the most people with the arena. But you can present more of yourself with a smaller audience. You don't have to just play the hits. You can play with the crowd a bit and try some different things.

Keith: My crowd is in the big outdoor theater. I have a rowdy bunch that likes to be on that grass field, because, y'know, you shouldn't puke on a floor in a club, right? [Laughs.] Now, seriously, I like the clubs, because you have a captive audience there, and we have two or three acoustic guitars up there, and we're not hard-core slamming or stomping through the music. We're singing it with intricate harmonies and really showing the craftsmanship.

Were there any early indications that telling stories would become a lifetime passion for you?
Keith: There were. In grade school, my teacher gave us an hour to make up a story and write it down. Other guys would be done in 15 minutes and maybe get a page down. But I'd take the whole hour and just write, write, write. My teacher called my mom and said I was crafty at this and loved doing it, to encourage it. My mom was like, "What's he going to do with it? He's not going to be a writer. We live in oil-field country." But I knew songwriting and performing were my way out of those oil fields.

Ludacris: In my case, I was 7 years old, and I was always writing. I came up with my first official song when I was 9. It was funny, because I came up with a line then that went, "I'm cool/I'm bad/I might be 9/But I can't survive without my girlfriend." So I changed my age, in the song at least, to 10. Even then, I knew it had to rhyme.

Cover photograph by George Lange for USA WEEKEND

Grooming by Shannon Grey Williams, Oliver Piro. Ludacris' wardrobe styling by Stephanie Miller, oshare stylez.

Ludacris' clothing on cover: Shirt by Marc Ecko Cut & Sew, jeans by Evisu. Ludacris' clothing inside: Blazer by H Hilfiger, shirt by Lacoste, jeans by PRPS, sneakers by Nike. As for Keith, no stylin': He's a come-as-you-are kinda guy.