Ludacris at the Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds -- August 3.
Thursday, August 3, 8 p.m.
Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds, 2815 West Locust Street, Davenport IA
Two chart-topping, Grammy-winning, multi-platinum-selling icons of hip-hop and rap share a co-headlining showcase as grandstand performers at the 2023 Mississippi Valley Fair, their August 3 concert event boasting performances by Ludacris, well-known as a mainstay in the popular Fast & the Furious screen franchise, and Lil John, a music legend since his status as frontman of Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz.
Born in Champaign, Illinois, Ludacris moved to Atlanta, Georgia, at age nine, when he first began rapping. Starting out with a brief stint as a DJ, he formed his own record label, Disturbing tha Peace, in the late 1990s, and released his first album in 1999's Incognegro. The recording was repackaged and re-released for his major label debut Back for the First Time after he signed with Def Jam Recordings, and the singles "Southern Hospitality" (featuring Pharrell) and "What's Your Fantasy" (featuring Shawnna) became top-40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
In the following years, Ludacris released 2001's Word of Mouf, 2003's Chicken-n-Beer, and 2004's The Red Light District, all of which were certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. His next two albums, 2006's Release Therapy and 2008's Theater of the Mind, explored more serious content than its predecessors, while Ludacris' seventh, 2010's Battle of the Sexes, featured a return to the more lighthearted tone of his previous recordings. Throughout his career, Ludacris scored two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100 as a lead artist: "Stand Up" (featuring Shawnna) and "Money Maker" (featuring Pharrell). Additionally, he has three chart-toppers as a featuring act, on Usher's "Yeah!", Fergie's "Glamorous," and Taio Cruz's "Break Your Heart". In 2010, Ludacris was featured on Justin Bieber's single "Baby," which became one of the highest-certified singles of all time in the U.S. and a defining song in modern-day popular music.
As a rapper and producer with the East Side Boyz, Lil John was instrumental in the emergence of the hip-hop subgenre crunk, and is credited with bringing the genre into mainstream success. Lil Jon frequently collaborates with Miami-based rapper Pitbull, Bay Area-based rappers Too Short, and E-40, and he participates as one-third of an unofficial trio consisting of Atlanta-based artists Ludacris and Usher, who frequently create songs together. The artist has produced several Billboard Hot 100 hit singles including "Salt Shaker," "Cyclone," "Get Low," "Snap Yo Fingers," "Damn!", "Freek-a-Leek," "Lovers and Friends," "Goodies," and "Yeah!", the latter of which won five-time nominee Lil John a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Performance alongside Usher and Ludacris.
In 2013, Lil Jon collaborated with producer DJ Snake and released "Turn Down for What," an EDM single that, as of this year, has gone 8× multi-platinum in the United States. The song went on to win the Billboard Music Award for Top Dance/Electronic Song; its accompanying music video was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Music Video; and "Turn Down for What" passed the milestone of 1 billion views on YouTube seven years after it was released. Listed as one of the Top Billboard Music Award Winners of All Time in 2016, Lil Jon achieved his eighth chart-topper on Billboard's Rhythmic Chart as a songwriter on "My Type," a song by California rapper Saweetie, and was also a songwriter on the rapper's single "Tap In," which reached number two on the same chart.
Ludacris and Lil John perform their Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds set at 8 p.m. on August 3, and $85-110 MVF Fun Cards are required for admittance into any and all Grandstand concerts this summer. For more information on the concert and the Mississippi Valley Fair, call (563)326-5338 and visit MVFair.com.
