Ludacris has been making quite a bit of noise with his debut single "What's Your Fantasy" seeing heavy rotation on BET. Hand picked by Scarface to be Def Jam South's debut artist, he has a lot to live up to. Back For The First Time is an alright debut, but nothing earthshaking.

Most of the production is handled by Shondrae, a member of Ludacris' camp, Disturbing the Peace. Other DTP members who help out behind the boards include Infamous 2-0, Fate Wilson and Cris himself. Guest production is provided by such big names as Organized Noize who produce a sub-par effort for them, Jermaine Dupri, The Neptunes and Timbaland. Shondrae seems like a producer to look out for. His beats are catchy as well as technically good. Try to count the elements in "What's Your Fantasy" for example.

Lyrically, Ludacris is fairly talented, as are the members of his camp. Unfortunately, his subject matter is rather limited. Like Choclair, he's at his best when talking about sex, but on a full length album, this single-mindedness can get tedious. While his one liners are clever at times, there's nothing here that hasn't been done many times before.

Songs like "1st & 10," "What's Your Fantasy," "Hood Stuck," "Mouthing Off," "Ho," are good showcases of Cris' talent, but Misses like "Get Off Me," and "Catch Up" will have you reaching for the remote.

Following the recent explosion of southern style hip-hop, this album is a good start for Def Jam South. There is definitely room for Ludacris to grow though, so here's hoping his next effort is even stronger. Also, hopefully producers like Organized Noize and the Neptunes will provide him with better beats next go round.