Ludacris has had a busy couple of years since his last studio album. From taking on Oprah to his role in the Oscar-winning film Crash, the Atlanta rapper and former radio DJ has had his share of publicity, positive and otherwise, since his last trip to the recording studio. The Justice participated in a conference call with the 12-time Grammy Award-winner to discuss his latest and most personal album, Release Therapy which reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart upon its recent release. While the record includes the requisite share of lighthearted club songs, the rapper best known for songs like "Move Bitch" and "Pimpin' All Over the World" took a much more reflective approach this time around: "I wanted people to see more of a serious side of me," he said.

With songs like "War with God" and "Runaway Love," Ludacris' newest release demonstrates a substantial shift in subject matter. The latter song, featuring Mary J. Blige, appears to be Ludacris' answer to critics who have accused the Illinois-born rapper of objectifying women.

"A lot of women don't talk about what's going on in their past and they carry a lot of baggage with them," he said. "Whether it's dealing with child abuse or early pregnancy or just something that's gone on in certain individuals' lives."

The rapper credits his five-year-old daughter as his inspiration for addressing the issues that young women face.

"One of the things I learned from Crash was that the first thing in trying to solve a situation or an issue is to get people to talking about it," he said.

Despite having sold more than 10 million records, Ludacris still wants to distinguish himself from other MCs and set the record straight with those who have taken shots at him in the past.

"I think that a lot of rappers are very one-dimensional and this album is very three-dimensional," he said. "I want to keep people guessing. I want people to always expect the unexpected from me."

Something no one would expect is Luda's self-described list of influences, which includes artists like Frankie Beverly and Maze, James Brown, Michael Jackson and Prince.

"I happen to listen to a lot of rock 'n' roll," he said. "Like Three Doors Down and Red Hot Chili Peppers, of course, Linkin Park, you know, just to name a few."

On "War with God," Ludacris fires back at some unidentified, less established rappers. New hip-hop sensation T.I. is reportedly the song's main target.

"If people send warning shots to me I'm always going to defend myself and send warning shots right back," he said. "I'm not the one to be toyed with or messed with or played with."

Release Therapy's first single, "Money Maker," features hip-hop prodigy Pharrell and has climbed to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 charts and quickly become a fixture in clubs around the country.

On "Do Your Time," Luda enlists fellow MCs Pimp C, Beanie Sigel and C-Murder, all of whom have recently spent time in prison, to convey the reality of life behind bars.

"I put three people from hip hop that have all done some real time on the song to tell their stories," he said. Ludacris insisted he isn't trying to glamorize prison life.

"I know a few guys who are in prison, and jail isn't something that should be celebrated," he said. "There are so many black men in jail, and not all of them are guilty. We have to start thinking about these statistics and figure out if anything can be done."

Ludacris-who in addition to his critically acclaimed role in Crash has appeared in 2 Fast 2 Furious, Hustle & Flow and the television series Law & Order: SVU-has had to field questions from many in the hip-hop community over his focus on acting over the last few years.

"[Because of] the roles that I've picked I honestly believe people have taken me a little more seriously and I hope that it would not hinder or hurt how people view me as a rap artist, because they can distinguish between the two," he said.