In the early afternoon I fly from Atlanta to LA. Normally my days are crammed with meetings, lunches, press and any other activities my agent, manager and publicist can think up. But not today. Today is a chill day for me. I get off the plane. I’ve been waiting for months for this gig. Jennifer Hudson and I are meeting to record a song together—finally. I have to admit when I first heard the song, I couldn’t think of anyone I’d rather “duet” with.
First things first: I drop off my bag at my apartment and head to Equinox (10220 Constellation Boulevard, Century City, 310- 552-0420; equinoxfitness.com) to take care of the physical. Afterward, I break for lunch at the Brazilian restaurant Bossa Nova (7181 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, 323-436- 7999). Then I set up a few meetings with buddies, and we just hang.
When I’m in the mood for a little activity, I go to Lucky Strike bowling lanes (6801 Hollywood Boulevard, Hollywood, 323-467-7776). Some times I hit the shops on Melrose, although more often I visit my favorite designers on Rodeo Drive—Barry at Armani (436 North Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, 310-271-5555; giorgioarmani.com), Donna at Louis Vuitton (295 North Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, 310-859-0457; louisvuitton.com) and the people at Ferragamo (357 North Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills, 310-273-9990; salvatoreferragamo.it), all of whom have often let me “model” their clothes on the red carpet.
After hanging, bowling and shopping it’s normally time to replenish my soul as well as my stomach. Where we eat usually comes down to a debate between whoever’s driving and the majority, but some of my favorite hot spots are Bond St at the Thompson Hotel (9360 Wilshire Boulevard, Beverly Hills, 310-273-1400; thompsonhotels.com) for sushi, Mastro’s (246 North Canon Drive, Beverly Hills, 310- 888-8782; mastrorestaurants.com), Koi (730 North La Cienega Boulevard, Los Angeles, 310-659-9449; koirestaurant.com), Crustacean (9646 Little Santa Monica Boulevard, Beverly Hills, 310-205-8990; anfamily.com) and (of course) Mr. Chow (344 North Camden Drive, Beverly Hills, 310-278-9911; mrchow.com) for garlic noodles. After dinner it’s time to start working. I’m waiting to hear about the final studio arrangements. Today has come and gone, but now the night is calling, calling Ludacris to the studio.
