Star of “The
Fate of the Furious,” the hip-hop artist Ludacris rides on the
edge to balance tech, his music and his life.
It should come
as no surprise that Chris “Ludacris” Bridges, one of the stars of the Fast
& Furious movie franchise, isn’t a fan of self-driving cars.
“I honestly
feel that no one can ever take the place of a human being when it comes to
actually driving, especially when it comes to that last-minute instinct if
something happens to go wrong,” Ludacris, 39, told CNET during a cover shoot in
his hometown of Atlanta.
“The same way
computers crash every now and then, I feel like cars that are gonna drive people,
there’s a slight chance that it may crash,” he said in December, ahead of
reprising his role as tech guy Tej Parker in “The Fate of the Furious,” also
known as “Fast & Furious 8.”
“I don’t think
it’s for me.”
That’s not to
say he’s leery of tech. While not quite the techie he plays on screen, Ludacris
says his house has all sorts of gadgets he controls through his iPhone apps. He
also relies on apps to help him with his music. But the hip-hop artist also
thinks we should put our tech down every once in a while. “There’s a time to
disconnect,” he says. “There’s nothing like actually interacting with other
human beings.”
I think
everybody in this world is trying to catch up with technology.
The trailer
for “Fast & Furious 8” went viral when it was released in December. Why do
you think people are so excited about the franchise?
I’m not able
to give away all the specifics of the movie, but I think it’s exciting because
as time has gone on, the sequels continued to get better and better. Usually
when you have sequels, that’s not the case. We have some of the most loyal fans
when it comes to this movie that I’ve ever seen in my entire life, so I’m
excited.
But as the
trailer tells, Dom [played by Vin Diesel] has gone rogue on us. I don’t think
anybody saw this coming, but you have to see the movie in order to understand
why.
You drive a
tank in the movie.
Were your
co-stars jealous?
I don’t think
anybody was jealous because that’s just my character. My character is the tech
guy, and he is the one who wants to have the most electronics and powerful guns
at his disposal. Everyone has a car that fits their personality and that one
fit mine.
I hear you’re
devoted to your first car.
A 1993 Acura.
I drive it all the time. It had over 273,000 miles on it before I had to change
the engine. Acura stepped in just because I had it for so long because it’s
been a staple in my life. They helped me refurbish it and restore it — new
engine, new paint job, interior — everything.
Why are you so
attached to it?
Man, just
because it keeps me grounded. It keeps me humble. This is a car I had before my
first commercial success. I wrote a lot of songs in this car. This is something
that no matter how big I get, I want to be reminded of where I started.
Silicon Valley
is making a big push into self-driving cars. What do you think about that?
That’s gonna
change the dynamic of people driving. I think the same way computers crash
every now and then, I feel like cars that are gonna drive people, there’s a
slight chance that it may crash. I don’t think it’s for me.
I honestly
feel that no one can ever take the place of a human being when it comes to
actually driving, especially when it comes to that last-minute instinct if
something happens to go wrong.
That’s not to
take anything away from Tesla or all these cars that have these features
because I don’t understand it as much as people in engineering and the
scientists putting it together. [But] I would rather rely on a human being than
a computer when it comes to driving. That’s a stance I’m going to take.
*CNET*
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