The year was 2001. George W. Bush had just become president and a young rapper by the name of Ludacris was burning up the charts.
His seminal treatise? “Area Codes.”
Let’s take a look:
I’ve got hoes
I’ve got hoes, in different area codes…area codes
Hoes! Hoes… in different area codes…area codes…
Ludacris then goes on to make a number of witty ho puns. Eat some ho-deurves, whore-mones and what have you. He missed his calling by not becoming a comedian.
Is Luda really talking about hoes? Or is he talking about being a man of the world?
Surely, a man of his prominence in the rap game could have the hoes brought to him. However, he travels to various area codes in order to obtain these hoes.
One begins to wonder if he’s really traveling just for the hoes, or if he is traveling in order to expand his mind and his base of experience.
One should travel. One should get out of one’s comfort zone. One should see the world and experience other cultures. Maybe you’ll find a place you truly belong. Or, maybe you already belong at the place you’ve always call home and you’ll appreciate it that much more.
What will you seek when you travel? New ideas? New languages? New forms of expression? New works of art? New experiences?
In Ludacris’ experience, he sought new hoes whenever he reached his new destinations. But while Luda was looking for women with loose morals, i.e. “hoes” as commonly stated in the rap vernacular, you might be looking for any type of new experience when you travel.
What is the “ho” that you wish to experience in a new area code? New food? New fun? New ways of life?
Whatever your “ho in a different area code” may be, I hope you find it. Of course, the key to happiness is to also appreciate the hoes in your very own area code, as very few of us will ever be able to afford to be international globe trotters.
What’s your ho in a different area code, reader? Discuss in the comments.
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