Ludacris to perform at Atlanta Falcons halftime, but social media wants Future

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Credit: Melissa Ruggieri

Credit: Melissa Ruggieri

BY MELISSA RUGGIERI/AJC Music Scene

Ludacris has been tapped to perform at halftime Saturday when the Atlanta Falcons host their anticipated rematch with the Seattle Seahawks.

Many Falcons fans were excited to hear this news (one expressed gratitude on Twitter that it wasn’t Zac Brown because “every time [he] plays we lose”).

But the prevailing sentiment on social media was that the Atlanta rapper who should represent at the Georgia Dome is Future – not necessarily for his musical prowess, but for the psychological ramifications.

If you recall, Mr. "Move That Dope" was engaged to Ciara and is the baby daddy of 2 ½-year-old Future Zahir Wilburn.

Ciara married Seahawks quarterback Russell "DangeRuss" Wilson in July and is pregnant with their first child .

But her road to domestic bliss with Wilson has entailed a few Future-related obstacles and more than a bit of tabloid headline drama.

 Ludacris will take the field at halftime on Saturday. Photo: TAYLOR CARPENTER / TAYLOR.CARPENTER@AJC.COM

Credit: Melissa Ruggieri

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Credit: Melissa Ruggieri

Last February, Ciara sued Future for $15 million for defamation for allegedly referring to her as a bad mother and disparaging her publicly. Future countersued, but this summer dropped the lawsuit once he was granted more time with Baby Future.

He also released a track in June called "Juice," which contained lyrics that were not-so-subtle jabs at Wilson. Ciara alleged that the song contained threats to murder her now-husband.

In October, Ciara dropped her defamation claim against Future and last week ended her remaining lawsuit against him "with prejudice," so she cannot file the suit again.

It’s all exhausting, isn’t it?

Now, the Atlanta Falcons, for their part, have stated that they will not play Future songs during Saturday's playoff game as a method of taunting Wilson. However, the team's DJ, Jay Envy, told pop culture site Complex that he plays Future at every home game.

“That’s like not playing [Kanye] in Chicago,” he said. “It just doesn’t happen.”

So…who is ready to watch some football?