Outkast

Outkast

OutKast are an American hip hop duo based out of East Point, Georgia, a nearby city to Atlanta, Georgia. Their original musical style was a mixture of Dirty South and G-Funk; since then, funk, soul, pop, electronica, rock, spoken word poetry, crunk, jazz, and blues elements have been added to the group's musical palette. The duo consists of André "André 3000" Benjamin (formerly known as "Dre") and Antwan "Big Boi" Patton. Andre is from Atlanta. Big Boi is from Savannah, Georgia. OutKast are one of the most successful hip-hop groups of all time, having sold over 20 million copies of its eight releases: six studio albums, a greatest hits release, and Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, a double album containing a solo album from each member of the duo. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is one of only four hip-hop albums to be certified Diamond in the U.S. for shipping over 10 million units. Despite the duo's commercial success, they have maintained an experimental approach in their music and are widely praised for their originality and artistic content.

History

Pre-Debut

Benjamin and Patton met in high school when Andre's parents were divorced and Andre was visiting his father. Meanwhile, Patton had to move with his three brothers and two sisters from Savannah to Atlanta. Benjamin and Patton went to Tri-Cities High School together in East Point, Georgia, and became musical rivals, challenging each other to freestyle MC battles on a regular basis. They eventually teamed up and were pursued by Organized Noize, a group of local producers who would later make hits for TLC and Xscape. While searching through a dictionary, Big Boi and André 3000 came across the word "outcast" and decided this would be a perfect group name because at the time, the hip hop industry was dominated by East Coast and West Coast rappers who saw southern rappers as outcasts. OutKast, Organized Noize, and schoolmates Goodie Mob formed the nucleus of the Dungeon Family organization. They said that they were inspired by the Nashvillins.

OutKast signed to LaFace Records in 1992, becoming the label's first hip hop act and making their first appearance on the remix of labelmate TLC's "What about your friends". In 1993, they released their first single, "Player's Ball". The song's funky style, much of it accomplished with live instrumentation, was a hit with audiences."Player's Ball" hit number-one on the Billboard Hot Rap Tracks chart.

Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik

Their full-length debut, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, was issued the next year. This initial effort is credited with laying the foundation for southern hip hop and is considered a classic by many of their southern fan base. Every track on Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik was produced by Organized Noize and featured other members of the Dungeon Family. Follow-up singles included the title track and "Git up Git out", a politically charged collaboration with Goodie Mob that was later sampled by Macy Gray for her 1999 hit "Do Something." On this early material, both André and Big Boi contrast lyrical content reflecting the lifestyles of pimps and gangsters with politically conscious material commenting on the status of African Americans in the South. OutKast won Best New Rap Group at the Source Awards in 1995.

ATLiens

ATLiens was OutKast's second album, released in 1996. The album exhibited more self consciousness and further solidified Outkast as the flagship representatives of the 1st generation Dungeon Family and the Southern hip hop movement. The album helped the group earn more recognition among East Coast hip hop fans in the East and West coasts.

For this album, OutKast joined with partner David "Mr. DJ" Sheats to form the Earthtone III production company, which allowed the group to produce some of their own tracks. "ATLiens" was the group's second Top 40 single (following "Player's Ball" from their first album), and reflected the beginning of André's increasingly sober lifestyle: "No drugs or alcohol/so I can get the signal clear," he rhymes about himself. "Elevators (Me and You)," OutKast's first self-produced single, became the group's first Top 20 hit the same year.

Aquemini

OutKast's third album Aquemini (1998) also reached the number-two position on the Billboard 200 album chart in the United States; its title was a combination of the zodiac signs of Big Boi (an Aquarius) and André (a Gemini). The album was widely praised as possibly the group's best material to date: when reviewed by popular hip-hop publication The Source, it received the much-coveted "5 Mics" (out of five) rating.

Producing more material themselves, both Big Boi and André explored more eclectic subject matter, delving into sounds inspired by soul, trip hop, and electro music. The album featured production by Organized Noize and collaborations with Raekwon, funk pioneer and musical forebear George Clinton, and Goodie Mob.

In 1999, OutKast and LaFace Records were sued by Rosa Parks over the album's most successful radio single, which bore Parks' name as its title. The lawsuit alleged that the song misappropriated Parks' name, and also objected to some of the song's obscene language.

The song's lyrics were largely unrelated to Parks, save for a line in the chorus: "Ah ha, hush that fuss / Everybody move to the back of the bus". The song, which OutKast maintained was intended partly as homage, only refers to Parks as a metaphor: the purpose of the song's chorus is to imply that OutKast is overturning hip hop's old order, that people should make way for a new style and sound. The initial lawsuit was dismissed. Parks' representation hired lawyer Johnnie Cochran to appeal the decision in 2001, but the appeal was denied on First Amendment grounds. In 2003, the Supreme Court allowed Parks' lawyers to proceed with the lawsuit.

In 2004, the judge in the case appointed an impartial representative for Parks after her family expressed concerns that her caretakers and her lawyers were pursuing the case based on their own financial interest. Later that same year, the members of OutKast were dropped as co-defendants, and Parks' lawyers continued to seek action against LaFace and parent company BMG. In 2003 André told UK journalist Angus Batey that, following a Detroit concert in the midst of the legal battle, relatives of Parks had approached him and implied that the case was less to do with Rosa than with the lawyers. The suit was finally settled on April 14, 2005, with neither OutKast nor their label having to admit any wrongdoing. The group did, however, have to agree to perform some sort of tribute to Parks: as of August 2006, the nature of this tribute had not been decided, and OutKast had not completed it.

Stankonia

Originally titled "Sandbox", the pair's fourth album, Stankonia was released in October 2000 to excellent reviews. It debuted at number-two on the Billboard 200 in the U.S., and would eventually be certified quadruple-platinum. Stankonia's first single was "B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)", a high-tempo jungle-influenced record. The second single, "Ms. Jackson," combined a pop hook with lyrics about divorce and relationship breakups, particularly André's breakup with Shortland Street actress Angela Bloomfield; the titular "Ms. Jackson" character being a doppelgänger for Badu's mother. It was at this time that André changed his stage name to the current "André 3000".

The single became their first pop dropped hit, landing the number-one position on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and the number-two position on the UK Singles Chart. The album's final single was the Organized Noize-produced "So Fresh, So Clean", featuring a credited guest appearance from regular guest vocalist and Organized Noize-member Sleepy Brown and garnered a remix featuring Snoop Dogg. All three singles' videos had heavy MTV2 airplay, and OutKast won two 2001 Grammy Awards, one for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for "Ms. Jackson", and another for Stankonia as Best Rap Album.

During the recording of Stankonia OutKast and Mr. DJ began producing tracks for the artists on their Aquemini Records imprint through Columbia, including Slimm Cutta Calhoun and Killer Mike, who made his debut appearance on Stankonia's "Snappin' & Trappin."

Even in Darkness & Greatest Hits

In December 2001, OutKast released a greatest hits album, Big Boi And Dre Present...OutKast, which also contained three new tracks. One of these new tracks was the single "The Whole World," which won a 2002 Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group. Killer Mike also was featured on the song, gaining some exposure among areas outside of his native Atlanta. The other two new songs were called "Funkin' Around" and "Movin' Cool (The After Party)" The same year OutKast participated in the first and only Dungeon Family group album, Even in Darkness, along with Goodie Mob, Killer Mike, Sleepy Brown, Witchdoctor, and Backbone among others, and featuring Bubba Sparxxx, Shuga Luv and Mello. In 2002, the group and Killer Mike contributed the lead single "Land of a Million Drums" to the Scooby Doo soundtrack.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

In September 2003, OutKast released a double album, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. It is essentially two solo albums, one by each member, packaged as a single release under the OutKast banner; the two members also appear on each others' discs for a few songs apiece. Big Boi's Speakerboxxx is largely a funk and Dirty South blended party record; André 3000's The Love Below features only brief instances of hip hop, presenting instead elements found in funk, jazz, and R&B.

The album is also OutKast's biggest commercial success yet, having debuted on the Billboard 200 albums chart at number-one and stayed there for several weeks. The album eventually sold over five million copies, and, as double-album sales count double for Recording Industry Association of America certification, the album was certified diamond for 10 million units shipped in December 2004. Its latest certification, in May 2006, reaches 11 million copies in shipping.

The first two singles from the album(s), which were released nearly simultaneously, were Big Boi's "The Way You Move" and André 3000's "Hey Ya!" The video for "Hey Ya!" is based on The Beatles' landmark appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. The video's storyline has "The Love Below" a fictional band with all members played by André with the use of special effects, performing in London. "Hey Ya" was the number one song on the very final weekend of American Top 40 with Casey Kasem. It was also number one a week later on the very first weekend of American Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest. The singles spent ten weeks at number one on the Hot 100 singles chart, with "Hey Ya!" spending nine weeks and "The Way You Move" briefly taking over in February 2004. These singles were seen as a breakthrough for the hip-hop industry, being among the first hip-hop songs to be widely played on adult contemporary radio stations.

OutKast's next official single was not released until the summer of 2004. "Roses", a track featuring both members from The Love Below half of the album, did not meet the level of success as either of its predecessors, but it became a modest-sized hit on urban radio and the American music video networks. The video for "Roses" is loosely based on the musical West Side Story. It featured sparring 1950s-style gangs, one representing Speakerboxxx, and one representing The Love Below, parodying the widespread arguing among critics and fans as to which half of the album was better. The final singles were André 3000's "Prototype", which was paired with a science fiction-themed video about alien visitors, and Speakerboxxx's "Ghetto Musick," which featured both members of OutKast and a sample from a song by Patti LaBelle, who also makes an appearance in the video.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below won the Grammy Award for the 2004 Album of the Year, becoming only the second rap album to ever receive the honor (the first being The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill by Lauryn Hill in 1999). OutKast was one of the headlining acts at the show, and gave two performances: Big Boi performed "The Way You Move" during a medley with George Clinton & P-Funk and Robert Randolph and the Family Band, while André 3000 performed "Hey Ya!" as the show closed. In February 2004, André 3000's performance, which featured dancers moving wildly around a green teepee in war paint and feathered headdresses, was criticized by the Native American Cultural Center, who called for a boycott of OutKast, Arista Records, NARAS, and of CBS, the broadcaster of the awards show. CBS later apologized.

Idlewild

Between OutKast albums, Big Boi and André 3000 ventured into film projects. André co-starred in John Singleton's action film Four Brothers and also had a part in Be Cool, while Big Boi took a featured role in the T.I. movie ATL. Both members also began working on a joint film, Idlewild, directed by OutKast music video director Bryan Barber. Idlewild, a Prohibition-era musical film set to a blues-influenced hip-hop soundtrack, was released on August 25, 2006 by Universal Pictures. The Idlewild soundtrack was released August 22, 2006. Its lead single, "The Mighty 'O'", features both OutKast members, and was briefly played exclusively on local Atlanta radio stations before being issued as a single in May 2006. They released and shot the video for "Morris Brown" instead. A video for "Idlewild Blue (Don'tchu Worry About Me)" soon followed. The entire Idlewild album leaked to the Internet on August 13th, 2006, nine days before its scheduled release.

Future Projects & Breakup Rumors

Aquemini Records folded in 2004, and Big Boi founded a new record label, Purple Ribbon Entertainment, to be distributed by Virgin Records. Among its first signees were Sleepy Brown, Bubba Sparxxx, and Killer Mike, Big Boi has released a group album/compilation, titled Big Boi Presents... The Purple Ribbon All-Stars - Got Purp? Vol. 2.

One album remains on the band's LaFace contract. It was originally planned as a ten-track release called 10 The Hard Way; shortly after Idlewild dropped, the duo confirmed the album is still in the works, though both have begun new projects without releasing any new information on the album. Due to both Big Boi and André's interest in separate projects such as movies, TV (André's "Class of 3000") and solo albums, rumors of a split have turned up frequently in the media. André has recently denied those rumors on a phone interview with MTV News, stating that even though they do not feel like performing on stage together, OutKast is "still tight". In an August, 2006, interview with UK journalist Craig McLean, after emphasizing that they would not split, the pair looked beyond music and film careers, Big Boi suggesting he may consider running for the job of Mayor of Atlanta in the future.

Big Boi has openly addressed the media and fans' coverage of the rumors in various songs; on "Hollywood Divorce" from Idlewild, he addresses journalists and "Eminems/M&Ms with no nuts," referring to gossip-prone white teens with internet access. On "Tomb of the Boom," a song from Speakerboxxx, he recorded the lines "They say Big Boi can you pull it off without yo nigga Dre?" with the reply "I say people stop the madness cuz me and Dre be okay." He also adds the question, "We've been spittin damn near 10 years why the fuck would we be quittin?"

Big Boi's second solo record is also expected after The Hard 10, and as of September 2005 fourteen songs have been recorded, though nothing has come about as of 2007. In an August 2006 UK interview, Big Boi claimed that collaborators on his solo LP would include Kate Bush, who emailed him after she had completed her 2005 comeback album to invite him to "camp out" at her home in Britain while they worked on tracks together. In a recent interview with the L.A. Times, OutKast confirmed that "10 The Hard Way" was still going to come out, but said they would keep it 'under wraps' until the album's release, still possibly two years away.

Discography

Main article: OutKast discography

• 1994: Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik
• 1996: ATLiens
• 1998: Aquemini
• 2000: Stankonia
• 2001: Big Boi And Dre Present...OutKast
• 2003: Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
• 2006: Idlewild
• Possible 2007: 10 the Hard Way

Grammy Awards

Wins

Year	Category	Title
2002	Best Rap Performance By a Duo or Group	"Ms. Jackson"
2002	Best Rap Album	Stankonia
2003	Best Rap Performance By a Duo or Group	"The Whole World"
2004	Album of the Year	Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
2004	Best Urban/Alternative Performance	"Hey Ya!"
2004	Best Rap Album	Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

Nominations

Year	Category	Title
1999	Best Rap Performance By a Duo or Group	"Rosa Parks"
2002	Best Short-Form Music Video	"Ms. Jackson"
2002	Record of the Year	"Ms. Jackson"
2002	Album of the Year	Stankonia
2004	Producer of the Year Non-Classical	--
2004	Best Short-Form Music Video	"Hey Ya!"
2004	Record of the Year	"Hey Ya!"
2007	Best Urban/Alternative Performance	"Idlewild Blue (Don't Chu Worry 'Bout Me)"
2007	Best Rap Performance by Duo or Group	"Mighty 'O'"

External links

• OutKast's official website
• OutKast's official MySpace
• Outkast BandNews
• Stankonia, an Outkast fan site
• Dungeoneze.com, the official home of the Dungeon Family
• Loveboxxx, a German OutKast news site
• André 3000 Interview
• Everything-Outkast