The group's original musical style was a mixture of Dirty South and G-Funk. Since then funk, soul, pop, electronic music, rock, spoken word poetry, jazz, and blues have been added to the group's musical palette. The duo consists of Atlanta native André "Andre 3000" Benjamin (formerly known as Dré) and Georgia-born Antwan "Big Boi" Patton.
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. Along with Outkast's commercial success, they have maintained an experimental approach in their music and are widely praised for their originality and artistic content.
Benjamin and Patton met while attending Tri-Cities High School, a Visual and Performing Arts School. Benjamin's parents were divorced and he was living with his father. Meanwhile, Patton had to move with his four brothers and six sisters from Savannah to Atlanta. Benjamin and Patton eventually teamed up and were pursued by Organized Noize, a group of local producers who would later make hits for TLC. The duo initially wanted to be called "2 Shades Deep" or "The Misfits", but because those names were already taken they later decided to use "OutKast" based on finding "outcast" as synonym for "misfit" in a dictionary. OutKast, Organized Noize, and schoolmates Goodie Mob formed the nucleus of the Dungeon Family organization.
OutKast signed to LaFace Records in 1992, becoming the label's first hip hop act and making their first appearance on the remix of label mate 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.
Their debut album, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, was issued on April 26th, 1994. This initial effort is credited with laying the foundation for southern hip hop and is considered a classic by many hip hop aficionados. 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. In the same year, the group contributed "Benz or a Beamer" to the popular New Jersey Drive soundtrack.
ATLiens was OutKast's second album, released on August 27th, 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 & You)," OutKast's first self-produced single, became the group's first Top 20 hit the same year.
OutKast's third album Aquemini was released on September 29, 1998 and 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.
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 singer Erykah Badu; 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 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 on Stankonia's "Snappin' & Trappin."
Webzine Pitchforkmedia.com named Stankonia the 4th greatest album released between 2000 and 2004 in its 2005 feature. In 2009, B.O.B. was chosen as the number one song of the decade.
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 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.
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, rock, electronic music, 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, through the use of special effects, played by André—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 nineteen 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 and Grease. 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 and that the two members were estranged. The final singles were André 3000's "Prototype", which was paired with a science fiction-themed video about alien visitors, and Speakerboxxx's "Ghettomusick," 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 female 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.
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, "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.
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 was released, 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 denied those rumors in 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.
In 2007, Andre 3000 confirmed a new OutKast album would be released, but said that he and Big Boi released solo records first, stating the group album is still possibly two years away. Big Boi's solo album will be released first in June/July of 2009, with the first single, "Royal Flush" (also featuring Andre 3000, essentially making it an OutKast song), planned to have been released on December 31, 2007, but was not released on the announced date. Big Boi announced on his MySpace that the release date for Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty is now sometime in the summer of 2009.
On Nov 14, 2008, the Guardian reported that OutKast will release their follow-up to Idlewild in 2009 after Big Boi and Andre 3000 release their solo albums in the same year. As of August 2009, the albums have not yet been released.
Art of Storytellin
OutKast Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Was it the bitch that fucked the Goodie, and the Dungeon Crew
Let's say her name was Suzy Skrew, 'cause she screwed a lot
Making a nigga hit that chonk, at legitimate spots
Not no parks, backseats or things of that nature
Had to hate ya player, I'm dicking the ho down never said I paid her
Straight laid her, slayed the bitch like Darth Vader, made her
From College Park and Fayette, all the way down to Decatur
Safe as a snake on eggs in a Beamer 840
It's foggy, I went to the crib to call her but she lost me
My baby mama beeped seven o'clock it's gonna cost me
But I still wanna cut her though, maybe she had to work
I caught her in the mall, wearing a real tight skirt
She was, fine as fuck, I wanted to sex the ho up
She said, "Let's hit the parking lot so I can sick your duck"
I said, "Cool, I really wanted to cut you but this'll do
I gotta pick up my daughter plus my baby mama beeped me too"
She said she understood then everything was kosher
I gave her a Lil' Will CD, and a fuckin poster, it's like that now
It's like that now, you better go on and get, the hump, up out your back now
It's about four, or five, cats off in my 'Llac now
We just, shoot, game in the form of story rap now
It's like that now, it's like that now
Now Suzy Skrew had a partner named Sasha, Thumper
I remember her number like the summer
When her and Suzy yeah they threw a slumber
Party but you can not call it that 'cause it was slummer
Well it was more like spend the night
Three in the morning yawning dancing under street lights
We chilling like a villain and a nigga feeling right
In the middle of the ghetto on the curb, but in spite
All of the bullshit we on our back staring at the stars above (aw man)
Talking bout what we gonna be when we grow up
I said what you wanna be, she said, "Alive"
It made me think for a minute, then looked in her eyes
I coulda died, time went on, I got grown
Rhyme got strong, mind got blown, I came back home
To find lil' Sasha was gone
Her mama said she with a nigga that be treating her wrong
I kept on singing my song and hoping at a show
That I would one day see her standing in the front row
But two weeks later she got found in the back of a school
With a needle in her arm, baby two months due, Sasha Thumper
It's like that now, you better go on and get, the hump, up out your back now
It's about four, or five, cats off in my 'Llac now
We just, shoot, game in the form of story rap now
It's like that now, it's like that now
It's like that now, you better go on and get, the hump, up out your back now
It's about four, or five, cats off in my 'Llac now
We just, shoot, game in the form of story rap now (yeah)
It's like that now, it's like that now
Keisha, Keisha!
(Huh?)
Cut that loud mess off
You hear all that thunderin' and lightnin', and get off that telephone
(Ugh, alright)
(Grandmama, what's all that noise?)
(I'm scared)
Baby, don't be scared
It's gonna be alright
It's just the Lord doin' His work, okay?
The lyrics to Outkast's "Da Art of Storytellin' Pt. 1" are a retrospective narrative of life in the ghetto. The song opens with a rendezvous request from a previous lover named Suzy Skrew who cheated on the singer with the Goodie Mob and the Dungeon Family. Suzy is known for her promiscuity and the singer describes how he hit that 'chonk' at legitimate spots instead of backseats or parks. The chorus sings about how life has changed and that now they're doing well.
The second part of the song introduces another character named Sasha Thumper, a friend of Suzy Skrew. The narrative takes place at a sleepover party they threw, which ended up being more like hanging out on the streets in the middle of the ghetto. The singer and Sasha talk about their hopes for the future, and the lyrics emphasize the harsh reality of life in the ghetto. The song ends with the tragic revelation that Sasha has died, found with a needle in her arm along with her unborn child.
The lyrics paint a vivid picture of life in the ghetto and highlight the struggles that many people face. The song reveals how society often overlooks these issues, and people have to navigate the harsh reality of life on their own. The chorus serves to highlight how trying times for the community are now past, and everyone is working towards something better.
Line by Line Meaning
Somebody hit me the other day, for a rendezvous
Someone contacted me recently, asking to meet up
Was it the bitch that fucked the Goodie, and the Dungeon Crew
I wondered if it was the woman who had been involved with both Goodie Mob and Dungeon Family
Let's say her name was Suzy Skrew, cause she screwed a lot
I'll call her Suzy Skrew because she was promiscuous
Making a nigga hit that chonk, at legitimate spots
She led me to have sex with her in appropriate locations
Not no parks, backseats or things of that nature
We didn't engage in sexual activities in cars or public places
Had to hate ya player, I'm dicking the ho down never said I paid her
I'm doing this without paying her, and I'm not proud of it
Straight laid her, slayed the bitch like Darth Vader, made her
I had sex with her and dominated her, like Darth Vader did in Star Wars
From College Park and Fayette, all the way down to Decatur
We had sex in various locations throughout Atlanta
Like Jada, her wig was sharp and sporty, that was shorty
Her hairstyle reminded me of Jada Pinkett Smith and she was attractive
Safe as a snake on eggs in a Beamer 840
She was feeling secure and comfortable with me
It's foggy, I went to the crib to call her but she lost me
I lost touch with her and wasn't able to reach her
My baby mamma beeped seven o'clock it's gonna cost me
My child's mother contacted me and it might cost me something
But I still wanna cut her though, maybe she had to work
I still wanted to have sex with Suzy, maybe she had to go to work
I caught her in the mall, wearing a real tight skirt
I found her at the mall, wearing a revealing outfit
She was, fine as fuck, I wanted to sex the ho up
She was very attractive and I wanted to have sex with her
She said, "Let's hit the parking lot so I can sick your duck"
She suggested we have sex in the parking lot
I said, "Cool, I really wanted to cut you but this'll do
I agreed to the parking lot idea because I still wanted to have sex with her
I gotta pick up my daughter plus my baby mamma beeped me too"
I had to pick up my daughter and my child's mother contacted me again
She said she understood then everything was kosher
Suzy was okay with my situation and everything worked out
I gave her a Lil' Will CD, and a fuckin poster, it's like that now
I gave her a CD and a poster as a gesture of appreciation
Now Suzy Skrew had a partner named Sasha, Thumper
Suzy's friend was named Sasha Thumper
I remember her number like the summer
I remember Sasha's phone number like a summer memory
When her and Suzy yeah they threw a slumber
Suzy and Sasha had a sleepover
Party but you can not call it that cause it was slummer
It wasn't exactly a party, more like a summer sleepover
Well it was more like spend the night
It was really just a night of sleeping over
Three in the morning yawning dancing under street lights
At 3 in the morning, we were yawning and dancing under the streetlights
We chilling like a villain and a nigga feeling right
We were hanging out and having a good time
In the middle of the ghetto on the curb, but in spite
Despite being in the ghetto, we were enjoying ourselves
All of the bullshit we on our back staring at the stars above (aww man)
We were lying down, looking up at the stars and reflecting on life
Talking bout what we gonna be when we grow up
We were discussing our hopes and dreams for the future
I said what you wanna be, she said, "Alive"
When asked what she wanted to be, Sasha simply said she wanted to be alive
It made me think for a minute, then looked in her eyes
Her answer made me pause and think, and I looked into her eyes
I coulda died, time went on, I got grown
Her response was so profound that it could have killed me, but time passed and I grew older
Rhyme got strong, mind got blown, I came back home
I became a better rapper and expanded my mind, then returned home
To find lil' Sasha was gone
When I returned, I discovered that Sasha had disappeared
Her mamma said she with a nigga that be treating her wrong
Sasha's mother informed me that she was with a man who was mistreating her
I kept on singing my song and hoping at a show
I continued to perform and hold out hope that I would see Sasha in the audience
That I would one day see her standing in the front row
I dreamed of Sasha being in the front row of one of my shows
But two weeks later she got found in the back of a school
Unfortunately, Sasha was found dead two weeks later
With a needle in her arm, baby two months due, Sasha Thumper
She was found with a fatal overdose and was pregnant at the time
It's like that now, you better go on and get, the hump, up out your back now
That's how things are now, you need to shake off any negativity and move on
It's about four, or five, cats off in my 'Llac now
There are four or five people in my Cadillac now
We just, shoot, game in the form of story rap now
We're just telling stories through rap music now
It's like that now, it's like that now
That's how things are now, that's the way it is
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Andre Benjamin, Antwan Patton, David Sheats
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@naitsirc481
“staring at the stars above, talking bout what we gon be when we grow up. I said what you wanna be, she said ‘alive’” that shit hits me every time
@prod._babychris
masterReishi 💯
@sincerenaranjo9178
For real my hair stands up on my neck and arm's when I here that part of the song . Cus I can relate to that part of the song . 💯🌙💔🌜💀⚖️⚔️🐘🐉⚡🌴🦋✨🕛😇🎭✝️.
@deeessex11
Facts! one of the hardest lines in hip hop history
@joshtaylor8304
masterReishi hardest shit ever shirt off stacks knew what he was doin...
@lionelrich-tea2696
She was found with a needle in her arm two months late
@c420wizzle
Recently played this song around my friend's younger brother, he thought OUtkast stole this beat from J Cole! I was really embarrassed for him.
@rashawnantoinio9030
these kids just dont know
@LukeEncrapera95
c420wizzle those damn knuckleheads
@loveplusfreedom
c420wizzle aw man...