We should have saw this one coming.

Ever since Outkast stepped onto the scene in the early 1990′s, the focus has been for the most part on André 3000. Some of it has been rightly deserved due to his recent penchant for killing guest verses and some of it owed to certain expressions of his avant garde personality that caught us off guard. The old school ‘my grandma usedta wear one of those to Sunday service’ turbans and his celebrated relationship with Erykah Badu being two examples.

But Big Boi hasn’t exactly become a shrinking violet as has been the case with so many other duos in hip hop. He’s been behind the Purple Ribbon Entertainment mixtapes and has even shown off his own acting chops in Idlewild with ‘Dre and ATL.

And now he’s upped the ante in a way few would have even considered.

In a word: ballet.

This Thursday, “Big”, a ballet featuring music from Outkast, Janelle Monáe and even an unreleased track, “Sir Lucious Left Foot Saves The Day” will debut in Atlanta’s Fox Theatre as a collaboration between Big Boi and the Atlanta Ballet Company. To be honest, I was shocked by the news. Considering that Kanye has been acclaimed as the man who can make even gallery openings tremendous occasions as seen just last week here in Brooklyn for Takashi Murakami, Big Boi may have one-upped him by just attempting something like this. And when you can capture the attention of The New York Times, then you are doing something major. The ballet itself is based on the narrative of a child named ‘Little Big’ and incorporates video pieces, intricate numbers and the involvement of local children along with certain music selections and of course, Big Boi as a centerpiece in some of the numbers.

Big Boi has always shown a certain amount of reserved cool, and this ballet along with the upcoming album would certainly pack a one-two punch to knock the public on it’s jaw regardless of the ballet production’s success. And in the process, change the perception for a certain few Hip-Hop fans and put him on equal footing with ‘Dre. And it may even inject a little bit more vitality into Hip-Hop’s veins.

For more info, visit www.atlantaballet.com.

Big Boi Gives Ballet an Edge in Atlanta (Audio Interview) [NPR]

Pirouettes and Street Cred: Atlanta’s Hip-Hop Ballet [NY Times]

Big Boi meets Atlanta Ballet [Creative Loafing]