“When I first met my SpottieOttieDopaliscious Angel, I can remember that damn thing like yesterday…”

Pages, dare I say volumes, of TSS have been devoted not just to Outkast, but to Aquemini as a stand-alone work. And no matter how many people claim it as their favorite album, it still feels personal to me. Read the rest of this entry »

Spoiler alert: David D. is an Outkast fan. When I was 10, my friends and I took blank tapes and stood in front of the radio to catch “Elevators (Me & You)” so we could record Andre’s third verse (one of my favorite verses of all times). Later that year, I bought a tape just because it had a comic book cover. I had no clue that I was buying Outkast’s ATLiens which featured that same classic track. Since then, Outkast has pretty much dominated my life. Read the rest of this entry »

– Drake won over big in the court of public opinion, as well as the critical ears of the review crew.

– Blog beef… skew it on the barbie.

– Remember, after you skate across that Summer school stage a few months from now that Everest College wants you. Read the rest of this entry »

There’s not much the majority of us here – neither writers nor readers – agree on. But Aquemini may be the closest topic which a common ground can be found. Even if it’s not a collective favorite from ‘Kast’s discog, there’s still so much great music to be found on the album that everybody (well, at least within our staff) can find a handful of tracks that musically connects to their tastes. Read the rest of this entry »

For a long time, I never quite understood the relationship between the two parts of “Da Art of Storytellin’.” It dawned on me one day that the two songs tell the same story. The same stories of deconstruction that plague Suzy Screw and her partner Sasha in “Part One” are happening to Mother Nature in “Part Two.” Decay, the ills of the human condition and betrayal are all tropes that permeate both tracks. In part two, Three Stacks (no relation to Kat) reprises his role as the omniscient on-looker, witnessing the downfall of Sasha Thumper and miscreants gang-raping Mother Nature. His story is standard 3000, full of science-fiction, Technicolor, acid-filled rain, and detesting of silly mortals. Big Boi, on the other hand, rolls up the worst in all of us into three lines: Read the rest of this entry »

Words by Landon A.

I can remember being 10 and getting down to “Rosa Parks” at the roller rink, gripping a bag of black cherry Warheads in my left hand with a suicide in my right. We all know how we feel about these two records. Whether you were in high school and ATLiens capped off your ride to school everyday or you just discovered Aquemini while digging through a friends records, point is most folks can remember where they were when they heard just one of the gems from either of these albums. Read the rest of this entry »

If you don’t respect Cee-Lo Green’s musical talents, or shall I say ‘perfect imperfections‘, there’s a slim chance I may lose respect for you musically. Read the rest of this entry »

I had the misfortune of catching Eminem’s best friend’s show, Wild N’ Out, a few days ago and Big Boi was a guest host. One of the comedians asked Big how it felt to share a stage with someone sporting a pointy bra. Yea, it was funny, but Big shot back a simple response about how Dré would probably whoop said comedian’s ass.

And you know what, I’m inclined to agree. Yeah, Dré has been known to be the softer, more eclectic of the duo. But Mr. Benjamin goes hard (pause your damn self). If you need proof, below the break are André 3000’s hardest verses*. Read the rest of this entry »

Deviation. The path less traveled. The mastery of one’s own art, not of another’s.

Aquemini.

Though ATLiens pushed unruly boundaries and set the tempo for Big Boi and Andre, Aquemini created a moment where everyone was excited about potential; of Outkast, of Hip-Hop and of music in general. Could they go farther/bigger/bolder?

Yes. They could. And did.

Anticipation reached a fever pitch with this album’s release as heads got giddy like kids hearing that ice cream truck coming down the street… Run for your dollars! And that’s precisely what makes Aquemini so lasting – it’s grown folks music that lets you be young again. Not with immature frivolity, but with an innocent sensibility that opens the brain/heart/beat to ‘Kast’s rupturing stories of love and life lost and gained on the pavement.

We’re talking the definition of Outkast.

Out. Kast.

Other-worldly stratosphere status.

You gotta come provocative… so let’s rap track by track, Crew Love style. Hold On, Be Strong… Read the rest of this entry »

We need a September 29th, 1998.

It was the eve of what would become one of the greater days in Hip-Hop, and music history at large.

Five of the most impacting albums to ever be released that year dropped on the 29th: A Tribe Called Quest split ways on The Love Movement, as Brand Nubian reunited on Foundation, Jay-z got back on his grizzly with Hard Knock Life, while Mos Def and Kweli came together (none) for Blackstar. All the while Outkast prepared to change the world with Aquemini.

There was more than just new music being released, there was history being made by each one of these releases. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s a good thing we’re beyond the days of the cassette tape. Don’t get me wrong, I love and sometimes miss tapes – the way they tick-tack rattle when you hold them, the way that quiet sssshhhh white noise makes them sound so rich – but do you know how many tapes I ruined back in the day?

Tapes got eaten, thin and stretched with constant playback. And I do play some joints back and back…and then, back again.

The other day, it was Devin the Dude’s “I-Hi.” I dropped the fam off at the airport and ran that track all the way home. I played it once while they were in the car, and was antsy the rest of the way because I just wanted to hear it again. You can’t do too much rewinding with other people around – it’s some weird, unspoken rule. Read the rest of this entry »