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Pages tagged “outkast”

The 10 Best Hip-Hop Songs VH1 Forgot

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VH1 just announced the “100 Greatest Hip-Hop Songs Ever!!!” and the list isn’t terrible. It’s actually pretty good. They have Public Enemy's “Fight The Power” in the right place (# 1), they identified the best Notorious B.I.G. song (“Juicy”) and, apart from the egregious inclusion of Coolio (at #38 with the horrendous “Gangsta’s Paradise”), they don’t have a lot of embarrassing inclusions.

But they did forget some amazing tracks.

Here, in 10 words or less, we make the case for the 10 best hip-hop songs VH1 forgot. They may not trump “Fight They Power,” but they’re all better than anything Coolio could ever dream of.

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Part 3: The Media

“You’re The Best” - Joe Esposito

CNN claims it’s got “The Best Political Team on Television,” while Fox News claims it’s got “The Best Political Team Ever.” With slogans this superlative, how come the coverage sucks so bad?

Youre the Best Around - Joe Esposito

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Andre 3000 says solo album due soon

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So, technically, OutKast members Andre 3000 and Big Boi have both already made solo albums. The incredibly-successful 2003 Speakerboxx/The Love Below double CD was, if you recall, two separate solo CDs bundled together under the OutKast name. So the fact that Rolling Stone has reported that Andre 3000 will drop his new solo album soon shouldn't be that surprising.

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Harrelson, Benjamin and Theron will Battle in Seattle

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Please look at the image above. Have you taken a good look? It is clearly the most-awesome photo of all time, because it features the following elements:

- Woody Harrelson
- The SWAT team
- Harrelson's menacing grimace
- Seattle

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Outkast talks new album in 2009

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There is a debate of sorts concerning when the last true Outkast album was released. Was it 2006’s Idlewild soundtrack, or does it go all the way back to 2000's Stankonia? And can you really count 2003’s Speakerboxxx/The Love Below as an Outkast album since it was just two solo albums packaged together? Gah. It’s time to call the whole thing off, though, because a new Outkast album (keyword: collaborative) will be out in the beginning of 2009.

In an interview with MTV News, Big Boi told the network, “Outkast are stronger than ever,” and laughed about any rumors that the duo had ever gone their separate ways. The pair probably just wanted some time out from their busy musicians’ schedules to pursue other interests: Andre will be coming back into this next album as a fashion designer, and Big Boi will be fresh off his stint with the Atlanta Ballet.

“We got a few songs we already picked out,” Big Boi explained. “We pick the beats first. I drop my [solo album] in July, Dre puts his out [later this year], and we drop that Outkast record at the top of [next] year.”

Oh, okay, so the new album will be out after they each release a…wait, what?! Two solo albums, as well? Yup, both MCs will be releasing a solo album before the end of 2008.

Big Boi’s album, Sir Luscious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty, is named after his production company, and its first single is “Royal Flush,” featuring both Andre and Raekwon the Chef. The album will have 13 songs, and also feature a duet with Mary J. Blige on the track “The World Is Too Big.”

Click here for a listen to “Royal Flush,” and mentally prepare yourself for three new albums from your favorite ATLiens in the next year.

Related links:
OutKast.com
OutKast on MySpace
Feature: The 3000 Faces of Andre Benjamin

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.


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Outkast's Big Boi and Andre 3000 reunite on “Royal Flush”

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Ever since Idlewild (sort of) brought them back together, these have been the wandering days of Outkast. Each half of the duo had gone off on his separate path, enduring the trials of celebrity on the lengthy journey toward spiritual self-discovery. Big Boi found his calling in the ballet, while Andre 3000 rekindled his lifelong passion for fashion. The idea of these two collaborating again seemed to grow increasingly distant. Unfortunately, even the sun goes down, heroes eventually die, horoscopes often lie...

But don’t close the curtain just yet.

After promising a new single for New Years Day, Big Boi has finally delivered a new jam in “Royal Flush.” And what’s three-odd months of extra waiting time when you’ve got Andre 3K and Wu-Tang Clan’s Raekwon guesting on the cut? XXLmag.com has the stream for your listening pleasure.

This is what we critics call “a clinic.” Big Boi slurs off a slippery opening salvo over the spare rhythm track, Raekwon hops in to contribute a touch of ghetto mafioso menace, and then Andre 3000 puts an outrageous cherry on top with an extended verse that references everything from the Martin Luther King assassination to the hokey pokey. Like an unbeatable poker hand, it's a perfect reunion from the three MCs who brought you "Skew It on the Bar-B" 10 years ago.

Expect "Royal Flush" to see an official release on Big Boi's Sir Luscious Left Foot album, which is still in the works. And Dre? He's got solo plans of his own. So savor this MP3 manna while it lasts. We may not hear Outkast back together for a while yet.

Related links:
Outkast.com
Paste: The 3000 Faces of Andre Benjamin
YouTube: Big Boi interview

Got news tips for Paste? E-mail news@pastemagazine.com.


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Big Boi's ballet to rock Atlanta this spring

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Roll over Tchaikovsky, and tell Beethoven the news: Outkast's Antwan "Big Boi" Patton has a ballet to debut. Come April 10, Atlanta's Fox Theatre will witness the pomp and Dirty South circumstance of Big.

Granted, there have been other great musical moments bearing that title before, but given a soundtrack that includes Outkast classics "The Way You Move" and "Bombs Over Baghdad," Patton has a solid chance to top them all. He'll take the stage for six shows only alongside the dancers of Purple Ribbon Entertainment and the Atlanta Ballet. Hopefully the man's been working on his pirouttes and plies. Those interested can snag tickets here.

Meanwhile, we're still waiting on the new jam that Big Boi promised us for the New Year in our last Outkast update. So far, the only fresh rhymes we have from the ATLien this year appear on a brief guest spot during Raheem DeVaughn's "Energy." You can stream the tune here. Is it worth waiting through most of the track just to hear Big Boi drop a bit of knowledge? Eh, sort of.

Related links:
Outkast.com
Paste: Speakerboxxx/The Love Below review
YouTube: Outkast - "B.O.B."

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.


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Outkast's Big Boi gets on the good Foot

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For the time being, Outkast's trial separation continues. Big Boi recently spoke to Vibe magazine about his upcoming solo album, Sir Luscious Left Foot. Produced by longtime Outkast collaborators Organized Noize, Big Boi says the album should feature 12 tracks.

"Speakerboxxx was my first solo album, so just imagine what this is going to sound like," Big Boi said. "I'm very excited about it, and we just putting it together right now. I plan on releasing a single on December 31 at midnight going into the New Year, cause I want all the stuff to be '08, everything to be brand new. It's going to be a lot of surprises."

Boi also mentioned that he and Outkast cohort Andre 3000 won't be packaging their solo projects together this time, as they did on 2003's Grammy-winning Speakerboxxx/Love Below collection. Good news for Outkast fans, though: once the upcoming solo projects are in the can, there should be a new joint project from the ATLiens. Hopefully they can work on some stuff in the same room this time.

Thanks to The Daily Swarm for hipping us to this item.

Related links:
Outkast.com
Paste: The 3000 Faces of Andre Benjamin
YouTube: Outkast feat. Sleepy Brown - "The Way You Move"

Got news tips for Paste? Email news@pastemagazine.com.


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Roni Sarig: Third Coast...

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Southern hip-hop is a fantastic affirmation of regional culture. In Third Coast, Roni Sarig traces dozens of genres birthed from their geographical environs: Atlanta crunk, Miami bass, Houston screwed & chopped.

Sarig unveils detailed networks of producers, moguls and musicians, emphasizing intricate social connections rather than the beats themselves. It is probably necessary. The beats, often effortlessly avant-garde, are tight packages of trends, references and other artifacts of a rich dialogue. Here, Third Coast excels, as when Sarig traces the transmutation of “Drag Rap,” a 1986 12-inch by obscure Queens act The Showboys into “Triggerman,” the foundation of New Orleans bounce.

If dry, Third Coast is also clear-headed: an essential document of the last two decades of pop. All it’s missing—sorely, unfortunately—are lists of recommended cuts. Oh, well. Grab a highlighter.


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Outkast - Speakerboxxx/The Love Below

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At a time when mainstream hip-hop has had relatively little to offer, the members of Outkast have consistently been the genre’s most creative artists. Following their muse, André Benjamin (André 3000) and Antwan Patton (Big Boi) have kept evolving and kept it fresh. The duo began with the southern-fried hip hop of Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994) and followed with the wacky, cartoonish psychedelibopalicious space-hop of ATLiens (1996). They incorporated elements of blues, jazz and soul into Aquemini (1998), on which Dré and Big Boi explored the player/poet dichotomy. Then, Outkast made the multi-platinum, Grammy-winning Stankonia (2000)—with its infectious hooks and electronic/dancehall influences, one of the most accessible rap/hip-hop records ever.

On the duo’s latest, each member explores his own musical vision independently, one disc apiece. Rumors of the group’s impending split-up—over creative differences and Dré’s newfound interest in acting—were buzzing for awhile, but Big Boi puts everything to rest with his new single, “The Way You Move” (Outkast is everlastin’ / Not clashin’, not at all).

That addressed, Big Boi’s Speakerboxxx keeps pushing ahead, but at a pace similar to the group’s first few albums. The overall sound is funky, soulful hip-hop with a serious edge. As usual, Big Boi uses his unparalleled high-speed rapping chops to set new standards for verbal velocity (try reading along with the lyrics—it’s virtually impossible). After a brief intro, the disc leads off with, “GhettoMusick,” a fast-paced number fueled by a hard nu-school breakbeat-influenced drum track. The hook, however, is pure Sly & The Family Stone. “Unhappy” is an ambient ballad reminiscent of Aquemini’s “Da Art of Storytellin’ (Part 1),” though the beat’s slower and choppier. Big Boi’s little boy, Bamboo, makes his hilarious debut on “Bamboo (Interlude) and the Gospel soul-funk of “Church” finds his dad asking some tough questions about the mystery of life. With its chunky, super-funky wah-wah guitar, catchy piano line and thick, tension-building horn accompaniment, “The Rooster” is all Kool & The Gang. But even when you hear influences come through, Dré and Big Boi have assimilated them so effectively that whatever well they draw from, the bucket—by the time it gets to the top—is brimming with pure, unfiltered Outkast.

Like Bob Dylan, some of Outkast’s best lyrics are nonsensical lines used simply to evoke a strangely affecting image or because they sound cool rolling off the tongue. But also like Dylan, Outkast can get political, which is exemplified best by “War,” a call to awareness and a diatribe on the state of American foreign policy. Big Boi raps, “Come young, come blind / Unwind, confined to the situation we facin,’ ’ cause it’s time / Tic, Tic, Boom! ... Come here and smell the Folgers, the soldiers / The human beings, man acting as if he was the Supreme Being / Clocking the souls of men out like he was God … The hollow hearts battle for dollars / Politicians, modern day magicians, physicians of death”

If Speakerboxxx is a logical progression in the Outkast evolution, Dré’s The Love Below is an alien asteroid crashlanding unannounced into your stereo. If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought I dropped the wrong disc in the player, what with the Percy Faith-style orchestra and delicate piano that smack of Sinatra and “Theme From a Summer Place.” Is this really André 3000? Yes. It is. And he’s standing fearless, rolling the creative dice. The Love Below is—without a doubt—the biggest gamble a major hip-hop artist has ever taken. Dré’s gotten as whimsical as an Elephant 6 band, but the quirkiness—like this unclassifiable record—works for him more often than not. He’s also been taking music lessons. In addition to showing off his vocal versatility like never before, he plays guitar, keyboard and tenor sax on The Love Below.

The album’s rampant eclecticism and anything-goes attitude is its greatest asset. There’s wailing Hendrix and Spanish-flavored nylon-string guitar, Grant Green-esque jazz vamping, Delfonics-meets-late-’70s-Zappa style ballads, a drum’n’bass fusion-jazz take on Coltrane, ’80s pop-hop a la Tom Tom Club, futuristic R&B and a heaping-helping of freaky sexual honesty—sometimes reminiscent of Prince and Rick James, but often more thoughtful. However, the not-so-subtle “Spread” is hard to take seriously (reminds me of Blow Fly, the 2Live Crew of late’70’s disco) but it probably wasn’t meant to be. Preceded by a screeching Pharaoh Sanders-style horn break, the All New New Wave rave-up “Hey Ya” might be this year’s catchiest single, reminiscent of early Talking Heads with a keyboard mega-hook that could be The Cure. “Take Off Your Cool,” an acoustic duet between Dré and Norah Jones is beautifully written and the autobiographical closing track, “A Life in the Day of André Benjamin (Incomplete)” is pure poetry.

Just as Outkast’s music has turned so many people on to hip hop, Speakerboxxx / The Love Below—especially Dré’s material—will likely open up hip-hop fans to a vastly diverse musical world they otherwise might never have discovered.


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