when will journalist realize that two grown men don't have to be joined at the hip? They should stop giving this breakup stuff so much energy. I have seen groups far more dysfunctional than Outkast stick together.

I'm just hoping they pull it through

From Entertainment Weekly's EW.com.

http://www.ew.com/ew/repo...0_,00.html






They were hip-hop superstars and best friends. Then something changed, and soon they could be history. by Margeaux Watson

André ''3000'' Benjamin (better known as Dré) arrives early, alone, and camera-ready for an OutKast photo shoot at an Atlanta studio on a Sunday afternoon in late April. Nearly an hour later, his rhyme partner, Antwan ''Big Boi'' Patton, shows up with three assistants, a rack of clothes, a couple of Louis Vuitton suitcases, and shopping bags from Ralph Lauren and Bloomingdale's. Soon, they effortlessly turn on their famous megawatt charm for the camera laughing, nodding, and bopping along to the new Gnarls Barkley album. But when the photographer snaps the final frame, Dré swiftly bids adieu to Big Boi and takes off in his black 2006 Range Rover.

These days, it seems like Dré, 30, and Big Boi, 31, are rarely in the same room. As they ready the long-awaited follow-up to their enormously successful last album, 2003's Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, their relationship is growing increasingly strained to the extent that it's threatening to break OutKast apart. With their new CD, Idlewild (which doubles as the soundtrack to their upcoming Prohibition-era movie musical of the same name), due in stores Aug. 22, can the duo maintain their unusually fruitful collaboration? Or are OutKast on their way out?

Behind the wheel of his car, Dré offers to play Idlewild's first single, ''The Mighty O,'' a hard-hitting, Cab Calloway-inspired track that lashes out at critics of his singing style. It's also the rare Idlewild song that features vocals by both Big Boi and Dré, who now exclusively work in separate studios. When the track ends, Dré doesn't ask or wait for a response. ''Honestly, I was really skeptical about the song,'' he says. ''I like what I'm saying in the rap, but it didn't sound up to par.'' Then why put it out? ''Because we needed a song with both of us on it. And people haven't heard me rap in a while, so I thought it would be nostalgic for them. Everybody around loved it, so I said, 'F--- it,' and just let it go.''

When Dré and Big Boi formed OutKast 14 years ago in Atlanta, neither would've even considered releasing a subpar track. Benjamin and Patton met while hanging out at an Atlanta mall in 1990 and instantly bonded over their shared love of rap and fashion. Soon they were inseparable, crafting tracks together in a home studio and gradually developing their distinctive sound. From 1994 until 2000 OutKast released four increasingly brilliant and successful albums. Their fourth LP, Stankonia (the one with ''Ms. Jackson''), made them pop stars, earning quadruple-platinum sales and a pair of Grammys. That's when things started to get a little strange. ''Success puts you in front of people who start to dissect and see what you're made of,'' says Dré. ''That's when the outside [world] starts to dictate or think they know what parts Big Boi and I play in the group, which put a strain on us.''

They had no idea what they were in for. A year after the 2002 Grammys, OutKast released a pair of solo albums as a double CD, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, and its massive success quickly made them one of the world's biggest acts. Dré's ''Hey Ya!'' and Big Boi's ''The Way You Move'' dominated the top two slots on Billboard's Hot 100 for a record-breaking eight-week run. The album has sold 5.6 million copies and won three Grammys, including Album of the Year. Dré and Big Boi had already drifted apart, now essentially working as a pair of connected solo artists. But the album's success put considerably more stress on the partnership, and what had once been a joyous, intensely collaborative relationship started to turn cheerless and sour.

The end of Outkast?

During that time, Dré moved from Atlanta to L.A., hoping to make the familiar transition from rapper to actor (he landed roles in Be Cool and Four Brothers). Big Boi wanted to go out on tour, but Dré refused. So Big Boi decided to hit the road without him. ''At first, it was kinda weird [to perform without Dré] because I'm used to turning around and he's right there,'' says Big Boi. He pauses, shaking his head. ''I hope I don't ever get like that where I don't wanna do it.'' He pauses again, and then grumbles under his breath: ''That s---'s f---ed up, for real.''

In 2004, just when it seemed like OutKast were about to flame out, Dréreturned to Atlanta. But the distance between them was greater than ever. Part of the problem was their dramatically different lifestyles. Dré, the vegan father of a now-9-year-old son with Erykah Badu (they split up in 2000), moved back into the spacious five-bedroom manor where he still lives, leading a somewhat monastic existence. ''I have stuff all over the house, but I live in a small bedroom next to [my son's] room,'' he says. ''I had my music equipment in that room and I put a mattress in there. That became the most comfortable place for me, and I just stayed.'' Dré spent most of his time alone, working on music or sneaking into movies by himself.

Big Boi, meanwhile, immersed himself in Atlanta's party scene, hosting a celeb-heavy weekly bash at a strip club. He also settled into family life with his wife, Sherlita, and three kids. ''My babies are always with me,'' he says. ''When your everyday life consists of so much stuff that's not normal music, movies, record labels you have to balance it out.''

Big Boi's devotion to his family seems to bother Dré, who believes that artists' work ''kinda falters'' when they find love. ''The only time it doesn't falter is if you're putting everything into your work and not paying attention to your wife,'' he says. When directly asked if he's talking about Big Boi, Dré lets out a devilish giggle. ''I can't comment on that,'' he says. That sort of innuendo drives Big Boi nuts. ''Dré knows my family, but he don't know the ins and outs of my personal life,'' he responds. ''So he can't comment on it.''

Despite Dré and Big Boi's personal differences, OutKast were still officially together, and eventually they had to figure out how to follow up Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. Back when that album was still on the charts, HBO had approached them about doing a musical. They decided to go for it, enlisting Bryan Barber a longtime pal who helmed the ''Hey Ya!'' video to direct. In summer 2004, they began shooting what would become Idlewild.

''I remember thinking, 'Uh-oh! They haven't really rehearsed together,''' says Barber. ''But when they got on screen they just had fun, and I saw the old guys I met years ago when they were teenagers.'' Still, Barber says it was ''a challenge'' to get them on the same page. ''When business becomes such a factor in what you're doing, you lose a pureness, and it can weigh on a situation,'' he says. ''But I've never seen anything to say, 'These guys don't get along.''' Maybe that's because, in the finished film, Dré and Big Boi appear together in only three scenes.

When the movie wrapped in October 2004, OutKast parted ways to work on the accompanying album in separate studios. ''We wanted to incorporate the concept of the movie in certain songs but still maintain that OutKast sound,'' says Big Boi. On the finished CD, Big Boi's tracks do just that, remaining true to the group's roots. Dré's crooned contributions, on the other hand, are largely inspired by swing-era jazz and sound nothing like the group's previous work.

What will ''Hey Ya!'' fans make of Dré's more out-there new material? It's hard to say. ''Everybody that's checking for [Idlewild] expects it to be better than Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, '' says Virgin Records urban-music president Jermaine Dupri, whose label distributes Big Boi's Purple Ribbon imprint. ''It's a tough situation. They're probably going through the thought process of 'Yo, how long can we continue to create stuff that people are gonna like before it gets old?'''

That's a good question. With the new album finally done, it's unclear where OutKast can go from here. Big Boi's already working on a solo disc, and later this year he'll tour again without Dré, headlining as Big Boi from OutKast, Big Boi and the Purple Ribbon All-Stars, or simply Big Boi. Dré says he has absolutely no interest in rehashing old hits on the road. ''It's like wearing a Jheri curl in the fifth grade,'' he says, ''and then trying to wear a Jheri curl at 65, just to look like you did in the fifth grade. I don't wanna keep throwing myself back into that. I don't wanna be on stage rapping at age 40. I probably wanna be at some club, playing saxophone.''

After the photo shoot, Dré heads for the recording studio to work on music for his upcoming animated series, Class of 3000, which will premiere on Cartoon Network this fall. Intriguingly, the show follows a pop star who abandons his career to become a music teacher. Is this a hint about his next move? ''I don't like to talk about the future,'' he says.

Maybe not, but Dré and Big Boi will have to make some big decisions soon. OutKast have one album left on their contract with Sony BMG (although Dré insists that ''contracts don't really mean s---''). Big Boi says he's game to go out with a grand finale, or maybe even renew their deal. ''Me and Dré talked about it,'' he says. ''It just depends how he's feeling.''

Right now, Dré doesn't seem optimistic. Or does he? ''The business has put a strain on our relationship,'' he says. ''We're like brothers, though. We can argue, but we're still gonna be together. I want Big Boi to do well inside and outside of OutKast. Because certain things don't last forever, and you have to start preparing for that.'' Fans might want to start preparing themselves as well.

Meloh9 said:

Exactly my thought.

Meloh9 said:

try tellin' that to these country ass juke joint singers like Marvin Sease

CinisterCee said:

Come on, you guys! Y'all know good and well that "controversy" makes for better sales. All these rumors and innuendos of discord and breakups are going to make Outkast, their upcoming movie and soundtrack the hottest thing going for the rest of '06. Watch and see!

SexyBeautifulOne said:

Idlewild is going to bomb, methinks. But the music will do well.

VoicesCarry said:

Nah! The movie is going to do very well! Why? Because folks are sick and tired of paying for remakes! I know I am!!

SexyBeautifulOne said:

They aren't going to pay for a second-rate musical, either. They aren't paying for much of anything, anyway, these days.

VC, ya wanna go to Miami Vice instead?

i can see that they came up with a few hits but i have never considered them to be HEAVY or really that talented or unique...maybe i just know too many great artist to be impressed.

prettymansson said:

you seem hard to impress from what i've read of your post

Meloh9 said:

you are right meloh...
I like real things...not bullshit...Yes van hunt..outkast ..and a few others can sorta get down...but its all smoke and mirrors to me...more style over substance...you know..and i know...none of the artist around today can get down like sly...or james back in the day..as a performer..innovator ect...nobody can play like jimi..or prince...or stevie...none of these cats are doing anything that hasn´t been done better in its original form...and i have the world largest collection of Badass musicians archives in my house...along with first hand playing experience with some of the masters...what the hell is dre´and big boi gonna do to impress me ?? put on a parliament outfit while rap/out of tune singing to a princesque track minus the REAL funk or the artist being able to lay down some real funk even if someone had a gun to thier head and said YOU BETTER GET FUNKY !!! its all garbage to me !!! but i dig u meloh and your sly esque avitar !!! ROCK ON !!!
[Edited 5/22/06 7:30am]

prettymansson said:

I understand, but if you look at Outkast purely in the context of hip hop alone, without comparing them to the funk/rock greats, they are pretty innovative on their own terms. Sure they may have borrowed elements from funk rock ( what hip hop act doesn't? ), but they help bring Hip Hop itself to another level as far as production and rhyming.

Also the band Organized Noise played a huge role in the development of Outkast sound. Almost all of the early material was produced by Oraganized Noise and backed by a live band. Outkast didn't start to produced themselves until the album Aqumeni, which again if you judge it on its own terms , that album was pretty damn innovative. Some groups have to be judge on their own terms, that's pretty much all I'm trying to say.
[Edited 5/22/06 7:59am]

"critics of his singing style"

What style ? He can't sing. (LOL)

SexyBeautifulOne said:

Meloh9 said:

Meloh9 said:

i can dig where u are comin from...and i do have most of thier stuff...but i guess im an old school junkie...gimmie some bill withers...some curtis, sly...herbie,JB,stevie,marvin,roy ayers,p funk,ohio players..prince pre 90´s..ect and im fine...no need to be in the modern anything !!!

CinisterCee said:

I have judged the summer lineup, and there are maybe 1 or 2 movies I might consider seeing - and that is most definitely not one of them

It's a shitty lineup this year.

laurarichardson said:

prettymansson said:

that's cool.. most of the Outkast stuff is pretty funky tho. One of the few modern groups that make you want to go back and pull out some of the stuff you just mentioned. Organized Noise also produced a few of the songs on Curtis Mayfield's New World Order album, not bad.

It doesn't matter to me if they split up.. I think musically Andre 3000 will be something to keep an eye out on.


solo or un-solo