NEWS
Moderators: .etalosed, greuceanu
Supernatural Makes History, Sets World Record For Longest Freestyle
On Saturday (August 5) hip-hop fans gathered at San Bernardino’s NOS Events Center for the annual Rock The Bells Festival.
While acts such as Planet Asia, Murs, Self Scientific, Visionaries, and B-Real rocked the main stage, Supernatural attempted to break the World Record for Longest Freestyle Rap.
The Living Legends performed fan favorites like “Night Prowler” and “Dirty Faces,” and were followed by a crowd-pleasing performance by LA’s own Dilated Peoples.
As the sun began to go down, De La Soul took to the stage, and brought along special guests Black Sheep. As if that wasn’t enough, they then asked A Tribe Called Quest to join them on stage, and the crowd roared with excitement. ATCQ performed classics from their catalog like “Buggin’ Out,” “Check The Rhime,” and “Award Tour.”
Redman started off with a brand new track, and then went on to explain how he had gotten so high that morning that he had left all of his luggage in New Jersey. Later, he performed “Pick It Up” off of his Muddy Waters album: “If you see a bag of weed on the floor motherf---er, what you gon’ do,” he asked. “Pick it up, pick it up,” screamed the hyped crowd.
After Redman finished his set, KeyKool of the Visionaries came onstage to announce that Supernatural had in fact broken the World Record, and had freestyled for over nine hours; officially entering him into the “World Book of Guiness Records,” and hip-hop history. Then, the raspy Supernat kicked one more freestyle over Mobb Deep’s “Shook Ones.”
Talib Kweli brought along Phil Da Agony and Krondon, who are signed to his Blacksmith imprint, followed by a singing Mos Def.
Next, Wu Tang was scheduled to perform but, to the bewilderment of the crowd, a live band began to warm-up. Questions were answered when surprise guest Lauryn Hill appeared and performed three songs. At the end of her final song, mic still in hand, she grabbed her purse and cell phone, and exited as mysteriously as she had come.
While Wu Tang set up, Redman hustled fans and tried to get them to pay between five and twenty dollars for things like girl’s underwear or Hennessy gift bags; and the Black Eyed Peas’ Will.I.Am showed up in the press pit, prepared to watch the show.
When a large, hand-painted portrait of ODB was brought on stage, his mother, Cherry Jones, looked lovingly at it, and placed her hand on its edge.
Then, one by one, Wu Tang finally took to the stage and the crowd went wild; topping off a day filled with memorable, and historical, moments.
On Saturday (August 5) hip-hop fans gathered at San Bernardino’s NOS Events Center for the annual Rock The Bells Festival.
While acts such as Planet Asia, Murs, Self Scientific, Visionaries, and B-Real rocked the main stage, Supernatural attempted to break the World Record for Longest Freestyle Rap.
The Living Legends performed fan favorites like “Night Prowler” and “Dirty Faces,” and were followed by a crowd-pleasing performance by LA’s own Dilated Peoples.
As the sun began to go down, De La Soul took to the stage, and brought along special guests Black Sheep. As if that wasn’t enough, they then asked A Tribe Called Quest to join them on stage, and the crowd roared with excitement. ATCQ performed classics from their catalog like “Buggin’ Out,” “Check The Rhime,” and “Award Tour.”
Redman started off with a brand new track, and then went on to explain how he had gotten so high that morning that he had left all of his luggage in New Jersey. Later, he performed “Pick It Up” off of his Muddy Waters album: “If you see a bag of weed on the floor motherf---er, what you gon’ do,” he asked. “Pick it up, pick it up,” screamed the hyped crowd.
After Redman finished his set, KeyKool of the Visionaries came onstage to announce that Supernatural had in fact broken the World Record, and had freestyled for over nine hours; officially entering him into the “World Book of Guiness Records,” and hip-hop history. Then, the raspy Supernat kicked one more freestyle over Mobb Deep’s “Shook Ones.”
Talib Kweli brought along Phil Da Agony and Krondon, who are signed to his Blacksmith imprint, followed by a singing Mos Def.
Next, Wu Tang was scheduled to perform but, to the bewilderment of the crowd, a live band began to warm-up. Questions were answered when surprise guest Lauryn Hill appeared and performed three songs. At the end of her final song, mic still in hand, she grabbed her purse and cell phone, and exited as mysteriously as she had come.
While Wu Tang set up, Redman hustled fans and tried to get them to pay between five and twenty dollars for things like girl’s underwear or Hennessy gift bags; and the Black Eyed Peas’ Will.I.Am showed up in the press pit, prepared to watch the show.
When a large, hand-painted portrait of ODB was brought on stage, his mother, Cherry Jones, looked lovingly at it, and placed her hand on its edge.
Then, one by one, Wu Tang finally took to the stage and the crowd went wild; topping off a day filled with memorable, and historical, moments.
Scarface, "I'm Not Gon' Rap No More"
After an illustrious career that spanned nearly 20 years, Scarface recently vowed to never record another solo album.
Though Rap-A-Lot Records has released three Scarface albums in the past three years: 2003's My Balls and My Word, 2004's My Homies and 2006's My Homies Pt.2, the legendary Houston, TX lyricist says 2002's The Fix was his last solo recording. No more classics here. Mr. Scarface says he'll never record solo material again.
"I'm not gon' rap no more at all. Shit, this is not a good business to be in. I'm sure Rap-A-Lot will be releasing a lot of stuff that I did earlier or make stuff. After Rap-A-Lot released My Balls And My Word I knew I wasn't never do another album again. They just took my old songs, changed the beats and...all that shit that never came out. Just like the My Homies shit, I didn't do that," Face explained to SOHH.com. "The Fix was my last album. I'll never record again. I'll fuck with my group. Another solo album, no? That [album with] Tupac stuff, all that shit I hear about, I ain't got shit to do with that."
Face now plans on focusing on production. He produced several tracks on One Hunnid, from his group The Product and has been tapped to contribute to UGK's upcoming album. But Face isn't a newcomer to the boards, he's been producing for years.
"I did a whole bunch of shit that people just tagged their name on. I did the 'My Mind Is Playing Tricks On Me' beat. I did 'I've Seen A Man Died.' I did my whole first album, [Mr. Scarface Is Back]" Face revealed. "My whole career I've been doing it. I've been making a lot beats, man that people have been taking credit for, making it look like they the producer and I'm just sitting there."
After an illustrious career that spanned nearly 20 years, Scarface recently vowed to never record another solo album.
Though Rap-A-Lot Records has released three Scarface albums in the past three years: 2003's My Balls and My Word, 2004's My Homies and 2006's My Homies Pt.2, the legendary Houston, TX lyricist says 2002's The Fix was his last solo recording. No more classics here. Mr. Scarface says he'll never record solo material again.
"I'm not gon' rap no more at all. Shit, this is not a good business to be in. I'm sure Rap-A-Lot will be releasing a lot of stuff that I did earlier or make stuff. After Rap-A-Lot released My Balls And My Word I knew I wasn't never do another album again. They just took my old songs, changed the beats and...all that shit that never came out. Just like the My Homies shit, I didn't do that," Face explained to SOHH.com. "The Fix was my last album. I'll never record again. I'll fuck with my group. Another solo album, no? That [album with] Tupac stuff, all that shit I hear about, I ain't got shit to do with that."
Face now plans on focusing on production. He produced several tracks on One Hunnid, from his group The Product and has been tapped to contribute to UGK's upcoming album. But Face isn't a newcomer to the boards, he's been producing for years.
"I did a whole bunch of shit that people just tagged their name on. I did the 'My Mind Is Playing Tricks On Me' beat. I did 'I've Seen A Man Died.' I did my whole first album, [Mr. Scarface Is Back]" Face revealed. "My whole career I've been doing it. I've been making a lot beats, man that people have been taking credit for, making it look like they the producer and I'm just sitting there."
Afeni Shakur To Spread Tupac's Ashes In South Africa
On the 10th anniversary of Tupac's death, his mother Afeni Shakur will be heading to South Africa to spread the remains of the late rapper.
Afeni plans to bring Tupac's ashes to Soweto, Africa -- the birthplace of the South African struggle for democracy and against apartheid.
The trip will be made from September 10th - the 18th, where Afeni will meet with world icon and former South African president Nelson Mandela in hopes of developing a relationship between her Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation and the Nelson Mandela Foundation. And in the process put the remaining ashes of Tupac to rest.
"I feel blessed to be able to visit South Africa, especially Soweto," said Afeni. "Events that happened there are so much a part of our history and it will be an honor for my son to rest in this special place; the birthplace of the South African struggle for democracy. Nelson Mandela's contribution to the people of South Africa has been immeasurable and I look forward to helping with his work all over the country."
According to a spokesperson for the Shakur estate, the return of Tupac's remains to the birthplace of his ancestors will be celebrated in a traditional African ceremony with a praise singer on the 10th anniversary of his death, September 13, 2006.
Prominent political leaders, the South African government, representatives of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation and guests of the Shakur family are all expected in attendance.
In addition, the late rapper's mother will visit South African Kwaito star and actor Zola, who will record vocals for a track that will be featured on Tupac's 10th anniversary CD, which will also feature Snoop Dogg.
On the 10th anniversary of Tupac's death, his mother Afeni Shakur will be heading to South Africa to spread the remains of the late rapper.
Afeni plans to bring Tupac's ashes to Soweto, Africa -- the birthplace of the South African struggle for democracy and against apartheid.
The trip will be made from September 10th - the 18th, where Afeni will meet with world icon and former South African president Nelson Mandela in hopes of developing a relationship between her Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation and the Nelson Mandela Foundation. And in the process put the remaining ashes of Tupac to rest.
"I feel blessed to be able to visit South Africa, especially Soweto," said Afeni. "Events that happened there are so much a part of our history and it will be an honor for my son to rest in this special place; the birthplace of the South African struggle for democracy. Nelson Mandela's contribution to the people of South Africa has been immeasurable and I look forward to helping with his work all over the country."
According to a spokesperson for the Shakur estate, the return of Tupac's remains to the birthplace of his ancestors will be celebrated in a traditional African ceremony with a praise singer on the 10th anniversary of his death, September 13, 2006.
Prominent political leaders, the South African government, representatives of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation and guests of the Shakur family are all expected in attendance.
In addition, the late rapper's mother will visit South African Kwaito star and actor Zola, who will record vocals for a track that will be featured on Tupac's 10th anniversary CD, which will also feature Snoop Dogg.
Andre 3000 Speaks (Yes, Outkast is staying together)
July 31, 2006 Article Image
After nearly two years of delays, OutKast??€�s highly anticipated film Idlewild and its accompanying soundtrack are finally slated for release this month. In a phone interview conducted while hanging out in Atlanta, Andr?© ??€?Andr?© 3000??€? Benjamin opened up about making the film, public misconceptions and the future of OutKast.
944: You guys have been working on Idlewild for two years now, how does it feel to finally have a release date and some light at the end of the tunnel?
Man, it??€�s almost like giving birth; like going through labor for a really long time. It??€�s like, ??€?Ah man, I??€�m glad it??€�s out.??€? So, you know, I??€�m pretty happy.
Obviously you??€�ve been working on the music for a long time as well. Are you finally happy with the way everything turned out?
Yeah, I think it??€�s great music. I like it, it??€�s been a long road and kind of a unique situation for us, being that, you know, we??€�ve never had boundaries to stick to. But I think we??€�ve done a good job of balancing what we do with OutKast and making it a soundtrack as well.
Do you think those boundaries inspired you in a different kind of way?
Yeah, it was a fun challenge. It kind of helps you do certain things, because I??€�ve always kind of free-flowed and done whatever I want. So when it comes to doing the cartoon, when I??€�m doing it and writing for children, I??€�m writing for scenes, it??€�s a whole ??€�nother inspiration than just coming out of the blue. It??€�s a good thing, a good challenge.
Was there anything in terms of the music that you were surprised about?
Yeah, a lot of surprises come as you??€�re writing, because you don??€�t know where you??€�re coming from. The inspiration just comes from everywhere.
What tracks off the album are you most excited about?
I wouldn??€�t really want to single them out of the whole. They??€�re kind of like children, you don??€�t really want to say, ??€?I love this child more than the other one.??€? So I let be and let ??€�em do their own thing.
How did shooting Idlewild compare with your other movies?
It was the third movie that I??€�ve done, but the first one I??€�ve done where I was on the set from start to finish. The other movies I??€�ve done there was only two or three weeks of shooting, but with Idlewild you lived in the city and you lived in that whole world and with the characters in it for the whole time. You kind of created this whole world and it was almost sad to leave because you become this real family. It was the same thing with Four Brothers, I was on set from start to finish. I think when you start getting starring roles, more is required of you and you have to stay in the world.
Is that atmosphere something you look forward to now when you go shoot a movie?
Yeah, because it??€�s like new experiences and you get to live out characters and do things I wouldn??€�t normally do as Andr?© 3000. Even in Idlewild, to do research for the characters, I had to sit down with real morticians and go to real mortuaries and talk to people who work on dead bodies. I had to check what they do, their view on life and how people treat them knowing they??€�re morticians. So I get to experience stuff that I wouldn??€�t even think of ??€� like Four Brothers, I??€�ve never ice skated or played hockey in my life and I had to do it in a week, like a crash course.
But it??€�s experiences man, and I guess that??€�s the best thing about movies. It??€�s not glamorous at all, the most glamorous thing is the premiere night, everything else is really work. And getting to travel to places you wouldn??€�t have gone, that??€�s the best thing about it.
It??€�s funny that you mention the morticians because my grandfather was a mortician, and he used to tell me these crazy stories about different things that happened. In your research for the role, did you ever meet any interesting characters?
Yeah, of course. You hear stories from morticians about meeting girls and how they react when you tell them that you??€�re a mortician. And since they do it all the time, so do they become numb to dead bodies? And it??€�s like yeah, it almost becomes second nature to them. The only thing that makes them feel kind of quesy is when they have to work on little babies that die. So you have to think, ??€?Man, I forgot about that. It??€�s not just grown people, it??€�s children and little babies.??€?
What do you think was the most difficult part about shooting the movie? The performance scenes?
My character doesn??€�t say a lot honestly. So it??€�s actually more challenging as an actor to get across what your character is thinking without saying anything. So it??€�s harder than speaking words because you have to have expressions and express what you mean without saying it. That was the most challenging part about it, but it was all fun.
You guys have had a movie in the works since way back with Aquemini, but do you and Big Boi ever sit down and look at the risks? Were you ever concerned that you were going to put all this effort into something that might not be any good?
No, we??€�ve never thought of that. We??€�ve never really had any doubts, because it was always idea and music driven, so it never really came to mind.
Is that the approach you guys take with everything you do?
I mean, of course, at the end of the day it??€�s a business and anything you do you hope is successful. But anything I put my time into ??€� I don??€�t even consider myself a businessman at all, I create business so it??€�s all creative-based for me. As long as I??€�m creating something I??€�m happy. When Bryan and me sit around and write concepts and write movies, it always comes from a creative standpoint. It??€�s never like, ??€?OK, this is the plan: We??€�re going to make this movie and sell this many tickets.??€? We hope as many people come to the theater as possible, but at the end of the day, if there??€�s only a few that come we still want to make necessary works.
It??€�s kind of like when you do albums. To me, when you rate albums or great works, you have to look at it like, ??€?If this album or movie never came out, would the world be any different???€? That??€�s kind of how you look at it. You look at albums like Purple Rain or The Chronic, if those albums never came out, music would have gone a certain way. So that??€�s why when we do the movie, we want people to go, ??€?Hey those guys can look at the story, look at the characters, look at the scene, look at the magic.??€? And those people will say, ??€?Hey, those guys really like what they do.??€? And I think people will read into that.
You guys have had a long relationship with Bryan Barber, what was it like working with him on this whole thing?
Well, Bryan and I have had a cool relationship since he was back in school at Clark . He used to come to parties and say, ??€?Hey, I want to put you guys in a movie!??€? We both didn??€�t have any money, we just came out with our first album. But I don??€�t know, I guess he saw something in me. He just kept saying, ??€?Hey man, I want you to be in my movie.??€? It??€�s funny because I would always say, ??€?Yeah, yeah, yeah,??€? but I wasn??€�t interested. I had acted before doing music back in high school, but I never took it seriously.
So, one night I was dealing with this girl on campus and I went over to her house. As I was going over to her house, Bryan was leaving out of this other girl??€�s house in the same dorm and ever since that day we??€�ve just been hooking up writing, coming up with concepts and ideas. It??€�s just this kind of cool chemistry we have going.
Even from the video treatments up to now, I might call Bryan and say, ??€?Hey, I??€�ve got this song, ??€?Hey Ya!,??€? and I want to play all the characters in the band.??€? And he??€�d say, ??€?I know this camera called the Milo, and it will look like y??€�all are playing at the same time.??€? So it??€�s all back and forth, tennis-thing we do creatively. I mean, this movie started as a video treatment for a song called She Wants to Live in My Lap, I knew I wanted to be a mortician and to be in love with this girl and Big Boi??€�s calling was going to be church. We knew we didn??€�t want to be literal, we wanted to be clever and call this sleepy, little nightclub Church. So when you see the movie, that??€�s what it is, Church. So it??€�s kind of like the relationship is great and we have great chemistry bouncing off each other. With this being his first feature, he??€�s going to surprise some people.
Why do you think some musicians try film?
It??€�s one of two things: It??€�s either a business move or it??€�s a creative move. If it??€�s a business move, somebody will come to you and say, ??€?Hey, I want to do a movie on you.??€? They see you??€�ll bring your fans into the movie theater. And at the end of the day, that??€�s all it??€�s about: getting people in that the movie theater the first weekend. But I think when it comes to The Beatles, it??€�s like hey, this is some fun shit to do. Elvis, it was probably a business move, but I don??€�t know. I don??€�t know what their managers worked out.
But I always thought it was creatively fun to play characters, I??€�ve done it on songs. Coming out with different albums, sometimes the albums sound like totally different bands because I??€�m in a totally different space at the time, so it becomes like a totally different character. So why not put it out visually?
I guess even before OutKast, in school I tried out and made the performance cast. We would do little plays and stuff, but it wasn??€�t a dream of mine, I would just something do like an extracurricular thing to do. So for me, once I started doing videos, I guess people would start paying attention, like producers and directors in Hollywood, and I started getting calls. They were like, ??€?Hey, how about you come out here and audition for this role,??€? and I was like, ??€?Why not???€? And I started finding myself going out there a lot, spending a lot of money on plane tickets and hotels. So I thought it would be cheaper just to move out there and get a little corporate apartment and stay there and get on the grind. And it became fun to challenge yourself and be different characters. That??€�s what it??€�s really about for me, keeping myself excited and challenged. Even with music, if I feel like I??€�m doing the same thing over and over, it gets boring. I would rather not do it or find something new.
Have you guys ever gotten offers for an OutKast movie before this? Or was it something you always wanted to do for yourselves?
No, it??€�s just something we wanted to do for ourselves. Me and Bryan actually, we had this movie called Aquemini and it was supposed to come out with Aquemeni, but we were young and didn??€�t know the ins and outs of the movie industry. So we didn??€�t know it may take a year to get it going. We was like, ??€?Yeah this is two months before the album comes out so ok, yeah, we got it. We can go shoot it next week and it??€�ll be alright.??€?
We actually had two meetings with MTV and we were moving up the latter there. And they were like, ??€?We love this idea, but we want Missy and Busta Rhymes to play the parts.??€? We didn??€�t know at the time we weren??€�t big enough, we just thought they didn??€�t think we weren??€�t big enough at the time. This was before Stankonia. Now I understand it, but at the time we were like, ??€?Man, what do you mean? This is our movie, we wrote it! What are you talking about???€?
Do you think it??€�s almost a strange validation of your career that you guys can now do this?
No, not at all. This is a validation of God. If you break it down, this movie was not supposed to be made. For one, it started off as a video treatment, but HBO had this thing going that they let new directors or video directors do these cheap, little shorts and put them on HBO. So we had these treatments and they liked it. So they were like, ??€?Well, maybe I can make it into a longer form.??€? And so, at that point that was when Bryan wrote the script. They came back and they said, ??€?Well, this was a little bit more expensive than we thought.??€? But, we had just come off Speakerboxx/The Love Below, so they said, ??€?Well, maybe we can put a little more money into the movie.??€? And then it went up from like $2 million to five, five to 10, 10 to $17 million, $20 million and it was going to be an HBO feature film.
Actually, right before HBO did it, we shopped it around to the studios and they were like, ??€?Well, it??€�s a period piece, which are not big sellers in the theater. And then it??€�s a black period piece and that??€�s a double no-no, black people don??€�t go see period pieces. And it??€�s first-time actors (it wasn??€�t my first time acting, but they looked at it as you know, even though it was my third picture I never had a starring role) and it??€�s first-time director? Ahhh, there??€�s no big names in it? Nahhhh. So this movie wasn??€�t really supposed to happen. I??€�m actually surprised it??€�s gotten this far and we shot it. We always knew once we got HBO involved, Bryan and I would talk about how we wanted them to take it to the theaters because we??€�ve seen them do it before. Like American Splendor, that was originally just an HBO picture and they took it to theater because it was good enough to make it there. So we always knew we wanted to make it good enough to go to theater.
Once we finished the picture and it made its way around town, there was a small bidding war of different film companies to buy it from HBO and distribute it. So Universal came on then. Really, it was a tale of events that happened to get it to this point. So think about it, it really started as a video treatment, then a small project for HBO that they were going to show as five or six different shorts with different directors, so it??€�s kind of been through its own little life.
A lot has been made about how you and Big Boi haven??€�t released a song together in six years. Were there any difficulties going back into the studio?
That whole thing is totally a lie. I mean, it??€�s pumped up like that. We wrote songs together on Speakerboxx/Love Below. I don??€�t know, I guess this is the first straight-up rap song, Mighty O. But even before that, we did a song called Can??€�t Wait which was a Sleepy Brown song, both us rappin??€� on it. But like I said, I don??€�t know, I guess that??€�s just part of the blow-up story or whatever. We just sit around and laugh about that, but that??€�s been the way we??€�ve been working together since Aquemini and Stankonia. It??€�s like, you get into your own creative pod where you can get the idea to a good point where you don??€�t have a lot criticism so that doesn??€�t tamper with your creative. I??€�ll do a song at home in my studio and give it to Big Boi and say, ??€?Hey, do you think you can do something with this???€? So when they say we work separately, that??€�s what they mean.
You have been producing tracks for OutKast, Sleepy Brown and some other people for awhile now. Who else are you looking to work with?
I did a couple of things on Gwen Stefani??€�s last album, and she??€�s getting around to doing a new one, so I??€�m going to get with that one as well. I just talked to Snoop, he called me about doing some songs for his new album. Then I have a couple of side projects I want to do. I can??€�t tell you what they are right now, but they should be pretty interesting. And for my cartoon that??€�s going to be on Cartoon Network this fall.
The concept of Class of 3000 is really interesting. You have this musician who??€�s on top of the world and walks away to go home and teach at the local school for the arts. Is that autobiographical in anyway? Is it something that??€�s a far-fetched dream for you?
It??€�s kind of half and half. I do feel like, at times, it??€�s time to take a break, find new things to do. Actually before I started doing music, I draw and I paint, so I always thought I was going to be an art teacher. I remember in school, there was this art teacher who always let us listen to music while we were drawing and painting. That was fun, and I always wanted to be the fun class in high school, so I guess that??€�s part of that coming out. Then that I produce and write music, it was just a natural thing to say this character is a music teacher. So in a way, it hints off the real. It??€�s not Andr?© 3000, it??€�s just a play off words in Class of 3000. The character that I play in the show is called Sunny Bridges. The name came from a great saxophone player named Sonny Rollins, and at the top of his career he just stopped playing. Legend has it that he moved to San Francisco and would only play under the San Francisco Bridge. So that??€�s where the name Sunny Bridges came from. I think that influence came from I just started playing saxophone and clarinet.
Where did you even come up with the idea for Class of 3000?
A guy named Mike Laszlo. He runs Adult Swim at Cartoon Network, and he heard Speakerboxx/Love Below and he was tuned into the Love Below side and thought it had a lot of great imagery to it with the skits and breaks and some of the songs the way they came about. He was like, ??€?Man, I don??€�t know what, but it??€�s something. This would make a great animated show.??€? So he called a guy he knew named Tommy Lynch, who??€�s a kid??€�s television producer. He said, ??€?Tommy, what do you think about this? I want to do a show. I want to get that guy Andr?© 3000 and see if he wants to do something.??€? So Tommy knew my manager in OutKast, so he called him and asked about doing the show.
It was supposed to be an Adult Swim cartoon at first, and it had a different name, different characters. But we couldn??€�t clear the names and write for the characters, so we went in another direction. Once we did that, the show became cooler and broader, so Cartoon Network decided it was more primetime than just a late-night adult cartoon. Tommy said he really wanted to do something with kids, so I brought photographers and a lot of writers, animators to Atlanta and rolled them through the ??€�hood where I grew up. I showed them my life because I wanted to create these children around my life.
The school that I went to was called Sutton Middle School. That year that I went there, they just built a theater where we did stage plays. I lived across town in the ??€�hood, right across the street from the projects. This was the year that they started this program called M to M program, where they would bus children from low-class neighborhoods to the best schools in Atlanta. So I went to school with the mayor??€�s son, the commissioner??€�s son, right around the corner from the governor??€�s house, so it was like a culture class, but it was great. You learned the culture, you learned the music, you learned people. I had friends that were East Indian, I had Asian friends, my best friend Andre was from France, so you had all this kind of mixture. I??€�m going home and listening to Too Short and NWA, and going to school and listening to Depeche Mode and INXS or whatever was going on at the time and skateboarding and shit. Right across the street from my school was an equestrian and polo farm. I wanted to create that in the cartoon, so that??€�s where all the little kids come from, different backgrounds. Like Little D, he comes from the ??€�hood but he plays drums and programs beats and things like that, so that??€�s where the characters come from.
Big Boi told Billboard magazine that the world was going to be ready for side projects from the both of you after Idlewild. So what??€�s the future of OutKast?
Well, me and Big Boi made a pact because anytime we let people know what we??€�re doing, writers get it wrong or people get expectations of a certain thing so we decided to focus on what we??€�re doing now and just leave it open. I guess our biggest asset is the element of surprise.
It was reported that you guys turned down Oprah ...
And that??€�s a total lie, there should be a retraction today from Fox News. The writer said he got the wrong information. And it??€�s fucked up, because with the Internet, once something gets out, it gets blasted and it??€�s not even true. What happened was, you go through a whole line and see whatever televisions shows you can do. I mean, why the fuck would I turn down Oprah?
So what it was, Oprah asked if we were both performing, and I actually stopped doing live shows and live television shows two years ago. Big Boi still performs, but she said if they both can??€�t perform they can??€�t do the show. But I was willing to go on the show and say and do whatever, but really it was Oprah??€�s company that turned us down. And that??€�s kind of crazy because me and Oprah are in a movie together coming up in December. So the writer was cool about it and said he got the wrong information or whatever. But, I mean, retractions are cool but nobody believes retractions.
Obviously, you guys are a big target of the media. In general, what do you think of the media coverage of OutKast?
I think it??€�s gotten to a point. We??€�ve been doing this for 11 years now and we haven??€�t shot anybody, haven??€�t killed anybody, haven??€�t slapped anybody, nobody knows who you??€�re dating or you??€�re not dating the next pop star, so what do people have to talk about? Except Big Boi and Andr?© aren??€�t getting along blah, blah, blah. And we can sit around and laugh about it, but we can sit around and laugh about it for so long before people start to believe that stuff. It becomes a bad thing when people start to believe that me and my partner since 10th grade ??€� before music, before movies, before all of this ??€� have a problem with each other.
Sometimes I think my personal decisions may not look right to people as far as the touring situation, but that??€�s it. We do not have a problem at all. I??€�ve been thinking of all kinds of ways to combat it, but you really can??€�t. I guess it kind of makes you bitter in a way. It just makes you kind of want to say, fuck it.
So why did you decide to stop touring?
It??€�s kind of like you??€�ve been doing something for a long time, and I get bored really fast, so I guess the passion??€�s not there like when I first started. I??€�m actually more excited about other people??€�s projects than my own. Just to see new artists and their excitement, because I know what that feels like. So that??€�s why I do other projects and things for other people. And I didn??€�t want to burn myself out to where I totally hated what I was doing, so I figured I would take a break and just not do it until I found something I was passionate about doing. But I never say never, so never say I??€�ll never toured again, but right now I??€�m just in another space. And like I said before, I??€�m not the best businessman, but I??€�ve never based my decisions on that.
My work is the only thing that I have soul control of. It??€�s a total art proposition: Do I want to do this creatively? Yeah, cool. When you sign up for a movie, you sign a contract that says you have to be at work at a certain time and you??€�re under somebody??€�s thumb for direction, which is a cool balance from this life. But I want to keep what I??€�m doing in music as pure as possible, so those types of decisions may not be financially great because you get paid a lot of money to go on tour, but I would rather be doing something else right. Especially since my head is somewhere else, like what am I going to be doing the next five years? I know I don??€�t want to be rapping and singing when I??€�m 40, so I??€�m just trying to figure out my next move.
Are there other interests that you want to do professionally? Maybe write a book?
Um, film. Getting behind the scenes and writing, coming up with concepts, I think I??€�m being pulled in that direction. Even when I??€�m on set, I see things a certain way and so maybe there??€�s a road that I can go down with writing. I just signed up for this screenwriting class. Maybe in the future directing if I have the knack for it. I just want to get the experience and be around it, do some low-budget things, I may direct some low-budget videos for a while, something like that.
It??€�s all a matter of taste really, so when it comes to music or film or video, there??€�s not really a right way of doing things, it??€�s taste. Even with fashion I want to start my brand. I would say it??€�s a fashion brand ... it??€�s not really even fashion. I don??€�t stay hip to the newest designers, go out and buy the latest jeans or the new this and that, but I do think I have a knack for it.
You mentioned how fast things travel throughout the Internet, have you ever thought what your effect on pop culture is?
You don??€�t think about it until somebody else thinks about it. While it??€�s going on, you don??€�t know it??€�s happening because you??€�re so busy working. Like the whole last album, we were promoting Speakerboxx/The Love Below and I didn??€�t know what ??€?Hey Ya!??€? was doing. It was just a song and you don??€�t know it until years later and you start getting publishing calls and licensing for video games, karoake, Kidz Bop because they do their own version of it; they play it at football games. You never know what it??€�s going to be.
Do you ever sit back and think this is crazy, I??€�m just some kid from Georgia who writes songs?
Yeah, yeah it is man, especially right now. There??€�s actually a song on the new album called Hollywood Divorce that kind of speaks to that. It??€�s kind of like Atlanta used to be this small town and the biggest thing we had was Ted Turner. And the rest of the world told Ted Turner he couldn??€�t do it outside of LA or New York, but he went to Atlanta and started a whole franchise. That was the biggest thing here, nothing else was going on. I would say even six years ago you couldn??€�t mention Atlanta and hip-hop or Atlanta and rap in the same sentence. And now, if you??€�re in New York or LA, 80 percent of all the songs are Atlanta songs. So it??€�s crazy to me right now. It??€�s overwhelming to me. I never thought they??€�d make a movie about our city. ATL, even though it wasn??€�t a true, true depiction of the city, just that nod.
Since you??€�ve been so successful coming out of Atlanta, where do you think your group falls within that influence?
I think it helps with a southern pride, Atlanta pride more than anything. Because before then, even rappers from Atlanta would imitate rappers from New York or rappers from LA. Even just the conscious decision to call our album Southernplayalisiticcaddillacmusic represented the whole Southern lifestyle to people. Back then, the only Southern song that made any noise was Ghetto Boys??€� Mind Playin Tricks On Me. You can mention Luke and 2 Live Crew but that was more like electronic bass dance music.
So I??€�m just happy I was part of all of that whole thing; OutKast, Organized Noise and Goodie Mob. We were blessed to be a part of that, and now you see T.I., Young Jeezy, Lil??€� Wayne, and all the guys on top and killing it now. I??€�m amazed when they come up and say, ??€?Man, I listened to y??€�all when I was growing up.??€? And I??€�m like how old are y??€�all? Y??€�all look like me! Like I??€�m 31, so it??€�s a trip to even talk to artists like that. Even when we made the decision ??€� well, not the decision ??€� when the music started to take a turn and I became more experimental, you hear from some of the hardest ??€�hood people, ??€?Man, that Love Below, I ride to that!??€? And I??€�m trippin??€�. Of course you want to be accepted by the same hood you come from, but it??€�s like when people say that, it??€�s a good thing. And you never see until 10, 11 years later. You never see it.
If you had to look 10 years into the future when it was all said and done, what would you like people to say about OutKast?
That they did what they wanted to do and they were totally free with what they were doing and had a good time. They had no boundaries.
Even before the first Southernplayalisticcaddillacmusic album came ??€� and that was a total rap album ??€� I was trippin??€� but I was serious, I told Big Boi that we should put this album out, and then do an album with all these melodic rock songs, but don??€�t tell anyone that it??€�s us. So we were always thinking about doing something because we love music. We are just music lovers and we never wanted to put ourselves in a box where we would have to do the same thing over and over again. I think that would just be so boring to me.
Do you think you??€�ll have a different kind of freedom if you guys take a break from OutKast?
Yeah. Actually right now is a great place to be, because the last album sold 10 million-plus, so it??€�s like, shit, where do you go from there? What if the next album sells 5 or 7 million, is that failure?
I??€�m happy that I??€�m at a point ??€� and honestly, this is not a brag thing at all ??€� we started this thing when we were 17, traveled the world over, won multiple Grammys, we??€�ve been blessed to do what we like to do and still stay fresh in the ??€�hood and still be good on a global level. So where do you go? It??€�s kind of like we won the Super Bowl, and so anything else that happens from now on is extracurricular. If there??€�s failure at this point, I wouldn??€�t really be mad because we had a good time. We??€�ve done what we can do, so it??€�s not so much invested. Before, I would rack my brain and go, ??€?Man, I hope people get it,??€? and ??€?I hope this does that.??€? And now it??€�s like, well, it??€�s almost like a disconnect, but a cool disconnect not a negative one. Like a free disconnect, like you can actually be more because you??€�re not actually connected to it as much.
July 31, 2006 Article Image
After nearly two years of delays, OutKast??€�s highly anticipated film Idlewild and its accompanying soundtrack are finally slated for release this month. In a phone interview conducted while hanging out in Atlanta, Andr?© ??€?Andr?© 3000??€? Benjamin opened up about making the film, public misconceptions and the future of OutKast.
944: You guys have been working on Idlewild for two years now, how does it feel to finally have a release date and some light at the end of the tunnel?
Man, it??€�s almost like giving birth; like going through labor for a really long time. It??€�s like, ??€?Ah man, I??€�m glad it??€�s out.??€? So, you know, I??€�m pretty happy.
Obviously you??€�ve been working on the music for a long time as well. Are you finally happy with the way everything turned out?
Yeah, I think it??€�s great music. I like it, it??€�s been a long road and kind of a unique situation for us, being that, you know, we??€�ve never had boundaries to stick to. But I think we??€�ve done a good job of balancing what we do with OutKast and making it a soundtrack as well.
Do you think those boundaries inspired you in a different kind of way?
Yeah, it was a fun challenge. It kind of helps you do certain things, because I??€�ve always kind of free-flowed and done whatever I want. So when it comes to doing the cartoon, when I??€�m doing it and writing for children, I??€�m writing for scenes, it??€�s a whole ??€�nother inspiration than just coming out of the blue. It??€�s a good thing, a good challenge.
Was there anything in terms of the music that you were surprised about?
Yeah, a lot of surprises come as you??€�re writing, because you don??€�t know where you??€�re coming from. The inspiration just comes from everywhere.
What tracks off the album are you most excited about?
I wouldn??€�t really want to single them out of the whole. They??€�re kind of like children, you don??€�t really want to say, ??€?I love this child more than the other one.??€? So I let be and let ??€�em do their own thing.
How did shooting Idlewild compare with your other movies?
It was the third movie that I??€�ve done, but the first one I??€�ve done where I was on the set from start to finish. The other movies I??€�ve done there was only two or three weeks of shooting, but with Idlewild you lived in the city and you lived in that whole world and with the characters in it for the whole time. You kind of created this whole world and it was almost sad to leave because you become this real family. It was the same thing with Four Brothers, I was on set from start to finish. I think when you start getting starring roles, more is required of you and you have to stay in the world.
Is that atmosphere something you look forward to now when you go shoot a movie?
Yeah, because it??€�s like new experiences and you get to live out characters and do things I wouldn??€�t normally do as Andr?© 3000. Even in Idlewild, to do research for the characters, I had to sit down with real morticians and go to real mortuaries and talk to people who work on dead bodies. I had to check what they do, their view on life and how people treat them knowing they??€�re morticians. So I get to experience stuff that I wouldn??€�t even think of ??€� like Four Brothers, I??€�ve never ice skated or played hockey in my life and I had to do it in a week, like a crash course.
But it??€�s experiences man, and I guess that??€�s the best thing about movies. It??€�s not glamorous at all, the most glamorous thing is the premiere night, everything else is really work. And getting to travel to places you wouldn??€�t have gone, that??€�s the best thing about it.
It??€�s funny that you mention the morticians because my grandfather was a mortician, and he used to tell me these crazy stories about different things that happened. In your research for the role, did you ever meet any interesting characters?
Yeah, of course. You hear stories from morticians about meeting girls and how they react when you tell them that you??€�re a mortician. And since they do it all the time, so do they become numb to dead bodies? And it??€�s like yeah, it almost becomes second nature to them. The only thing that makes them feel kind of quesy is when they have to work on little babies that die. So you have to think, ??€?Man, I forgot about that. It??€�s not just grown people, it??€�s children and little babies.??€?
What do you think was the most difficult part about shooting the movie? The performance scenes?
My character doesn??€�t say a lot honestly. So it??€�s actually more challenging as an actor to get across what your character is thinking without saying anything. So it??€�s harder than speaking words because you have to have expressions and express what you mean without saying it. That was the most challenging part about it, but it was all fun.
You guys have had a movie in the works since way back with Aquemini, but do you and Big Boi ever sit down and look at the risks? Were you ever concerned that you were going to put all this effort into something that might not be any good?
No, we??€�ve never thought of that. We??€�ve never really had any doubts, because it was always idea and music driven, so it never really came to mind.
Is that the approach you guys take with everything you do?
I mean, of course, at the end of the day it??€�s a business and anything you do you hope is successful. But anything I put my time into ??€� I don??€�t even consider myself a businessman at all, I create business so it??€�s all creative-based for me. As long as I??€�m creating something I??€�m happy. When Bryan and me sit around and write concepts and write movies, it always comes from a creative standpoint. It??€�s never like, ??€?OK, this is the plan: We??€�re going to make this movie and sell this many tickets.??€? We hope as many people come to the theater as possible, but at the end of the day, if there??€�s only a few that come we still want to make necessary works.
It??€�s kind of like when you do albums. To me, when you rate albums or great works, you have to look at it like, ??€?If this album or movie never came out, would the world be any different???€? That??€�s kind of how you look at it. You look at albums like Purple Rain or The Chronic, if those albums never came out, music would have gone a certain way. So that??€�s why when we do the movie, we want people to go, ??€?Hey those guys can look at the story, look at the characters, look at the scene, look at the magic.??€? And those people will say, ??€?Hey, those guys really like what they do.??€? And I think people will read into that.
You guys have had a long relationship with Bryan Barber, what was it like working with him on this whole thing?
Well, Bryan and I have had a cool relationship since he was back in school at Clark . He used to come to parties and say, ??€?Hey, I want to put you guys in a movie!??€? We both didn??€�t have any money, we just came out with our first album. But I don??€�t know, I guess he saw something in me. He just kept saying, ??€?Hey man, I want you to be in my movie.??€? It??€�s funny because I would always say, ??€?Yeah, yeah, yeah,??€? but I wasn??€�t interested. I had acted before doing music back in high school, but I never took it seriously.
So, one night I was dealing with this girl on campus and I went over to her house. As I was going over to her house, Bryan was leaving out of this other girl??€�s house in the same dorm and ever since that day we??€�ve just been hooking up writing, coming up with concepts and ideas. It??€�s just this kind of cool chemistry we have going.
Even from the video treatments up to now, I might call Bryan and say, ??€?Hey, I??€�ve got this song, ??€?Hey Ya!,??€? and I want to play all the characters in the band.??€? And he??€�d say, ??€?I know this camera called the Milo, and it will look like y??€�all are playing at the same time.??€? So it??€�s all back and forth, tennis-thing we do creatively. I mean, this movie started as a video treatment for a song called She Wants to Live in My Lap, I knew I wanted to be a mortician and to be in love with this girl and Big Boi??€�s calling was going to be church. We knew we didn??€�t want to be literal, we wanted to be clever and call this sleepy, little nightclub Church. So when you see the movie, that??€�s what it is, Church. So it??€�s kind of like the relationship is great and we have great chemistry bouncing off each other. With this being his first feature, he??€�s going to surprise some people.
Why do you think some musicians try film?
It??€�s one of two things: It??€�s either a business move or it??€�s a creative move. If it??€�s a business move, somebody will come to you and say, ??€?Hey, I want to do a movie on you.??€? They see you??€�ll bring your fans into the movie theater. And at the end of the day, that??€�s all it??€�s about: getting people in that the movie theater the first weekend. But I think when it comes to The Beatles, it??€�s like hey, this is some fun shit to do. Elvis, it was probably a business move, but I don??€�t know. I don??€�t know what their managers worked out.
But I always thought it was creatively fun to play characters, I??€�ve done it on songs. Coming out with different albums, sometimes the albums sound like totally different bands because I??€�m in a totally different space at the time, so it becomes like a totally different character. So why not put it out visually?
I guess even before OutKast, in school I tried out and made the performance cast. We would do little plays and stuff, but it wasn??€�t a dream of mine, I would just something do like an extracurricular thing to do. So for me, once I started doing videos, I guess people would start paying attention, like producers and directors in Hollywood, and I started getting calls. They were like, ??€?Hey, how about you come out here and audition for this role,??€? and I was like, ??€?Why not???€? And I started finding myself going out there a lot, spending a lot of money on plane tickets and hotels. So I thought it would be cheaper just to move out there and get a little corporate apartment and stay there and get on the grind. And it became fun to challenge yourself and be different characters. That??€�s what it??€�s really about for me, keeping myself excited and challenged. Even with music, if I feel like I??€�m doing the same thing over and over, it gets boring. I would rather not do it or find something new.
Have you guys ever gotten offers for an OutKast movie before this? Or was it something you always wanted to do for yourselves?
No, it??€�s just something we wanted to do for ourselves. Me and Bryan actually, we had this movie called Aquemini and it was supposed to come out with Aquemeni, but we were young and didn??€�t know the ins and outs of the movie industry. So we didn??€�t know it may take a year to get it going. We was like, ??€?Yeah this is two months before the album comes out so ok, yeah, we got it. We can go shoot it next week and it??€�ll be alright.??€?
We actually had two meetings with MTV and we were moving up the latter there. And they were like, ??€?We love this idea, but we want Missy and Busta Rhymes to play the parts.??€? We didn??€�t know at the time we weren??€�t big enough, we just thought they didn??€�t think we weren??€�t big enough at the time. This was before Stankonia. Now I understand it, but at the time we were like, ??€?Man, what do you mean? This is our movie, we wrote it! What are you talking about???€?
Do you think it??€�s almost a strange validation of your career that you guys can now do this?
No, not at all. This is a validation of God. If you break it down, this movie was not supposed to be made. For one, it started off as a video treatment, but HBO had this thing going that they let new directors or video directors do these cheap, little shorts and put them on HBO. So we had these treatments and they liked it. So they were like, ??€?Well, maybe I can make it into a longer form.??€? And so, at that point that was when Bryan wrote the script. They came back and they said, ??€?Well, this was a little bit more expensive than we thought.??€? But, we had just come off Speakerboxx/The Love Below, so they said, ??€?Well, maybe we can put a little more money into the movie.??€? And then it went up from like $2 million to five, five to 10, 10 to $17 million, $20 million and it was going to be an HBO feature film.
Actually, right before HBO did it, we shopped it around to the studios and they were like, ??€?Well, it??€�s a period piece, which are not big sellers in the theater. And then it??€�s a black period piece and that??€�s a double no-no, black people don??€�t go see period pieces. And it??€�s first-time actors (it wasn??€�t my first time acting, but they looked at it as you know, even though it was my third picture I never had a starring role) and it??€�s first-time director? Ahhh, there??€�s no big names in it? Nahhhh. So this movie wasn??€�t really supposed to happen. I??€�m actually surprised it??€�s gotten this far and we shot it. We always knew once we got HBO involved, Bryan and I would talk about how we wanted them to take it to the theaters because we??€�ve seen them do it before. Like American Splendor, that was originally just an HBO picture and they took it to theater because it was good enough to make it there. So we always knew we wanted to make it good enough to go to theater.
Once we finished the picture and it made its way around town, there was a small bidding war of different film companies to buy it from HBO and distribute it. So Universal came on then. Really, it was a tale of events that happened to get it to this point. So think about it, it really started as a video treatment, then a small project for HBO that they were going to show as five or six different shorts with different directors, so it??€�s kind of been through its own little life.
A lot has been made about how you and Big Boi haven??€�t released a song together in six years. Were there any difficulties going back into the studio?
That whole thing is totally a lie. I mean, it??€�s pumped up like that. We wrote songs together on Speakerboxx/Love Below. I don??€�t know, I guess this is the first straight-up rap song, Mighty O. But even before that, we did a song called Can??€�t Wait which was a Sleepy Brown song, both us rappin??€� on it. But like I said, I don??€�t know, I guess that??€�s just part of the blow-up story or whatever. We just sit around and laugh about that, but that??€�s been the way we??€�ve been working together since Aquemini and Stankonia. It??€�s like, you get into your own creative pod where you can get the idea to a good point where you don??€�t have a lot criticism so that doesn??€�t tamper with your creative. I??€�ll do a song at home in my studio and give it to Big Boi and say, ??€?Hey, do you think you can do something with this???€? So when they say we work separately, that??€�s what they mean.
You have been producing tracks for OutKast, Sleepy Brown and some other people for awhile now. Who else are you looking to work with?
I did a couple of things on Gwen Stefani??€�s last album, and she??€�s getting around to doing a new one, so I??€�m going to get with that one as well. I just talked to Snoop, he called me about doing some songs for his new album. Then I have a couple of side projects I want to do. I can??€�t tell you what they are right now, but they should be pretty interesting. And for my cartoon that??€�s going to be on Cartoon Network this fall.
The concept of Class of 3000 is really interesting. You have this musician who??€�s on top of the world and walks away to go home and teach at the local school for the arts. Is that autobiographical in anyway? Is it something that??€�s a far-fetched dream for you?
It??€�s kind of half and half. I do feel like, at times, it??€�s time to take a break, find new things to do. Actually before I started doing music, I draw and I paint, so I always thought I was going to be an art teacher. I remember in school, there was this art teacher who always let us listen to music while we were drawing and painting. That was fun, and I always wanted to be the fun class in high school, so I guess that??€�s part of that coming out. Then that I produce and write music, it was just a natural thing to say this character is a music teacher. So in a way, it hints off the real. It??€�s not Andr?© 3000, it??€�s just a play off words in Class of 3000. The character that I play in the show is called Sunny Bridges. The name came from a great saxophone player named Sonny Rollins, and at the top of his career he just stopped playing. Legend has it that he moved to San Francisco and would only play under the San Francisco Bridge. So that??€�s where the name Sunny Bridges came from. I think that influence came from I just started playing saxophone and clarinet.
Where did you even come up with the idea for Class of 3000?
A guy named Mike Laszlo. He runs Adult Swim at Cartoon Network, and he heard Speakerboxx/Love Below and he was tuned into the Love Below side and thought it had a lot of great imagery to it with the skits and breaks and some of the songs the way they came about. He was like, ??€?Man, I don??€�t know what, but it??€�s something. This would make a great animated show.??€? So he called a guy he knew named Tommy Lynch, who??€�s a kid??€�s television producer. He said, ??€?Tommy, what do you think about this? I want to do a show. I want to get that guy Andr?© 3000 and see if he wants to do something.??€? So Tommy knew my manager in OutKast, so he called him and asked about doing the show.
It was supposed to be an Adult Swim cartoon at first, and it had a different name, different characters. But we couldn??€�t clear the names and write for the characters, so we went in another direction. Once we did that, the show became cooler and broader, so Cartoon Network decided it was more primetime than just a late-night adult cartoon. Tommy said he really wanted to do something with kids, so I brought photographers and a lot of writers, animators to Atlanta and rolled them through the ??€�hood where I grew up. I showed them my life because I wanted to create these children around my life.
The school that I went to was called Sutton Middle School. That year that I went there, they just built a theater where we did stage plays. I lived across town in the ??€�hood, right across the street from the projects. This was the year that they started this program called M to M program, where they would bus children from low-class neighborhoods to the best schools in Atlanta. So I went to school with the mayor??€�s son, the commissioner??€�s son, right around the corner from the governor??€�s house, so it was like a culture class, but it was great. You learned the culture, you learned the music, you learned people. I had friends that were East Indian, I had Asian friends, my best friend Andre was from France, so you had all this kind of mixture. I??€�m going home and listening to Too Short and NWA, and going to school and listening to Depeche Mode and INXS or whatever was going on at the time and skateboarding and shit. Right across the street from my school was an equestrian and polo farm. I wanted to create that in the cartoon, so that??€�s where all the little kids come from, different backgrounds. Like Little D, he comes from the ??€�hood but he plays drums and programs beats and things like that, so that??€�s where the characters come from.
Big Boi told Billboard magazine that the world was going to be ready for side projects from the both of you after Idlewild. So what??€�s the future of OutKast?
Well, me and Big Boi made a pact because anytime we let people know what we??€�re doing, writers get it wrong or people get expectations of a certain thing so we decided to focus on what we??€�re doing now and just leave it open. I guess our biggest asset is the element of surprise.
It was reported that you guys turned down Oprah ...
And that??€�s a total lie, there should be a retraction today from Fox News. The writer said he got the wrong information. And it??€�s fucked up, because with the Internet, once something gets out, it gets blasted and it??€�s not even true. What happened was, you go through a whole line and see whatever televisions shows you can do. I mean, why the fuck would I turn down Oprah?
So what it was, Oprah asked if we were both performing, and I actually stopped doing live shows and live television shows two years ago. Big Boi still performs, but she said if they both can??€�t perform they can??€�t do the show. But I was willing to go on the show and say and do whatever, but really it was Oprah??€�s company that turned us down. And that??€�s kind of crazy because me and Oprah are in a movie together coming up in December. So the writer was cool about it and said he got the wrong information or whatever. But, I mean, retractions are cool but nobody believes retractions.
Obviously, you guys are a big target of the media. In general, what do you think of the media coverage of OutKast?
I think it??€�s gotten to a point. We??€�ve been doing this for 11 years now and we haven??€�t shot anybody, haven??€�t killed anybody, haven??€�t slapped anybody, nobody knows who you??€�re dating or you??€�re not dating the next pop star, so what do people have to talk about? Except Big Boi and Andr?© aren??€�t getting along blah, blah, blah. And we can sit around and laugh about it, but we can sit around and laugh about it for so long before people start to believe that stuff. It becomes a bad thing when people start to believe that me and my partner since 10th grade ??€� before music, before movies, before all of this ??€� have a problem with each other.
Sometimes I think my personal decisions may not look right to people as far as the touring situation, but that??€�s it. We do not have a problem at all. I??€�ve been thinking of all kinds of ways to combat it, but you really can??€�t. I guess it kind of makes you bitter in a way. It just makes you kind of want to say, fuck it.
So why did you decide to stop touring?
It??€�s kind of like you??€�ve been doing something for a long time, and I get bored really fast, so I guess the passion??€�s not there like when I first started. I??€�m actually more excited about other people??€�s projects than my own. Just to see new artists and their excitement, because I know what that feels like. So that??€�s why I do other projects and things for other people. And I didn??€�t want to burn myself out to where I totally hated what I was doing, so I figured I would take a break and just not do it until I found something I was passionate about doing. But I never say never, so never say I??€�ll never toured again, but right now I??€�m just in another space. And like I said before, I??€�m not the best businessman, but I??€�ve never based my decisions on that.
My work is the only thing that I have soul control of. It??€�s a total art proposition: Do I want to do this creatively? Yeah, cool. When you sign up for a movie, you sign a contract that says you have to be at work at a certain time and you??€�re under somebody??€�s thumb for direction, which is a cool balance from this life. But I want to keep what I??€�m doing in music as pure as possible, so those types of decisions may not be financially great because you get paid a lot of money to go on tour, but I would rather be doing something else right. Especially since my head is somewhere else, like what am I going to be doing the next five years? I know I don??€�t want to be rapping and singing when I??€�m 40, so I??€�m just trying to figure out my next move.
Are there other interests that you want to do professionally? Maybe write a book?
Um, film. Getting behind the scenes and writing, coming up with concepts, I think I??€�m being pulled in that direction. Even when I??€�m on set, I see things a certain way and so maybe there??€�s a road that I can go down with writing. I just signed up for this screenwriting class. Maybe in the future directing if I have the knack for it. I just want to get the experience and be around it, do some low-budget things, I may direct some low-budget videos for a while, something like that.
It??€�s all a matter of taste really, so when it comes to music or film or video, there??€�s not really a right way of doing things, it??€�s taste. Even with fashion I want to start my brand. I would say it??€�s a fashion brand ... it??€�s not really even fashion. I don??€�t stay hip to the newest designers, go out and buy the latest jeans or the new this and that, but I do think I have a knack for it.
You mentioned how fast things travel throughout the Internet, have you ever thought what your effect on pop culture is?
You don??€�t think about it until somebody else thinks about it. While it??€�s going on, you don??€�t know it??€�s happening because you??€�re so busy working. Like the whole last album, we were promoting Speakerboxx/The Love Below and I didn??€�t know what ??€?Hey Ya!??€? was doing. It was just a song and you don??€�t know it until years later and you start getting publishing calls and licensing for video games, karoake, Kidz Bop because they do their own version of it; they play it at football games. You never know what it??€�s going to be.
Do you ever sit back and think this is crazy, I??€�m just some kid from Georgia who writes songs?
Yeah, yeah it is man, especially right now. There??€�s actually a song on the new album called Hollywood Divorce that kind of speaks to that. It??€�s kind of like Atlanta used to be this small town and the biggest thing we had was Ted Turner. And the rest of the world told Ted Turner he couldn??€�t do it outside of LA or New York, but he went to Atlanta and started a whole franchise. That was the biggest thing here, nothing else was going on. I would say even six years ago you couldn??€�t mention Atlanta and hip-hop or Atlanta and rap in the same sentence. And now, if you??€�re in New York or LA, 80 percent of all the songs are Atlanta songs. So it??€�s crazy to me right now. It??€�s overwhelming to me. I never thought they??€�d make a movie about our city. ATL, even though it wasn??€�t a true, true depiction of the city, just that nod.
Since you??€�ve been so successful coming out of Atlanta, where do you think your group falls within that influence?
I think it helps with a southern pride, Atlanta pride more than anything. Because before then, even rappers from Atlanta would imitate rappers from New York or rappers from LA. Even just the conscious decision to call our album Southernplayalisiticcaddillacmusic represented the whole Southern lifestyle to people. Back then, the only Southern song that made any noise was Ghetto Boys??€� Mind Playin Tricks On Me. You can mention Luke and 2 Live Crew but that was more like electronic bass dance music.
So I??€�m just happy I was part of all of that whole thing; OutKast, Organized Noise and Goodie Mob. We were blessed to be a part of that, and now you see T.I., Young Jeezy, Lil??€� Wayne, and all the guys on top and killing it now. I??€�m amazed when they come up and say, ??€?Man, I listened to y??€�all when I was growing up.??€? And I??€�m like how old are y??€�all? Y??€�all look like me! Like I??€�m 31, so it??€�s a trip to even talk to artists like that. Even when we made the decision ??€� well, not the decision ??€� when the music started to take a turn and I became more experimental, you hear from some of the hardest ??€�hood people, ??€?Man, that Love Below, I ride to that!??€? And I??€�m trippin??€�. Of course you want to be accepted by the same hood you come from, but it??€�s like when people say that, it??€�s a good thing. And you never see until 10, 11 years later. You never see it.
If you had to look 10 years into the future when it was all said and done, what would you like people to say about OutKast?
That they did what they wanted to do and they were totally free with what they were doing and had a good time. They had no boundaries.
Even before the first Southernplayalisticcaddillacmusic album came ??€� and that was a total rap album ??€� I was trippin??€� but I was serious, I told Big Boi that we should put this album out, and then do an album with all these melodic rock songs, but don??€�t tell anyone that it??€�s us. So we were always thinking about doing something because we love music. We are just music lovers and we never wanted to put ourselves in a box where we would have to do the same thing over and over again. I think that would just be so boring to me.
Do you think you??€�ll have a different kind of freedom if you guys take a break from OutKast?
Yeah. Actually right now is a great place to be, because the last album sold 10 million-plus, so it??€�s like, shit, where do you go from there? What if the next album sells 5 or 7 million, is that failure?
I??€�m happy that I??€�m at a point ??€� and honestly, this is not a brag thing at all ??€� we started this thing when we were 17, traveled the world over, won multiple Grammys, we??€�ve been blessed to do what we like to do and still stay fresh in the ??€�hood and still be good on a global level. So where do you go? It??€�s kind of like we won the Super Bowl, and so anything else that happens from now on is extracurricular. If there??€�s failure at this point, I wouldn??€�t really be mad because we had a good time. We??€�ve done what we can do, so it??€�s not so much invested. Before, I would rack my brain and go, ??€?Man, I hope people get it,??€? and ??€?I hope this does that.??€? And now it??€�s like, well, it??€�s almost like a disconnect, but a cool disconnect not a negative one. Like a free disconnect, like you can actually be more because you??€�re not actually connected to it as much.
you just never know when you're living in a golden age.
Mos Def Releasing New Album, Several Projects
Brooklyn rapper/actor Mos Def has finally completed his solo album, ??€?True Magic,??€? his first full-length project since 2004??€�s ??€?The New Danger.??€?
The album is slated for release on Sept. 19 through Geffen Records, and features production from Kanye West, the Neptunes, Rich Harrison, among others.
Mos also has several silver screen projects in the works ??€� including ??€?The Brazilian Job,??€? the sequel to 2003??€�s ??€?The Italian Job,??€? and a brief cameo in Will Farrell??€�s latest comedy ??€?Talladega Nights.??€?
Lastly, after the success of his 24-second short film created for Converse??€�s Spring 2006 ad campaign, Mos Def has inked a deal to release his own shoe based on the classic Chuck Taylor All-Star sneaker.
His signature sneakers feature laser-etched pictures of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline, and are available now in stores
Brooklyn rapper/actor Mos Def has finally completed his solo album, ??€?True Magic,??€? his first full-length project since 2004??€�s ??€?The New Danger.??€?
The album is slated for release on Sept. 19 through Geffen Records, and features production from Kanye West, the Neptunes, Rich Harrison, among others.
Mos also has several silver screen projects in the works ??€� including ??€?The Brazilian Job,??€? the sequel to 2003??€�s ??€?The Italian Job,??€? and a brief cameo in Will Farrell??€�s latest comedy ??€?Talladega Nights.??€?
Lastly, after the success of his 24-second short film created for Converse??€�s Spring 2006 ad campaign, Mos Def has inked a deal to release his own shoe based on the classic Chuck Taylor All-Star sneaker.
His signature sneakers feature laser-etched pictures of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline, and are available now in stores
bLuEsHiFt wrote:Mos Def Releasing New Album, Several Projects
Brooklyn rapper/actor Mos Def has finally completed his solo album, ??€?True Magic,??€? his first full-length project since 2004??€�s ??€?The New Danger.??€?
The album is slated for release on Sept. 19 through Geffen Records, and features production from Kanye West, the Neptunes, Rich Harrison, among others.
Mos also has several silver screen projects in the works ??€� including ??€?The Brazilian Job,??€? the sequel to 2003??€�s ??€?The Italian Job,??€? and a brief cameo in Will Farrell??€�s latest comedy ??€?Talladega Nights.??€?
Lastly, after the success of his 24-second short film created for Converse??€�s Spring 2006 ad campaign, Mos Def has inked a deal to release his own shoe based on the classic Chuck Taylor All-Star sneaker.
His signature sneakers feature laser-etched pictures of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline, and are available now in stores
New infoPe Pagina Anterioara SickD wrote:New Mos Def
Mos Def Works 'Magic' on Ears and Feet
Brooklyn rapper/actor Mos Def will release his first album since 2004's 'The New Danger,' on Sept. 26. Dubbed 'True Magic,' the effort includes new tracks like 'The Undeniable' and 'There Is a Way.'
'True Magic' isn't the only new release from the prolific entertainer. Following the successful 24-second short film Mos created for Converse's Spring 2006 Brand Democracy ad campaign, he has his own Converse shoe coming out. The Chuck Taylor All Star Mid Music, based on the classic Chuck Taylor All Star sneaker, will be available Aug. 1 at both Foot Locker and the Converse Web site.
The sneaks will feature laser-etched pictures of the Brooklyn Bridge and Manhattan skyline.
sursa: http://www.okayplayer.com/index.html
Rock The Bells With Wu Tang Clan & Mos Def At Sleep Train Pavilion
6 august
2mex,writer's block, key kool
sway & tech
planet asia
immortal technique
murs
posdnuos
Posdnuos; Trugoy the Dove
supernatural
Del the Funky homosapien
u-god
u-god, method man, cappadonna
rza, cappadonna
rza, methodman, raekwon
ghostface killah
talib kweli
mos def
6 august
2mex,writer's block, key kool
sway & tech
planet asia
immortal technique
murs
posdnuos
Posdnuos; Trugoy the Dove
supernatural
Del the Funky homosapien
u-god
u-god, method man, cappadonna
rza, cappadonna
rza, methodman, raekwon
ghostface killah
talib kweli
mos def
-
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Lauryn Hill Makes Surprise Visit, Wu-Tang Remember ODB At Rock The Bells Festival
SAN BERNARDINO, California ??€� Southern Californians are notorious for arriving late and leaving early, but an estimated 20,000 hip-hop fans didn't want to miss a second of Saturday's Rock the Bells festival.
Tributes were paid and history was made, as hip-hop living legends, surprise guests and a record-breaking performance gave the fans a whole lot more than they could have ever imagined. Fans have come to expect the unexpected from Rock the Bells, now in its third year. But when special guest Lauryn Hill took the stage, fan reaction was lukewarm, to be kind.
Earlier, Talib Kweli got the crowd moving to his blend of street poetry and socially conscious flow. Mos Def followed, giving up a crowd-pleasing but extra-long performance, which left many in the audience starving for the headlining heavyweights, Wu-Tang Clan.
So when a live band began playing smoothed-out jazz grooves, many fans unwillingly put down their W hand signals. Hill emerged onstage to light applause and "Wu-Tang!" chants ??€� not exactly the raucous ovation expected for the woman many regard as the greatest female MC of all time. She told the crowd that she just wanted to come by and do a song or two, delivering "Doo Wop (That Thing)," "Lost Ones" and the Fugees' "How Many Mics."
Then the fans got what they'd been waiting for. Wu-Tang's rabid army of fans didn't need any cues to thrust their W hand signs proudly into the air, as sirens wailed and the Shaolin warriors brought the ruckus as hungry as ever.
Before assaulting the stage, Method Man called this show a "Dirty-versary," dedicating it to the late Wu soldier, Ol' Dirty Bastard. The fans waved and nodded to every beat and verse, as Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am and onetime tourmate Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against the Machine joined in.
There were a few more surprises for fans earlier in the day before the Clan wrapped things up. After blending recent material ("Verbal Clap") with vintage Daisy Age hits ("Buddy" and "Me, Myself and I"), De La Soul's Posdnuos and Trugoy brought out some fellow backpacker vets not on the lineup. Dres of Black Sheep joined De La Soul for "The Choice Is Yours" and Phife Dawg came out for a medley of A Tribe Called Quest hits, including "Buggin' Out," "Check the Rhime" and "Award Tour."
De La gave way to Redman, who, in between moving the crowd with hits like "Time 4 Sum Aksion" and "Diggy Doc," told the crowd he had partied too much and left his luggage in Brick City. He asked whoever could spare some "extra drawers and socks" to meet him at his dressing room. Upon finishing his set and returning to his trailer, Red was later seen smiling broadly with women's G-string thongs draped over his head.
Not counting Red's dressing-room antics and the mainstage performers, much of the festival's action came from the adjacent VIP ballroom, where rapper Supernatural set out to make history by breaking the "Guinness Book of World Records" mark for longest freestyle. Supernat's goal was to break the standing record of eight hours and 45 minutes and flow for nine hours. He designed the stage to match his living room ??€� complete with coffee table, leather couches, bottles of Heineken and Hennessy ??€� and a dictionary for inspiration.
With DJs Rhettmatic, Icy Ice and Rocky Rock among others rotating turntable responsibilities throughout the day, Supernat looked to the crowd to keep him going. He placed a dry-erase board by the stage for audience members to jot down ideas and even asked some to hand him items in their pockets that he could work into his rhymes. Fans gave him money, fake cannabis and even batteries.
Supernatural didn't need the batteries, as he spit then spit some more, building up a serious rasp in his voice while pumping up the swelling audience as it witnessed history. When the beat ended, Supernatural had his record ??€� freestyling straight for nine hours and 12 minutes.
For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.
SAN BERNARDINO, California ??€� Southern Californians are notorious for arriving late and leaving early, but an estimated 20,000 hip-hop fans didn't want to miss a second of Saturday's Rock the Bells festival.
Tributes were paid and history was made, as hip-hop living legends, surprise guests and a record-breaking performance gave the fans a whole lot more than they could have ever imagined. Fans have come to expect the unexpected from Rock the Bells, now in its third year. But when special guest Lauryn Hill took the stage, fan reaction was lukewarm, to be kind.
Earlier, Talib Kweli got the crowd moving to his blend of street poetry and socially conscious flow. Mos Def followed, giving up a crowd-pleasing but extra-long performance, which left many in the audience starving for the headlining heavyweights, Wu-Tang Clan.
So when a live band began playing smoothed-out jazz grooves, many fans unwillingly put down their W hand signals. Hill emerged onstage to light applause and "Wu-Tang!" chants ??€� not exactly the raucous ovation expected for the woman many regard as the greatest female MC of all time. She told the crowd that she just wanted to come by and do a song or two, delivering "Doo Wop (That Thing)," "Lost Ones" and the Fugees' "How Many Mics."
Then the fans got what they'd been waiting for. Wu-Tang's rabid army of fans didn't need any cues to thrust their W hand signs proudly into the air, as sirens wailed and the Shaolin warriors brought the ruckus as hungry as ever.
Before assaulting the stage, Method Man called this show a "Dirty-versary," dedicating it to the late Wu soldier, Ol' Dirty Bastard. The fans waved and nodded to every beat and verse, as Black Eyed Peas' Will.I.Am and onetime tourmate Zack de la Rocha of Rage Against the Machine joined in.
There were a few more surprises for fans earlier in the day before the Clan wrapped things up. After blending recent material ("Verbal Clap") with vintage Daisy Age hits ("Buddy" and "Me, Myself and I"), De La Soul's Posdnuos and Trugoy brought out some fellow backpacker vets not on the lineup. Dres of Black Sheep joined De La Soul for "The Choice Is Yours" and Phife Dawg came out for a medley of A Tribe Called Quest hits, including "Buggin' Out," "Check the Rhime" and "Award Tour."
De La gave way to Redman, who, in between moving the crowd with hits like "Time 4 Sum Aksion" and "Diggy Doc," told the crowd he had partied too much and left his luggage in Brick City. He asked whoever could spare some "extra drawers and socks" to meet him at his dressing room. Upon finishing his set and returning to his trailer, Red was later seen smiling broadly with women's G-string thongs draped over his head.
Not counting Red's dressing-room antics and the mainstage performers, much of the festival's action came from the adjacent VIP ballroom, where rapper Supernatural set out to make history by breaking the "Guinness Book of World Records" mark for longest freestyle. Supernat's goal was to break the standing record of eight hours and 45 minutes and flow for nine hours. He designed the stage to match his living room ??€� complete with coffee table, leather couches, bottles of Heineken and Hennessy ??€� and a dictionary for inspiration.
With DJs Rhettmatic, Icy Ice and Rocky Rock among others rotating turntable responsibilities throughout the day, Supernat looked to the crowd to keep him going. He placed a dry-erase board by the stage for audience members to jot down ideas and even asked some to hand him items in their pockets that he could work into his rhymes. Fans gave him money, fake cannabis and even batteries.
Supernatural didn't need the batteries, as he spit then spit some more, building up a serious rasp in his voice while pumping up the swelling audience as it witnessed history. When the beat ended, Supernatural had his record ??€� freestyling straight for nine hours and 12 minutes.
For more sights and stories from concerts around the country, check out MTV News Tour Reports.
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Paul Wall and Raekwon, Get the Full Effect of Bling in New VH1 Series
Posted 7/13/06
VH1 is in Sierra Leone this week with hip-hop artists Paul Wall, Raekwon (of Wu Tang Clan), and reggaeton king Tego Calderon, to begin filming a new documentary under VH1's Rock Docs franchise tentatively titled: "Bling: A Planet Rock".
The film, set to air on VH1 in early 2007, will take a hard-hitting look at the diamond trade in Sierra Leone, West Africa, and how "blinging" in the flashy world of commercial hip-hop played a role in the country's civil war. The 11-year war was largely perpetuated by genocidal rebels and primarily funded through the illegal trading of conflict or "blood" diamonds.
Wall, Raekwon and Calderon will hear first-hand accounts of the atrocities suffered during this time and the role that diamonds played as they visit mining communities and meet with local musicians, government officials and children.
Produced by Article 19 Films in association with VH1 and the United Nations Development Program, "Bling: A Planet Rock," will capture hip-hop's reaction to the human violations, bring global awareness to this issue, and educate Americans about how they can play a role in eradicating the smuggling of blood diamonds.
===============================================
Posted 7/13/06
VH1 is in Sierra Leone this week with hip-hop artists Paul Wall, Raekwon (of Wu Tang Clan), and reggaeton king Tego Calderon, to begin filming a new documentary under VH1's Rock Docs franchise tentatively titled: "Bling: A Planet Rock".
The film, set to air on VH1 in early 2007, will take a hard-hitting look at the diamond trade in Sierra Leone, West Africa, and how "blinging" in the flashy world of commercial hip-hop played a role in the country's civil war. The 11-year war was largely perpetuated by genocidal rebels and primarily funded through the illegal trading of conflict or "blood" diamonds.
Wall, Raekwon and Calderon will hear first-hand accounts of the atrocities suffered during this time and the role that diamonds played as they visit mining communities and meet with local musicians, government officials and children.
Produced by Article 19 Films in association with VH1 and the United Nations Development Program, "Bling: A Planet Rock," will capture hip-hop's reaction to the human violations, bring global awareness to this issue, and educate Americans about how they can play a role in eradicating the smuggling of blood diamonds.
===============================================
