At the turn of the century, it seemed OutKast would rule supreme over the 00's. Stankonia was riding high with killer tracks like "Ms. Jackson" and "B.O.B." and they would eventually score two number one singles with "Hey Ya!" and "The Way You Move" three years later on their Grammy award winning double album, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. Then what happened? They released an ill-fated film and a so-so accompanying album and more or less drifted apart. Of course it's tough to maintain a reign over the charts for a full decade, but unfortunately the title of "Kings of Half the 00's" doesn't quite flow off the tongue.
What's surprising though is that they had plenty of great music released before Stankonia although their later period seems to dominate the public's memory of the group. Personally, I found the top of their commercial success a bit too twee for me, particularly "Hey Ya!", a song that sounds like a dozen inside jokes that the world nervously giggled along with in hopes of not being exposed. When it comes to their debut, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik (1994), there's no gimmick necessary. Check out first single, "Player's Ball", for a fresh and full sound with an arrogant confidence that would become the duo's trademark.
Outkast - Player's Ball
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Tuesday, March 2, 2010
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Good Point. I think the reason they disappeared for a half a decade was because they started their film careers and other things. Andre 3000 has been in four or five movies. Their early music didn't get that big because Southern Rap was not popular before the end of the 90's and their style on the early albums may have been a little ahead of pop. I love those albums though.
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