Outkast is the best-selling rap duo of all time, with both members of the famed group sure to go down in history for their incredible contribution to art and entertainment. Though the pair were only releasing records from 1994-2006, their music is timeless. Outkast continues to receive play on radio stations and popular events nearly two decades since the pair's last songs hit the airwaves.
Despite their last publicly released collaboration arriving in 2008, in the form of a feature on a DJ Drama record titled "The Art of Storytellin' Part 4," Big Boi has stated that the pair are still close and that Outkast technically never truly ended. With over 20 million monthly Spotify listeners, many fans continue to wonder exactly where the pair are now.
Big Boi
Of the two rappers who compose the iconic duo, Big Boi is certainly the more publicly active Outkast member. The rapper, whose birth name is Antwan André Patton, began an illustrious solo career in the wake of Outkast's final days. Big Boi released 3 solo albums between 2010 and 2017, as well as a pair of collaborative albums with Phantogram and Sleepy Brown, respectively. In 2010, Big Boi released the mixtape Mixtape For Dummies: A Guide To Global Greatness as a free digital download.
Outside of music, Big Boi has gone on to pursue several extracurricular activities since Outkast stopped producing records. The rapper appeared in television and film projects including Wild 'N Out, Baby Driver, Superfly, and Scream: The TV Series. Big Boi is also a registered dog breeder, responsible for raising and selling purebred Pitbulls and French Bulldogs out of his home, which he refers to as the Ritz Carlton for dogs. As a noted animal lover, the rapper also owns a pair of exotic owls which he has named Hoodini and Hootie. Big Boi has become something of a political activist in recent years, canvassing support for Bernie Sanders in 2015.
André 3000
While Big Boi has been focused on progressing his solo career and expanding into his other interests and hobbies in the years since Outkast disbanded, André 3000 has been traveling the world, seemingly doing his best to live under the radar and avoid fame. The rap icon has famously struggled with anxiety and has gone on record as being uncomfortable with grand displays of affection in his personal life. He received a diagnosis of social anxiety and hypersensitivity disorder, making it challenging for him to perform in front of the public.
Despite his desire to maintain a normal existence, André has never stopped working on music. Just weeks ago, Three Stacks finally released his long-awaited solo debut, in the form of New Blue Sun. While some fans were disappointed to learn that the linguistic leviathan would be releasing a fully instrumental album with no lyrics, others were ecstatic to finally hear the rapper's creativity flowing again. With any luck, this release will open the floodgates, allowing André to provide more of his art to the world, in whatever format it manifests.
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