Everybody wants Andre 3000 to rap. Fans want it, other rappers want it, this writer wants it. The problem is, Andre 3000 doesn't. The Outkast icon decided to release his first solo album in 2023, and many were shocked to find that it was a collection of flute instrumentals. In an effort to quell the confusion (maybe a better word would be frustration), Three Stacks has gone on an extensive press tour. He even stopped by HBO's The Shop to discuss his genre pivot. Hear him tell it, it's the most important thing he's done.
Andre 3000 told Shop hosts LeBron James and Maverick Carter that he does not claim to be an expert when it comes to jazz. He's a fan, but he concedes that he's far behind the musicians who have spent their lives studying the genre. "I don't take myself that serious," he explained. "Jazz is a studied music so I kinda just try to humanize [it]." The musician alluded to the song titles that he chose for the album. He admitted that he chose silly titles in an effort to remove the seriousness from the music. "It's so elitist in ways," he noted. "A lot of jazz cats went to school... I don't want people to think I'm trying to be a jazz musician."
Andre 3000 Enjoys Being Freed From Songwriting
Three Stacks then coined the term "sonic displayist," which would have been a killer album title, frankly. "I don't know what notes I'm playing to be completely honest," he told the room. "I don't know what I'm doing and that's part of the art." Andre 3000 compared the process of making jazz to rapping, and went on to admit that he's never felt more free as an artist. "This is most free I've ever been," he admitted. The biggest difference, from Andre's perspective, is the way in which he's able to let the music, rather than the lyrics, guide him.
Andre 3000 considers himself a songwriter over a freestyler, which means his Outkast verses were always words first, music second. By removing words, the artist is able to follow his muse anywhere he sees fit. This means that every performance is different. "We really don't know where we gon' go," he explained. "And it's kinda like you have to feel it out. It's really an exploratory thing, man." As much as fans want to hear him rap, it's difficult to deny Three Stacks' passion.