André 3000 appeared on the latest episode of LeBron James and Maverick Carter's The Shop alongside Sexyy Red and others. They touched on a variety of topics, including André's New Blue Sun and why he has yet to release a solo rap album. He and Sexyy Red also talked about how haters motivate them. That conversation sparked social media memes. Fans of André started "hating" on him so he could release a rap album.
The panel also touched on one of the most common critiques of modern popular hip-hop: it all sounds the same. Older fans lament the change in sound and pine for the days where hip-hop sounded the way it did a generation ago. Thanks in part to the rise of SoundCloud and the explosion in popularity of artists like Future and Young Thug in the mid-2010s, hip-hop evolved. André explained why he thinks so many new artists sound like what's already popular, and his answer was a straightforward one.
André 3000 On Why He Believes Many New Rappers Sound The Same
“If we were to come out as OutKast when we thought we were ready, we wouldn’t be around today ’cause we sounded like everybody else. We sounded like who we were listening to," said André 3000. "Now, I don’t think artists have time to cultivate themselves, so a lot of artists sound the same. You can quickly jump on a microphone — it’s awesome because you’re getting an immediacy, but you don’t get time to hone who you are [...] Even Future came up in the Dungeon. I know Ray has Future recordings where Future sounds different; Future was rapping. It takes a minute. Even 2 Chainz. Like, Tity Boi was rapping."
André 3000s's critique of the artist development process, or lack thereof, is not an uncommon one. TikTok trends have made it the easiest it's ever been to become famous. There are limited opportunities for development before they're thrust onto a national scale. Rappers like J. Cole or Kendrick Lamar performed on small stages before getting their mainstream moment. Lamar infamously performed at Best Buy in Compton once. That opportunity for development no longer exists in how it did for rappers from their era. Future and 2 Chainz, the two rappers André cited, underwent dramatic changes in their approaches to music before becoming popular. If they came out today, they might not have had the chance because of how easy it is to release music and find fame. André's perspective is an interesting one, and may provide an explanation for the way hip-hop continues to develop.
