For the first time since his days in OutKast, André 3000 has announced that his first solo album New Blue Sun is set to be released November 17th.
The rapper had previously been known as one half of the hip-hop duo OutKast, making some of the most acclaimed rap music of the 1990s and early 2000s alongside his partner Big Boi. Since they split in the mid-2000s, 3000’s career has been reserved only for guest verses, dropping bars for artists like Beyonce, Anderson Paak and Gorillaz, among others.
According to 3000, the album began life when working with Tyler, the Creator, telling NPR, “I remember I had maybe four songs, and I was just kind of testing it out ’cause I wanted to see how a younger audience would perceive it. I live in Cali now, so I reached out to Tyler for him to check it out and I went to his house”.
While the album will be his first proper solo outing, this is not the first time 3000 has made an album alone. Despite the terminology, many fans consider the double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below the first proper 3000 solo album, with the duo splitting up to cut solo projects sold as one disc.
When talking about his approach to music, 3000 also went into depth about finding music that moves something in him. Rather than approach from a position of strength, the rapper preferred to make songs based on his muse, explaining, “If I can’t find a way to rock on it, I’ll just leave it there”.
Outside of 3000’s various guest verses, he has been spending time as an actor, playing Jimi Hendrix in the 2013 film All Is By My Side. His public appearances have also shown him doing various eccentric musical projects, including playing the flute on public transportation.
In preparation for the album’s release, 3000 noted wanting to share the music with the world, stating, “New Blue Sun was something that I realized, whoa, I really want people to hear it. I really want to share it. That’s my only gauge. I have to like it as a person, as an artist myself, because if I don’t like it I can’t expect nobody else to like it”. New Blue Sun is set to arrive on November 17th, 2023.
