André 3000 opens up about ‘New Blue Sun,’ his daring new solo album
Subject
André 3000 New Album
Description
At a certain point in the winding lifespan of André 3000’s musical journey, there came a time when we as fans began to worry less about his lack of creative output and more about his general well-being. He’d ascended pop’s mountaintop as the outrageous half of OutKast, the best-selling hip-hop duo of all time. Then, without much explanation, he bowed out. He grieved the loss of three parents (mom, dad and stepdad) in a decade’s time. And, for years, the only glimpse we got into his state of mind were the random guest verses he’d kill at will or the doubly random social media sightings of him inexplicably playing flute while wandering the Earth solo.
Catching him in the act became a game overzealous fans played — like some hip-hop version of Where’s Waldo? — almost against his wishes. But he was also “in on the joke,” he assures me. “I laugh at it because my homies in Atlanta, we’ll talk and they’ll be like, ‘Man, you know n***** think you crazy to f*** around with this flute.”
Creator
Rodney Carmichael
Source
Publisher
npr
File

You have read your 5 free records this month
Create a free account to keep reading. It takes a moment, and it helps us keep this archive growing.
- Unlimited recordsEvery story in the archive, with no monthly count.
- Your saved listKeep the records you want to return to in one place.
- The weekly digestNew stories from the United States and across the diaspora, by email if you want it.
Your free records start again on the first of the month. The Local History Index, collections, exhibits and research pages are always open.
About this record
This entry describes and links to someone else's work. Here is how it came into the archive and what we know about the original.
- How it arrived
- Entered by an editor
- Record last revised
- August 4, 2026
Know something about this record?
Corrections, names, dates, places, family and community context, or a link to another record. Everything is reviewed by an editor before it appears, and contributions stay separate from the archive's own description.


