Outkast

**Outkast** (sometimes written as **OutKast**) was an American hip hop duo. Its members, André "André 3000" Benjamin and Antwan "Big Boi" Patton, were musicians. At first they were known as **Two Shades Deep**. Their early music was a mixture of Southern hip hop and G-funk. Their later music includes rock, electronic, soul, jazz, funk, and blues sounds. In 2003 Outkast's singles "Hey Ya!" and "The Way You Move" from _Speakerboxxx/The Love Below_ reached both number one on the _Billboard_ Hot 100. Outkast has won six Grammy Awards.

### Beginning years, _Southernplaylisticadillacmuzic_, _ATLiens_, _Aquemini_ and _Stankonia_ (1992-2001)

Outkast started in 1992 when Benjamin and Patton were students at Tri-Cities High School in Atlanta. They were signed to LaFace Records that year. Their first album, _Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik_, was released on April 26, 1994. The album was produced by Organized Noize. The album was important in the making of Southern hip hop.

In 1996, Outkast released their second album, _ATLiens_. It entered the US _Billboard_ 200 at number two. Three singles were released from the album.

Outkast's third album _Aquemini_ was released on September 29, 1998. It got good reviews from music critics.

On October 31, 2000, _Stankonia_ was released. It entered the _Billboard_ 200 at number two after selling over 530,000 copies in its first week. Outkast's first greatest hits album _Big Boi and Dre Present... Outkast_ was released on December 4, 2001.

They did have tours for these four albums.
The Southernplaylisticadillacmuzic Tour (1994-1995)

The ATLiens Tour (1996-1997)

The Aquemini Tour (1998-1999)

The Stankonia Tour (2000-2001)

### _Speakerboxxx/The Love Below_ (2002-2004)

In September 2003, Outkast released _Speakerboxxx/The Love Below_. The album was different to Outkast's previous albums because it was a double album. The double album is actually two albums. _Speakerboxxx_, the first disc, is an album by Big Boi. _The Love Below_, the second disc, is an album by André 3000. _Speakerboxxx/The Love Below_ is Outkast's best selling album so far. It won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 2004. It was the first hip hop album to win the award. The album's first single "Hey Ya!" was number one in the United States for nine weeks. It sold over one million copies there. It also reached number one in Canada, Australia, Norway, and Sweden. The second single "The Way You Move" spent eight weeks at number two in the _Billboard_ Hot 100. In 2004, the album's third single "Roses" was released. It reached number four in the UK Singles Chart.

They had a tour for this album from 2003-2004.

### _Idlewild_ (2005-2006)

On August 22, 2006 Outkast's sixth album _Idlewild_ was released. The album was the soundtrack for the movie _Idlewild_. Rolling Stone gave the album four out of five stars.

They had a mini-tour in 2006.

## Other websites

- Official website

## Infobox (musical artist)

- **name**: Outkast
- **image**: Outkast.jpg
- **caption**: André 3000 (left) and Big Boi (right), the two members of Outkast
- **alias**: Two Shades Deep
- **origin**: Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.
- **past members**: * André 3000
* Big Boi