OutKast Biography

OutKast came together while the members were still high school students in 1992. The Georgia-based duo consisting of Andre Benjamin and Antwan Patton signed to LaFace Records and released their debut, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, in 1994, immediately hitting the hip-hop charts with the single “Players Ball.” ATLiens came next in 1996, and by the new millennium, OutKast was rising to the charts and gaining nationwide popularity, not to mention critical acclaim and recognition.

A series of hit albums and singles followed, including: Aquemini (1998), Stankonia (2000), Speakerboxxx/The Love Below (2003), Idlewild (2006), “Hey Ya!,” “The Way You Move,” “B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad),” “Ms. Jackson,” “So Fresh, So Clean,” “The Whole World,” “Funkin’ Around,” “Movin’ Cool (The After Party),” “Roses,” “Prototype,” “Ghettomusick,” “Mighty O,” and “Idlewild Blues (Don’tchu Worry ‘Bout Me.)” The latter two stemmed from OutKast’s foray into film with the movie Idlewild, set during the era of Prohibition and featuring a hip-hop, blues-infused soundtrack. Both the film and soundtrack were released in 2006 to critical acclaim.

OutKast is recognized as a breakthrough group for the music industry, becoming the first and so far only hip hop group to earn the Grammy for Album of the Year (in 2004, for Speakerboxxx/The Love Below.) In addition, OutKast has earned awards for Best Rap Performance, Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Best Rap Album, Producer of the Year, and Best Urban/Alternative Performance.  Their total of six Grammy wins and more than twenty-five million copies of their albums makes them among the most successful hip-hop groups of all times.

Currently, OutKast has been on hiatus since 2007, and both members have pursued a number of other solo projects in music and film. OutKast recently signed to Epic Records in 2011, however, launching buzz about a potential new album or future project coming soon.