Andre 3000 announces surprise new solo album 'New Blue Sun'
Andre 3000 of Outkast performs at Samsung Galaxy stage during 2014 Lollapalooza Day Two at Grant Park on August 2, 2014 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images)
After 17 years, legendary Atlanta rapper Andre 3000 is coming back with a brand-new album.
Andre, half of the best-selling hip-hop group OutKast, announced Tuesday that he'd be back with a new album titled "New Blue Sun" on Friday, Nov. 17.
According to NPR's Rodney Carmichael, who interviewed Andre, the album doesn't feature the eclectic artist singing or rapping.
Instead, Andre plays various flutes on tracks with titles like "I swear, I Really Wanted To Make A 'Rap' Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time."
Speaking to Carmichael, Andre said that he's been waiting to find songs that he felt happy about sharing.
"That's why ‘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. I can't pretend in that way. That's always been hard for me," he said.
The Grammy-winning rapper and musician said the choice to do an album with no verses was not a "troll," but instead showed a different side of himself.
"I would love to be out here with everybody rapping, because it's almost like fun and being on the playground. I would love to be out here playing with everybody, but it's just not happening for me. This is the realest thing that's coming right now. Not to say that I would never do it again, but those are not the things that are coming right now. And I have to present what's given to me at the time," he said.
You can hear the full interview with Andre 3000 on NPR Music's website. The tracklist for the album is below:
"New Blue Sun's" tracks
- I swear, I Really Wanted To Make A "Rap" Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time
- The Slang Word P(*)ssy Rolls Off The Tongue With Far Better Ease Than The Proper Word Vagina. Do You Agree?
- That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther And Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn't Control ... Sh¥t Was Wild
- BuyPoloDisorder's Daughter Wears A 3000™ Button Down Embroidered
- Ninety Three 'Til Infinity And Beyoncé
- Ghandi, Dalai Lama, Your Lord & Savior J.C. / Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, And John Wayne Gacy
- Ants To You, Gods To Who ?
- Dreams Once Buried Beneath The Dungeon Floor Slowly Sprout Into Undying Gardens