I came across a cool article on HipHopDx via Creative Loafing ATL about The Making of Outkast’s album, Aquemini. The article gives some interviews with different people involved in the creative process of each song. Many of the tracks producers, musicians and of course Big Boi and Dre, provide some incredible insight about the album. I don’t like to hearing or seeing too much about the making of tracks and albums only because it takes away the “magical mystery” of the song but this article is really cool. Here are a few exerpts about my favorite tracks. I forgot about the drama surrounding the title of their single, Rosa Parks.
The Making of Outkast’s Aquemini
“Aquemini”
Produced by OutKast for Earthtone
A three-dimensional aural massage with a mystical hook that gave cause to question everything you ever thought you believed and to believe nothing you never thought to question
Mr. DJ: On the album before Aquemini, me and Dre grew dreads. We went to Jamaica one time and took our cornrows out and we swam in the ocean, and we decided we were never going to comb our hair again.
After having dreads you realize how people discriminate against you just because of the way you look. Towards the end, around the time we got ready to do this album, we just cut our dreads off. So that’s what Dre was referring to when he says: ‘Is every nigga with dreads for the cause?/Is every nigga with golds for the fall?” He’s just explaining that you can’t judge a book by its cover.
Andre 3000: I was a young man searching, a young black man, so I was looking into Rastafarianism, Islam, whatever. I started to notice that all the stories were similar, it was more about a mutual respect and exchange of energy. When you rap and say anything kinda conscious, all the conscious people approach you. So after ATLiens I got it all – from books on sex to [metaphysics] and religion. But you also get introduced to a lot of fake phony ass people, and I addressed it in the song. You find some of the fakest people with dreads pouring oils on you. And it’s really kind of mind-blowing when you’re a young person and you start to find out some of this is bullshit, so then you’re just out there searching.
Big Boi: ‘Aquemini’ was just the meshing of both worlds, with me being an Aquarius and him being a Gemini. It was subtle on ATLiens, but by the time we got to Aquemini it was like we had two different visions that were [parallel]. So the thing with us was to always show the team.
“West Savannah” feat. Sleepy Brown
Produced by Organized Noize
Originally recorded for OutKast debut, “West Savannah” drips with Organized Noize’s snappy-nappy funk and a youthful-sounding Big Boi giving listeners a too-grown-for-his-own-good guided tour through his native Savannah stomping grounds.
Big Boi: A lot of times when we record, we over record. Dre also had a song called “Bow Your Head.” It was the counterpart to “West Savannah,” so with different albums we might throw like a bonus in there for the listeners, to give them something that’s nostalgic of the times and Dre said, “We need to throw that ‘West Savannah’ on the record.” So I was like, “Shit, let’s do it.” And you know that’s my hometown. I’m from Savannah, Ga. and there’s a lot of people there that I love and my family is there, so I’m all about it.
Andre 3000: Sometimes songs are done ahead of their time. It was done during Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik. Some songs sit, like “Hey Ya” was done three years before it came out.
Check out the full article at Creative Loafing ATL. Link below
The Making of Outkast’s Aquemini
