Category: Digiwaxx Culture

  The fourth album from Outkast might not be the first album people mention in their discography but it was their most experimental. The anticipation for ‘Stankonia’ was high but also one of intrigue. The first single ‘B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)’ took a bit of getting used to. The high energy, 153 beats per minute single was not something terrestrial urban radio was used to. One could argue that Outkast single handedly changed the course of mainstream sound at the time because of it. The evidence was clear that like their previous albums, Outkast was still on a mission to make each album radically different from the last. I remember hearing this album for the first time after getting an advanced promotional copy (hence the album cover. Thanks Margaret). By this time ‘B.O.B.’ is the only single out so hearing songs like ‘So Fresh, So Clean’ and ‘Ms. Jackson’ almost provided a sense of normalcy while listening. ‘Stankonia’ did however offer more of that unexpected bounce and energy ‘B.O.B.’ prepared us for. ‘Snappin’ & Trappin’ sounds like Hip-Hop on speed and ‘Gangsta Sh*t’ is like the hardcore street version of ‘Spottieottiedopaliscious’ from their previous album. What makes ‘Stankonia’ great is on paper these songs and features might seem all over the place but the sequencing of this album might be what made it work all these years. The listener is taken on a rollercoaster ride with exactly the right “turns” and “speeds.” When ‘We Luv Deez Hoez’ seem like the album could be headed towards a down fall, ‘Humble Mumble’ comes in to save the day. This for me made songs that I didn’t initially think were strong fit right into the album and give the overall project a win. Outkast understood their sound by the year 2000 and although Organized Noize did a few tracks on this album, what the people heard musically was overwhelmingly of Big Boi and Andre 3000 as Earthtone III. Features also included Goodie Mob, B-Real, Erykah Badu, Sleepy Brown, Slimm Calhoune, Backbone and the introduction of Killer Mike. An amazing feat of Outkast was getting me to enjoy a track with guest Gangsta Boo. I was never in a headspace to hear her but Outkast once again created magic, as well as a clever song that we ALL can relate to in ‘I’ll Call Before I Come.’ ‘Stankonia’ has always been a fun listen throughout the years. It’s an album that although has had success, there is this silent lack of respect for it but quite possibly because it was light years ahead of it’s time. What did you think of the album? Singles include: ‘B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad),’ ‘Ms. Jackson’ & ‘So Fresh, So Clean’ Listen to QUANTUM LEAP RADIO every Saturday from 4-6p.m. CST & Thursday from 1-3a.m. CST on 90.1 FM KPFT Houston in HD2 Worldwide @kpft.org/listen (under “kpft in HD2”) or get the KPFT APP in your playstore!!! Catch past episodes by searching and following @https://linktr.ee/QLEAPRADIO

  This is the beginning of an era, a movement and a legacy. Outkast seemed to appear among a multitude of southern acts during the mid 1990’s. At this time the sound and interest of HOP music was reaching beyond the East and West Coast. With their first single ‘Player’s Ball,’ I personally remember just hearing it as “background noise” and not paying much attention to it. By the time the second single, which is the title track for the album dropped, the understanding was this group might be a bit more ahead of the race than their current peers. Although that was a merit for them, Outkast still was not the groundbreaking group we know them to be today. It personally took their second album ‘ATLiens’ and a couple of songs replayed from this album on college radio for me to eventually sit down with the record a few years after its release. ‘Crumblin’ Erb’ was the main catalyst for me to listen to ‘Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik.’ Growing up in the south and in particular the area I grew up in, that “audience” I never associated with the vibes ‘Crumblin’ Erb’ present. Needless to say it made me appreciate those first two singles more and as a whole this album was planting a flag for the group and the city of Atlanta. Between ‘Myintrotoletuknow’ and ‘Ain’t No Thang,’ it was clear that Outkast was providing a sound bigger than what I had ever expected from this first album. Organized Noize and Outkast were a symbiotic relationship on this record favorable to your arm and hand. Providing Outkast with music that fit their personalities and experiences, while also being a bridge to sounds the audience were married to from the East and West Coast, made this album a perfect fit for the diversity and fresh sounds HOP music birthed during 1994. Outkast do a great job of not preaching to listeners but relaying point of views that can be true learning lessons like on ‘Call Of Da Wild’ and Git Up, Git Out,’ which ironically are the introductions to the public of Goodie Mob. There is another side to the South that they display which is “Southern soul music” which they do unapologetically on ‘Funky Ride.’ In 1994 this seemed like a huge risk in the eyes of record executives, as having R&B songs on a Hip-Hop album was not yet common. It worked as well as moments like ‘Hootie Hoo’ which begins like it will be one of the more weaker tracks, until about a minute and a half in and Organized Noize start to build on the track with live instruments that gives the song a whole new life by the end of it. ‘Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik’ is this hidden seed that a person like myself could not actualize at the time. Outkast was building their presence and setting a blueprint for how they would create and evolve later. The intro to ‘D.E.E.P.’ literally is the “alley op” to what would become their “benchmark release” ‘ATLiens.’ What did you think of the album? Singles include: ‘Player’s Ball,’ ‘Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik’ & ‘Git Up, Git Out’ Listen to QUANTUM LEAP RADIO every Saturday from 4-6p.m. CST & Thursday from 1-3a.m. CST on 90.1 FM KPFT Houston in HD2 Worldwide @kpft.org/listen (under “kpft in HD2”) or get the KPFT APP in your playstore!!! Catch past episodes by searching and following @https://linktr.ee/QLEAPRADIO