André 3000 has gotten used to not having expectations over the years. Since rattling the mainstream music foundation as one-half of Outkast, the 49-year-old has consistently thrown wrenches into what the world had come to know and accept as popular music, from the runaway success of his outré pop single “Hey Ya!” in 2003 to the boundary-shattering body of work he created with Big Boi.
Which is why it came as a surprise earlier this morning that “New Blue Sun,” his spacey, experimental flute-forward record, ended up getting three nominations for the 2025 Grammy Awards, including a coveted album of the year nod — up against Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter,” Taylor Swift’s “The Tortured Poets Department” and Sabrina Carpenter’s “Short n’ Sweet.” It’s the first time he’s been nominated in the category since Outkast’s “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” won in 2004, making it the second hip-hop album at the time to take home the prize.
“I’m used to people feeling a way, but at the same time, it’s just proof for me that I can only do what I’m into,” he told Variety shortly after the nominees were announced. “I think that’s why I’m here. I get up on trying to expand myself. I have to be fun and be into what I’m doing. That’s it.”
“New Blue Sun,” which released in Nov. 2023, also picked up nods for best alternative jazz album and best instrumental composition for “I Swear, I Really Wanted To Make A ‘Rap’ Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time” — a fitting summation for how, once again, his artistic instincts paid off.
What’s your immediate reaction to getting album of the year? It may have surprised a few people.
I felt that we tried to campaign to see if we could get into the alternative jazz or ambient category. So this morning, when the album of the year category popped up, I was really, really surprised because I didn’t think that that many people even knew about it. So I’m just happy that the votes came in that way and that people were paying attention, more than anything.
Are you surprised that people didn’t know about it? You’ve been performing this album for the good part of the year and it had attention on it.
Well, no, because when it first came out, people asked me if it was a real thing. We recently released a film, this film that went along with the album, we released it on YouTube and a lot of people on YouTube were saying, oh, I heard about this a little bit but I never checked it out until now. It’s almost had a second wave of people listening just because of that film. I feel the same way now. A lot of people may have heard about it but I think when you say André 3000 and flute album, which is misleading — they’re calling it that because I’m playing that mostly, but people think flute, they think pied piper, classic concert flute, Jethro Tull. But there’s a lot of awesome flute albums in the world, and this is way more than a flute album. I think people kind of swept it under the rug. So no, I don’t think a lot of people, even if they heard about it, I don’t think they checked it out because it was also promoted that there were no lyrics or verses on the album.
So do you think that makes it more difficult for average listener to find a way into it?
Yeah, if you’re used to a certain thing or expecting a certain thing. But no, once you get into it, for sure, I think it’s definitely a listening. It’s music for background in your life, it’s not [intense] music. It’s not like I’m trying to chokehold you into listening to my thoughts. It’s really for yourself.
The last time you were nominated and won this category was literally 20 years ago. What do you think it says about the trajectory of your career that you’re back at this point two decades later?
It really just lets me know in myself confirmation, because as artists, the doubts only come when you have to present it to people, you have to open the door and say, “Hey, check this out!” But while we’re making it, you’re going to have those doubts. So it reminds me that my career has been that the whole time. I haven’t changed my formula at all, I can only do what I enjoy doing at the time. Even with “Speakerboxxx/Love Below,” I have a cousin, my favorite cousin and after every Outkast album, I would sit with him in the car when we finished it and I would just play it for him. He was my older cousin that I looked up to, he was cool in high school. And so I would play him every album and after “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik,” every album I would play him, he would turn to me and say, “Man, I’m so scared for you André.” And so now at this point, it’s become, well I hope he’s scared for me. So I’m used to it at this point.
People have short memories, when “The Love Below” came out, that was a chance, like you are really out there with this record. People may have felt the same way about this. What do you think it says about your willingness to go where your artistic compass points you that leads you to these places?
That it’s normal for me. It’s only abnormal when I have to open the door to other people. That’s all it says. Because when I’m making these things, I’m not thinking, oh this is… It’s natural to me. It’s very, very natural because I’m in it. It’s not a thing, but you have to consider other people once you finish it and package it up and put it out. I remember when we were about to put out “Hey Ya!” as a single. At one point, the label was going to put it out as a white label, not saying who it was. So there are preconceived notions, like “This is Outkast” or “This is an André 3000 song, but it’s not a rap song.” And so it just lets me know you gotta do what you came to do. And I’m happy now because I’m old enough to see the kids that were around watching us do it, now they’re the stars and they’re pushing things. And I’m like, whoa, let’s go! I love it because they reach out to me and they give credit. Like man, I was talking to one artist’s mom, and she was like when he was young, he thought he was you. I was like whoa, that’s crazy! So that’s awesome.
Have you listened to the other records that you’re up against in album of the year, and what are your thoughts on where music is right now?
I think it’s interesting, because I think in life right now, we’re at a very interesting point as humans. I think something is shifting, something is changing. Things are being revealed, I don’t know. I don’t want to make it too esoteric but something is happening. And I think people are just exploring more. So I appreciate that, but music for me, I never judge music in a way that’s like, this is horrible, this is bad. It’s just what’s happening at the time. And generations are usually responding to the generation before in some type of way. So I’m always for it, man.
How has your attitude towards awards and getting nominated changed over the years? Does it feel today just as exciting as it was 20 years ago?
Yeah, for sure. And because of what it is. You don’t expect the recognition or to even be acknowledged for things that get heavy, heavy ridicule at first. I feel this way about awards in general. Any of these major, major awards like Grammys or Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, they’re institutions because of the artists. If there were no artists, there would be no institutions. But it’s always great to be acknowledged, man. People as humans, we want validation for our time of being here. These awards kind of do that in a way. Of course I’m not thinking of the Grammys when I’m making an album. That’s not a thing. But yeah, even on the street when someone tells you, “Man, I love this album, me and my kids listen to this album every morning,” that’s validation. So it’s just validation or proof of infiltrating people, proof of people enjoying that. I can dig that.
The idea of facing heavy ridicule, is that something you’ve personally felt in your career?
Oh yeah, for sure. My entire career has been that way. So I’m kind of used to it, but then you don’t get used to it because people become meaner and meaner. I think they have an entitlement of what you are and what you do, and I think the audience, even though I’m from Atlanta, it’s not Coca-Cola. Coca-Cola has a formula they can do over and over again. I think sometimes the audience feels, well why can’t you just do that over and over again? That’s not how it works. I do think the ridicule comes because their belief is, oh you can just go in there and do this. And if you’re not doing that, sometimes it’s disappointing to people. So there is ridicule.
What do you think it says about the evolving nature of hip-hop that you’re at this point in your career, you’re able to try something new and find this success so deep into it?
All I can say is, I wasn’t chasing the success. I was chasing the gratification of trying something new, of really pushing something. That’s what I get off on, I have to feel like I’m doing something interesting. That’s what I’m chasing. The work is done after the recording, like I tell any artist. I don’t care what genre you’re in. Visual art, film, music. Set realistic goals for yourself that don’t include any outside factors, because you’ll always be disappointed. You can never control what an outside factor will think, do or respond. Only thing you can do is do what you set out to do, and if you accomplish that, everything else is just gravy. That’s how you have to think about it.