André 3000 has admitted that he “doesn’t like” fans being disappointed by New Blue Sun.
The OutKast legend released his long-awaited debut solo album last month, which saw him ditch rapping and showcase his talents as a flutist.
Despite being given plenty of notice that it isn’t a rap album, some fans were still disappointed by the ambient instrumental tunes — especially given the 17-year wait since his last full-length release, OutKast’s 2006 LP Idlewild.
During an interview with CBS Mornings, André 3000 shared his thoughts on the reactions to New Blue Sun, while sympathizing with people’s expectations.
“Even on the artwork it says, ‘No bars,’ so if you’re disappointed, man, I don’t know what else I could do,” he said. “I don’t like that people are upset a little bit about it.
“If I were waiting for a thing for 17 years, a certain thing that I’m looking for and, something else shows up, I’d probably be upset too. To be a rapper, you gotta be rapping. I haven’t been rapping, like I don’t hang around the studio.”
He added: “I don’t sit and try to rap every day like when I was younger, and that’s all I did. I miss those times a lot, but life changes, life moves on.”
Watch his comments at the 1:40 mark below.
Joe Budden was one of the most vocal critics of André 3000’s new album. While going back-and-forth with Lupe Fiasco over the Chicago native’s remix, he called New Blue Sun “worse than ass” and told fans to stop praising what he deemed lackluster work.
“Lupe is him,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “That flute shit was worse than ass… 2 things can be true… stop lying to your favorite artists for 2024, you might get better product.”
André 3000 has never hid the fact that New Blue Sun is not a rap album, with the opening song literally being titled “I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a ‘Rap’ Album But This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time.”
“I don’t want to troll people,” he told NPR before the album dropped. “I don’t want people to think, ‘Oh, this André 3000 album is coming!’ And you play it and like, ‘Oh man, no verses.’ So even actually on the packaging, you’ll see it says, ‘Warning: no bars.’
“It’s letting you know what it is off the top. But also, I love rap music because it was a part of my youth. So I would love to be out here with everybody rapping, because it’s almost like fun and being on the playground.”
He continued: “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.
“So the title, ‘I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a ‘Rap’ Album But This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time’ [is] because this album is about wind and breathing. In that way, it is true. It is literally blowing me this way and I’m blowing flutes and I’m blowing digital instruments.”
With a runtime of 12 minutes and 20 seconds, “I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a ‘Rap’ Album But This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time” recently became the longest track to appear on the Billboard Hot 100 in the chart’s almost 70-year history.
I would say why would you use your rap persona and image to release a bunch of ambient nonsense then say “I don’t feel like rapping anymore?” – seems like they found some ghost producer he liked and put this together thinking it was genius not realizing it wasn’t. Why not put it out under another name? and then making different legit rap cameos over the last 4-5 years then coming with this?
@Yousir You’re an angry little troll. Touch grass, loser
He needs to grant some interviews to black media outlets. I would love to see him interviewed by Club Shay, Questlove, or Talib. Stop granting interviews to people that only know “Hey Ya!”
i think his press moves are legit. it’s not a rap album. and CBS and GQ are reaching audiences outside of that. I think Questlove would be good tho, since he’s a self-proclaimed music nerd.
He knows there are fans(whatever remaining ones are left) wanting a rap album from him. If he has no intentions of releasing a rap album he should just say it. He doesn’t do this despite the indirect references that he won’t. Stop with the fooleries dre. If you’re done with rap, fine, but say it. Rap is a perishable skill. You don’t get better with age not in the game.
Why should he feel it’s a requirement to tell everyone of his life’s intentions. He doesn’t owe fans a thing.
You’re right he doesn’t but when you know a lot of people want an album from you, you kind of have an obligation to let them know especially when a flute album is what he had in mind.
Especially when he keeps dropping guest verses. There was no reason to think this album wouldn’t have him rapping on it…..until that part was announced and everyone was already over and done with it.
If youre favorite accomplished pianist attempted to start a rap career, Im sure the jazz or classical community would be in an uproar. So why is he suprised ? I think the reason this project is so hated is because of the state of hip hop. The young rappers are destroying it, so OGs throwing in the towel is never going to be embraced. Older fans want the legends to jump in and save hip hop, not jump off the rails of a sinking ship.
Don’t mind me. I’m just chilling to Bone Thugs N Harmony’s classic album. I like the smoothness of “If I could teach the world.”
Teasing that he has an album in the works, then proceeding to release an instrumental flute album is pretty much a massive “fuck you” to his fanbase. I’m a huge OutKast and Andre 3000 fan, but he knows what he did. This whole bullshit deflection by Andre 3000 is just passive aggressive and pretentious.
He didn’t say he had an album coming out until Nov 14 an on the announcement is showed the package of the album that read “Warning: No bars” and it came out a few days later. You act like it was some big bait and switch for weeks, months, years in the making when in reality it just popped up and he even said it’s not a rap album. It seems like the issue is you not understanding what “no bars” means. You don’t like flutes, don’t play a flute album
Im allowed to be disapointed in this album. Andre admitted he dont know notes. He said he has nothing to rap about at 48. Meanwhile Ive watched Nas put out 6 super solid albums in 3 years and he is 50.
I would love to hear an Andre album full of storytelling from his life.
Uhhh yeah cuz no one is trying to hear him play the flute that he doesn’t even know how to correctly play. Homie can’t even read sheet music. It’s such a joke. Especially the ppl who say it’s good. If this album was done by anyone else besides Andre 3000, ppl would be talking about how awful it is. Let’s be real here.
I’m not mad at 3 stacks, jus disappointed.