If you happened to think that Outkast's massive 20th anniversary festival tour was going to lend itself to new music from the legendary hip-hop duo, think again. Andre "Andre 3000" Benjamin has declared that there are no immediate plans for him to reunite in the recording studio with Big Boi to drop a new album.
In a new cover story with Billboard, Benjamin denies any sort of new Outkast album, which is fair, considering he and Big Boi hadn't even dropped a new single or even hinted at one.
"There are no plans to do [an Outkast album]. It's not like some people think: 'They're about to drop this album!' We don't have, like, one song. There's no trickery or nothing like that," he said, dismissing the idea of any sort of surprise release.
Outkast went on an extended hiatus in 2007, following the release of its sixth studio album Idlewild. Though the duo was consistently critically acclaimed and had three No. 1 singles ("Ms. Jackson," "Hey Ya!" and "The Way You Move"), Benjamin admitted to feeling a little creatively stifled in the group, thanks to all the heightened expectations and popularity.
"I think fans kind of feel like, 'You made this. Keep making that because we like that,'" he said. "It's like a factory kind of thing. And I totally get it, being a fan of different bands. But I never got into music to do it like that."
Since venturing away from Outkast seven years ago, Benjamin has largely been featured as a guest rapper on other's music. He's guested on singles from the likes of Future, Frank Ocean, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross and more.
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