50 Fun Facts About OutKast

At which Atlanta shopping mall did the two future members of OutKast meet in 1992?

Both were 16 and attended Tri-Cities High School, where they took part in cafeteria rap battles.

What is Big Boi's real name?

Patton had moved from Savannah to Atlanta with his four brothers and six sisters.

What was the duo's original name before a similarly named local singing group forced a change?

A group called 4 Shades Deep already existed; they settled on OutKast because their fashion sense set them apart from classmates.

Under what stage names did Patton and Benjamin originally perform?

Rooster and Percival were their characters in the 2006 film Idlewild.

Which production trio produced every track on OutKast's debut and later made hits for TLC?

Together with schoolmates Goodie Mob they formed the nucleus of the Dungeon Family collective.

OutKast were the first hip hop act signed to which label, run by L.A. Reid and Babyface?

Their first appearance was on a remix of labelmate TLC's 'What About Your Friends'.

What was OutKast's first single, released in 1993, which topped the Hot Rap Tracks chart?

It also topped the R&B chart for six weeks.

In which year was OutKast's debut album Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik released?

It is credited with laying the foundation for Southern hip hop.

At which 1995 ceremony did André declare, to boos, that 'the South got something to say'?

OutKast had just won Best New Rap Group amid the East Coast-West Coast feud; T.I. later called it the moment Southern rap got taken seriously.

OutKast's 1996 second album, with a spacier, dub-influenced sound, was titled what?

It sold nearly 350,000 copies in two weeks and its single 'Elevators (Me & You)' spent 20 weeks on the Hot 100.

What production company did OutKast form with David 'Mr. DJ' Sheats?

On a trip to Jamaica with Mr. DJ, the pair also decided to abandon their cornrows and stop combing their hair.

The title Aquemini combines the zodiac signs of the two members. Which signs?

Big Boi is the Aquarius and André the Gemini; the 1998 album reached No. 2 and went double platinum.

Which civil-rights icon sued OutKast in 1999 over a song bearing her name?

The case was settled in 2005 with the defendants admitting no wrongdoing but agreeing to fund educational programmes about her.

Which celebrated attorney was hired in 2001 to appeal the civil-rights icon's lawsuit against OutKast?

The appeal was denied; the judge called the song an 'expressive work' protected by the First Amendment.

Whose 1999 US tour did OutKast open for while promoting Aquemini?

It was the US leg of The Miseducation Tour.

What was the working title of Stankonia before its release?

It debuted at No. 2, went quadruple platinum and was the first hip hop album to openly cite rave culture as an influence.

What does the 'B.O.B.' in the title of Stankonia's first single stand for?

Pitchfork later named it the No. 1 song of the 2000s.

OutKast's 'Ms. Jackson' was inspired by André's breakup with which singer?

The song won Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the 2001 Grammys, where Stankonia took Best Rap Album.

Why did André change his stage name from Dré to André 3000 around 2000?

Big Boi kept his name, and their 2001 compilation was still called Big Boi and Dre Present... Outkast.

Which rapper debuted on Stankonia's 'Snappin' & Trappin'' and later featured on the Grammy-winning 'The Whole World'?

He was signed to OutKast's Aquemini Records imprint; 'The Whole World' won Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 2002.

In 2023 Speakerboxxx/The Love Below passed which album as hip hop's highest-certified ever?

Big Boi's half was a funk and Dirty South party record; André's featured only brief instances of hip hop.

How many weeks did 'Hey Ya!' spend at No. 1 on the Hot 100?

'The Way You Move' then took over for a week in February 2004, giving OutKast ten straight weeks at the top.

In the 'Hey Ya!' video, André plays every member of a fictional band performing in which city?

The band is called The Love Below, and the trick was pulled off with special effects.

'Hey Ya!' was the No. 1 song on the last weekend of American Top 40 hosted by whom?

It was still No. 1 a week later on Ryan Seacrest's first weekend as host.

The video for 'Roses' is loosely based on which two musicals?

Its sparring 1950s gangs represented the Speakerboxxx and Love Below halves, parodying fans' arguments over which was better.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below won which Grammy at the 2004 ceremony?

André closed the show with 'Hey Ya!' after the award had been presented.

Speakerboxxx/The Love Below was certified diamond in 2004 partly because of what RIAA rule?

It had sold about five million copies; by 2023 it was certified 13× platinum, the highest-certified hip hop album ever.

OutKast's 2006 musical film Idlewild was set in which era?

Directed by their video director Bryan Barber, it came with a blues-influenced hip hop soundtrack that became their final album.

Idlewild's single 'Morris Brown' takes its name from what?

Morris Brown College's marching band provided the instrumentation.

Idlewild's first single 'Mighty O' borrows its hook from which Cab Calloway song?

The 'Mighty-ighty-ighty O' refrain matched the album's mix of hip hop and 1930s jazz.

Big Boi's long-delayed 2010 solo debut, Sir Lucious Left Foot, carried what subtitle?

Its promo single 'Royal Flush' featured Raekwon and André 3000; the follow-up became Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors.

André 3000 played which musician in the 2014 biopic All Is by My Side?

He had earlier appeared in Four Brothers, Be Cool and Semi-Pro, and voiced a crow in Charlotte's Web.

André produced and voiced musician Sunny Bridges in which Cartoon Network animated series?

Sunny is a prize-winning musician who quits touring to teach at his old school.

OutKast's 2014 reunion tour opened at which festival?

They went on to play more than 40 festivals before the #ATLast homecoming shows in Atlanta.

Big Boi released the 2015 album Big Grams in collaboration with which electronic duo?

The pair had first announced plans for an EP together in early 2014.

André 3000 featured on 'Pink Matter' from which Frank Ocean album?

When Big Boi added a verse to a remix, André insisted it did not constitute an OutKast reunion.

OutKast contributed 'Land of a Million Drums' to the soundtrack of which 2002 film?

The Dungeon Family rapper who debuted on Stankonia also appears on the track.

OutKast were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in which year?

Rolling Stone had ranked them No. 7 among the 20 greatest duos of all time a decade earlier.

Big Boi guest-starred as hip hop artist 'Got$ Money' in a 2008 episode of which TV series?

André, meanwhile, played Robert Huggins on The Shield.

Which singer sampled OutKast's 'Git Up Git Out' for her 1999 hit 'Do Something'?

The original featured fellow Dungeon Family members Goodie Mob.

Big Boi and André were classmates at which Atlanta-area secondary school?

The two held rap battles in the school cafeteria, and their schoolmates Goodie Mob became part of the Dungeon Family nucleus with them.

Big Boi moved to Atlanta with his four brothers and six sisters from which Georgia city?

He and André met at 16. André, whose parents were divorced, was living with his father at the time.

Which ATLiens single reached No. 12 and spent 20 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100?

The album sold nearly 350,000 copies in its first two weeks and saw the duo produce many songs on their own for the first time.

On a trip to which country did the duo vow to abandon their cornrows and stop combing their hair?

The image reset came before ATLiens, when André also became a vegetarian and quit smoking marijuana.

'So Fresh, So Clean' credits which Organized Noize member as guest vocalist?

A remix added Snoop Dogg. All three Stankonia singles got heavy MTV2 airplay, and the album went on to quadruple platinum.

André 3000 voiced a crow in the film adaptation of which 1952 children's book?

His acting credits from the same era include The Shield, Be Cool, Four Brothers and Semi-Pro.

André 3000 played the recurring character Robert Huggins on which FX police drama?

The character first appeared in the season 3 episode 'On Tilt' in 2004, when the duo were at their commercial peak.

What hashtag branded OutKast's September 2014 homecoming concerts in Atlanta?

Openers included Janelle Monáe, Kid Cudi, 2 Chainz, Future, Bun B and Childish Gambino after five months of festival dates.

The 2012 Gorillaz single 'DoYaThing' with André 3000 was a free download promoting what?

James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem also appeared on the track, which was given away in February that year.

Which funk pioneer collaborated with OutKast on their 1998 third album?

Raekwon, Slick Rick and Goodie Mob also guested on the record, which reached No. 2 on the Billboard 200 and went double platinum.