The Making Of Outkast Aquemini

The folks at Creative Loafing rounded up 3 Stacks, Big Boi, Organized Noize, and others to reflect on ‘Kast’s 12 year old masterpiece. Read up here and peep an excerpt on “Rosa Parks” below.

Andre 3000: I actually submitted that beat to [Diddy’s old group] Total — ’cause I was going with Keisha from Total around that time — but they couldn’t use it, so we ended up using it.

By the time Aquemini came, I was stretching out as a producer. Big Boi was the family man. He had just had another kid, so he would come hang out at the studio and listen to the beats and make these big hooks. So it was a cool combination.

Big Boi: I took the beat home and I remember I was in my bedroom, and I was like, ‘I got the hook!’ I was playing the music loud as hell and I was just singing the hook: ‘Aah-haah, hush that fuss!’ Like, that’s it, we need to lay it down. So then, you know how we use these metaphors, [so we named it] Rosa Parks. Boom. We always do stuff like that and shit just falls into place.

mg

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  1. Post no billz says:

    Classic album.. Better ax somebody.. Da art of storytellin pt1 is my shiit! Still bumping this lp..

  2. Quake says:

    wow these guys are illuminati too? cheez i can see the all seeing eye on the cover smhhhh thats’ why i role with 50 Cent 🙂

  3. pissed says:

    Amazing album from an amazing group. Outkast is timeless.

  4. Nic says:

    @ Quake. fail. that is the Pharaoh’s eye. also known as the eye of Horus.

    awesome album. def one of my favs.

  5. DARKAQUA says:

    HOLY SH*T…THIS IS THE BEST DAMN POST OF THE DAY!!!

    SCREW ALL THE CDS AND RAPPERS POSTED ON TODAY….THIS CD RIGHT HERE IS A F*CKIN MASTERPIECE!!!!

    PLEASE SOMEBODY CHECK ME SO I CAN GO OFF…YEAH A F*CKIN’ MASTERPIECE!!!

    AND THAT SH*T STAIN TRIBUTE HIP HOP HONORS DID FOR ORGANIZED NOIZE……GARBAGE NINJAS, STRAIGHT GARBAGE!!!

  6. Ac@pella! says:

    This is one of the best albums in hip hop history PERIOD. I didn’t understand it when I was 12 listening to it, but when I got older, I did, and now after reading the brea-down of it, I REALLY understand where they were going with it. Outkast= The greatest group in hip hop HANDS DOWN!

  7. TJP17 says:

    This album is timeless, one of the greatest albums of all time. I bump this most days on my iPod. If any emcee wants to be taught the art of the craft. Then they should listen to this album. 3 Stacks is at his best on this album…

  8. amazinace says:

    “TWICE UPON A TIME THERE WAS A BOY WHO DIED, AND LIVED HAPPILY EVER AFTER/ BUT THATS ANOTHER CHAPTER…..”

    I USED TO SMOKE PURPLE TO THIS BACK IN THE DAY.

    DO YOUR HOMEWORK HIP-HOPERS!!!!!!!!!

  9. GarbageMan says:

    This is my favorite Hip Hop album of all time, shit…..this could quite possibly be my favortie album of all time.

  10. bap2313 says:

    Aquemini is classic. Outkast is the greatest hip-hop group ever. Nothing else needs to be said.

  11. Haters/Stans says:

    Holy shit Rosa Parks was gonna go to Diddy? Daaaaaamn that would be a completely different song! Thank God Outkast ended up with it and put out that little bit of awesomeness!

  12. dannidavito says:

    GO BUY BIG BOI’S ALBUM ALL YOU OUTKAST LOVERS! SUPPORT THE CAUSE!

  13. Alkaline says:

    I remember the day this album came out…Sept 28,1998. It was the same day Tribe’s The Love Movement,Jay-Z’s Hard Knock Life,Pete Rock’s Soul Survivor and Mos N Qweli’s BlackStar all came out. I only had enough money for 2 cds. So I had to go with the home team(I’m from Savannah and live in the A since 93). And I had to get Tribe’s last album. It was a great day for Hip Hop. Aquemeni is still my fave Kast album. Imma pull out the cd and vibe to it. I went back later n got all the other cds within the next few weeks! Dope ass article. Imma be on the look out for the physical article, gotta have them hard copies. Computers crash at times n you lose shit. Been to the store to pick Em and The Roots new albums Tues. I still get a rush from that. Support the music you love.

  14. will says:

    that shit was my cut still on the playlist

    like alot people dont realize these guys have released some real real good timeless fuccing music they are very underrated imo

    this and the Art Of Story Tellin wit Slicc Classic

  15. will says:

    the harmonica ending on the song then not to mention the video was fuccing awesome

    and Dre Verse and Flow was crazy

    Im bout to blast art of storytelling pt.1 right now fucc it

  16. K GRIZZLY says:

    IF HISTORY COULD TALKS ABOUT A GREAT ALBUM OUT THE SOUTH THIS ALBUM WILL BE SPEAK ON THE MOST ONE OF THE GREATEST ALBUMS EVER…FROM RETURN OF THE G,CHONKYFIRE,AQUEMINI MAMACITA AND SYNTHESIZER LOL

  17. pissed says:

    cosign TJP…3000 went IN on this album…i just remember hearing him on “Return Of The G” and that was IT.

  18. chitlin coon says:

    south was winning back then too!

  19. mac DIESEL says:

    ONE OF THE BEST HIP-HOP ALBUMS OF ALL TIME!!!! THIS IS MY SECOND FAVORITE ALBUM (ILLMATIC IS MY #1)!!!! THIS IS JUST A PERFECT ALBUM!!!! BRINGS BACK ALOT OF GREAT MEMORIES!!!! ’98 WAS A GREAT YEAR FOR HIP-HOP!!!! IT’S OUTKAST BITCHES!!!!! REAL KINGS OF THE SOUTH!!!!

    DON’T HATE ON MY OPINION!!!!

  20. Joshua says:

    5 MICS The best duo in Hip Hop

  21. ANITTIES says:

    the all seeing eye ,spaceship, pyramids in the background wasn’t expecting that from these nigguz guess they sold out long time ago

  22. CantGetRight says:

    ^ Please lets not be ignorant. Did you even read the article? Dre said “art of storytelling pt.2” was a song slightly touching on the world ending and them FIGHTING OFF the New world order. Come on man

    I still to this day bump this cd on a regular basis. Perfect album. Could talk about it allllll day. Hopefully,they do Stankonia next

  23. DunkDonDaDa says:

    I feel what everyone is sayin but I thinks southernplayalisticcadilacmuzic and ATLIeins runs circles around dis album

  24. Da Business says:

    Favorite Kast lp!!!

    ATLiens made me a fan, but Aquemini solidified their spot as hip hop gods.

    Favorite verse from the lp has to be 3stack’s last verse on “Aquemini”

    “My mind warps and bends floats the wind count to ten
    meet the twin Andre Ben. welcome to the lion’s den
    original skin many men comprehend
    I extend myself so you go out & tell a friend
    Sin all depends on what you believing in
    Faith is what you make it that’s the hardest shit since MC Ren
    Alien can blend right on in wit’ yo’ kin
    look again ’cause I swear I spot one every now & then
    It’s happenin’ again wish I could tell you when
    Andre this is Andre y’all just gon’ have to make amends”

    WHEW!!!!!
    Probably the GREATEST VERSE OF ALL TIME!!!

    1. Remember how dope of a read this article was? Lol I been a fan since my pops was bumpin SoutherPlayalistic in his ’83 Deville back in ’94.

  25. Alkaline says:

    Yeah. That’s my fave verse off there too, the flow was sick as shit.
    I feel this is their best album cuz on Southernplayalistic Dre outshined Big Boi lyricly. On ATLiens Big Boi was the most improved lyricly. But on Aquemini they complimented each other way better than ever. In my opinion they haven’t matched that chemistry since. Dre started singin more than he rapped after that and Big Boi always holds it down lyricly. Waitin on July 6. I parallel them to Tribe’s first three albums…Q Tip outshined Phife on Peoples Instinctive Travels. Phife was most improved lyricly on The Low End Theory and the complimented each other the best on Midnight Marauders, my favorite album by them.

  26. SkidaRoc says:

    I’ve listened to “Da Art of Storytellin’ Pt 1 more times than I can count. Aquemini is simply timeless.

  27. Derty Kevin says:

    Great album, nothin better than pullin up to the club bumping “So Fresh So Clean”. I wish Outkast did more work with Organized Noise, they made some classic tracks together.

  28. Brown Jesus says:

    ^
    Ahh, “So Fresh So Clean” was from Stankonia not Aquemeni. Just saying!

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