André 3000 has made his official return to the music industry with a debut solo album, that’s “entirely instrumental.” No rhymes, he’ll only be playing the flute.
André 3000 announced the news on Tuesday, describing the project — titled “New Blue Sun” — as “an entirely instrumental album centered around woodwinds; a celebratory piece of work in the form of a living, breathing, aural organism.”
The project, which was produced under Sony Music’s Epic Records, was co-produced by André and instrumentalist and music producer Carlos Gabriel Niño. “New Blue Sun” will be released on Friday, Nov. 14 and will feature an eight-song track list. Nate Mercereau, Surya Botofasina, Deantoni Parks, Diego Gaeta, Matthewdavid, V.C.R, Diego Gaeta, Jesse Peterson and Mia Doi Todd are slated as featured artists.
“The album is a stunning 87-minute mind-bender, minimalist and experimental, tribal and transcendent. One thing it’s not, however, is a rap record: No bars, no beats, no sub-bass,” NPR Music wrote in a joint post with the musician. “André doesn’t sing on this joint, either. What he does do is play flute, and plenty of it — contrabass flute, Mayan flutes, bamboo flutes — along with other digital wind instruments. In place of lyrics, he offers eight provocative song titles, the first of which almost reads like a low-key apology, with a knowing wink of irony: ‘I swear, I Really Wanted To Make A ‘Rap’ Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time.’”
In a statement, André 3000 addressed his decades-long break from releasing music.
“There’s this misconception that I just won’t do it. I think people feel like I’m sitting around on rap albums, or sitting around and I’m just not putting them out in that way. And no it’s not like that,” André 3000, who will only be playing the flute on “New Blue Sun” said.
“In my mind, I really would like to make a rap album,” he continued. “So maybe that happens one day, but I got to find a way to say what I want to say in an interesting way that’s appealing to me at this age.”
Here’s the entire track list, per reports.
1. I swear, I Really Wanted To Make A “Rap” Album But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time
2. The Slang Word P(*)ssy Rolls Off The Tongue With Far Better Ease Than The Proper Word Vagina . Do You Agree?
3. That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into A Panther And Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn’t Control … Sh¥t Was Wild
4. BuyPoloDisorder’s Daughter Wears A 3000™ Button Down Embroidered
5. Ninety Three ‘Til Infinity And Beyoncé
6. Ghandi, Dalai Lama, Your Lord & Savior J.C. / Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, And John Wayne Gacy
7. Ants To You, Gods To Who?
8. Dreams Once Buried Beneath The Dungeon Floor Slowly Sprout Into Undying Gardens
André 3000 is most famous for being the other half of the Hip Hop duo OutKast, which formed in Atlanta, Georgia in 1992 and was made up of rappers André 3000 and Big Boi. Some of their biggest hits are “Player’s Ball,” “Hey Ya,” “So Fresh, So Clean” and “Roses.” The two parted ways in 2006, and since then André 3000 has come in and out of the music arena, contributing to songs as a featured artist on fellow musicians’ projects.
