Outkast This article is more than 9 years oldAndré 3000 on the Outkast reunion tour: 'I felt like a sell-out'
This article is more than 9 years oldThe rapper says he committed to the tour because he had to ‘support certain things’, and only customised jumpsuits made it interesting
Outkast’s 20th anniversary reunion tour this summer left many fans dissatisfied – the Guardian’s review of the first show, at Coachella, noted that “it felt like two solo shows awkwardly attempting to become one” – and now André “3000” Benjamin has admitted he felt like a “sell-out” and that Coachella was “a horrible show”.
Interviewed by Nicolas Jaar for The Fader, he said: “Honestly, just, you know – I didn’t wanna do the tour. We hadn’t performed in 10 years. It was old songs. I’m like, ‘How am I gonna present these songs? I don’t have nothing new to say.’ So I was like, maybe I can start saying new stuff while doing these old songs.”
He did that by wearing different customised jumpsuits to each show from Coachella onwards. “It became a theme where I was more excited about this than the actual show,” he said. “This is fun, running out in these.”
Benjamin said criticism that Outkast were touring for financial reasons was not far off the mark. “I felt weird about going out on stage and doing it again. I felt like people would be like, ‘Y’all are doing all these festivals, y’all are just doing it for money.’ And I felt like a sell-out, honestly. So I was like, if I’m in on the joke, I’ll feel cool about it.
“It was a decision. I’m 39, I got a 17-year-old kid, and I gotta support certain things. And my partner Big Boi is like, ‘This is a great thing for all of us.’ So I felt like there was a certain sell-out in a way, because I didn’t wanna do it – I knew I was doing it for a reason. So maybe if I’m telling people, ‘I am selling out,’ then it’s not as bad as pretending. It’s being honest about it like, ‘Shit, I did these songs when I was 17 and I’m out here pedaling them now.’ But it’s the honest thing, that’s what it is.”
In August, Benjamin told the New York Times that after the Coachella show, Prince had called up with some advice on how to make the shows better. “He said: ‘When you come back, people want to be wowed. And what’s the best way to wow people? Just give them the hits.’”
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