The new Big Boi solo album is about 80-percent done, and the 41-year-old emcee expects to be done with the follow up to 2012's Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors by January. In a new interview with Creative Loafing Tampa, the man born Antwan Patton also confirmed that Gucci Mane is definitely on the record and forgave Guwop for last week's Snapchat snafu that made it seem like a new Outkast album might be a possibility.
"Gucci is on this album, most definitely," Patton said. "He was just excited because the song was jammin’ like a motherfucker."
He expects to test some of the new material this weekend when he plays a DJ gig at Curtis Hixon Park in Tampa, Florida. on December 10. Other topics in the interview include the 7-5 Atlanta Falcons, the Dakota Access Pipeline, testing songs on his kids and his new love for HBO's Westworld.
See a few excerpts from the Q&A below, and read the feature story here. Get more information on the Saturday show benefiting onbikes via local.cltampa.com.
On Gucci Mane's recent Snapchat: Me and Gucci have a record. When he said "OutKast" he was just saying that I’m part of the group, so he was excited because the song was jammin’ like a motherfucker. I do have Gucci on this album — most definitely.
On the name of his song with Guwop: I can’t tell you because you might try to put it out.
What about other guests on the album: If I told you, then I’d have to send somebody to knock you off (laughs). That’s a joke, but I do I just want it all to be a surprise. I’m so ready for this record to come out, I’m about 80-percent done. I’ll be done probably by the end of January, but I’m really excited for people to hear it and perform it. It’s gonna be one of those records that people love top to bottom.
His reaction to the news that Dr. Regina Bradley at Armstrong State is teaching a class called “OutKast and the Rise of the Hip-Hop South” next spring: It’s an honor to be studied. My aunt sent me that article two or three days ago. I am originally from Savannah, and I remember Armstrong, so that is just super dope.
Will the new album be political? Like I said, it’s a time capsule. It’s like a diary, so it won’t be preachy per se, but I drop some things here and there, and people might to look up or read more, but there is an awareness. You can’t preach to ‘em — you have to entertain and educate at the same time. You do have to keep that shit jammin’ you know. I don’t give a damn what you’re saying, if it don’t sound good over the music , then they ain’t gonna hear that shit at all.
What about Gary Johnson, did he vote for the libertarian in 2016? I can’t even reveal it this time.
On being a husband and father before an being an artist: Being with the kids keeps me grounded. I bring them to the studio with me, but I also participate in all their activities in school. I think that’s one of the things that come with evolving as a person, as an artist and as an individual — you grow and as you grow everything around you progresses and elevates. We deal in positive energy around here, I have no complaints — we live a pretty sweet life.
Do his kids like the new album so far? Oh yeah, absolutely. It goes past them right when it comes out of the studio. They listen to it while I take them to school or take them to the bus, it gets the test. I put on certain songs and play certain beats then they get to dancing in the back seat or if we go to the movies, then they’re like ‘hey daddy play thing song, play no. 1, play no. 3,’ so those are the songs that stick. I know they have good taste because they’ve been doing this since “Bombs Over Baghdad” and “Ms. Jackson.” Everything I put out whether its Big Grams or Run the Jewels or whatever, they’ll be requesting song. I mean I already know which ones I like and just when you play them for different people you kind of get a sense for what people dig and it’s real cool, I’m glad they grew up listening to everything from Metallica to Gunsnroses to N.W.A. — everything I listen to, they listen to, so their taste in music is vast.
Do they tell you if something is whack? They just say, ‘eh I don’t like that one today.’ I don’t play nothin’ whack for them, I don’t even present that stuff. When I know it’s ready, then I’ll present it. They don’t get scraps — we’re batting a thousand over here.
On what his daughter Jordan listens to: Yeah, we she comes home I play her my music, and she might be playing who knows what, you know Leon Bridges and she turns me on to stuff like that. We talk about TV shows, like she just turned me onto Westworld on HBO and that’s some pretty wild shit. I turned her on to Stranger Things — we’re just real close knit.
On watching his sons grow up in 2016: It’s dope. For a long time you always think that they are still babies because they’re your kids, and then you look up and they’re 15 and 16. You’re telling them that’s the same year I hooked up with you uncle Dré in high school. I know what we were doing back then. My kids are pretty smart and pretty aware of what’s going on, so you just gotta keep a conversation going and be an hands-on parent. I’m a father and a husband, even before the music, I’m a parent and a dad before all of that. My boys are about to get their driver’s licences, and my fears used to be about them getting in an accident because they’re beginner drivers. But now there’s a fear of them getting pulled over. I had to have a talk with them. Tell them to keep it cool. They’re supposed to call me when before it happens and after it ends. When it’s happening, it’s ‘no sir, yes sir,’ hands on the wheel or dashboard and that’s it. It’s a shame you have to do that these days, but that’s just real life.
Does he test new material at his DJ gigs? I am definitely going to. It’s something I’ve been doing since I’ve been DJ-ing and we have the Dungeon Family DJs. I’ve been testing out certain songs. I had a residency in Vegas at the Wynn, I had to stop because I had to finish my record, so I cut that off a couple months back. Now I will test the records out and go crazy with the shit whether I’m DJing for Levi’s or Malibu Rum and these corporate events to test it out. That’s the great thing about DJ-ing. Even with Outkast records, we would make a record and then take it to the strip clubs on the same night to see how the people reacted — it’s like a built in crowd. I play new stuff, I get on the mic. I DJ, spin, rock the party play some new shit, do some classic shit, so I give the people a show.
This article appears in Dec 1-8, 2016.