OutKast - Aquemini
LaFace/Arista
September 29th, 1998.
OutKast hit their stride with ATLiens. The place and space in time met with the right spirits to convey said place and space in time. Aquemini pulls back on the 'weirdness' - although it's still inherently present - and hones in on the art of story-telling. When it comes to the house of Hip-Hop, projects don't come much more fulfilling.
Andre and Big Boi - young men; wise beyond their years. Unlimited souls with unlimited stories to tell. What happens to people that seem to turn up fully formed? Nature or nurture? When do standards become a necessary feature of their lives? Is there a trial-and-error period, or are their senses in tune from day one? Honed in on purpose, eyes on the end-goal. That which serves no longer dispensed with and forgotten about. A distant memory of the person you once were lingers - his shadow looms large, though he understands his place.
Andre and Big Boi are the yin to the others yang. Both intrinsically different, but inseparable. Magnetized by fate, they intertwine. The pair seem to be ultra aware of the woes of the world - rose-tinted glasses remain where they lie; in the bin. There ain't no help but your own. Reality hits like no other; if you're not ready you'll be swept away by anything. Drowned in self, and not the right kind. You get what you give - bad vibes beget bad vibes. Grow up or get grown - like a flower with no choice but to seek the sun; uproot and rise. Stand on your own two. Face the sun. Life's a death sentence. Things will loosen up if you want them to. Let pain be your guide - push, and pull back when it becomes too much to bear. Rest, re-access, and rise again. You reap what you sew. Like time, energy isn't linear. That shit circles infinitely. It doesn't begin and it certainly doesn't end.
There are a few hiccups along the way, but like life, something's bound to rub the wrong way - you can forgive 'Mamacita' for existing. It's surrounded by some of the finest songs that man's mind has ever conjured up.
The truth should shake your soul - stir you up. Once the dust settles, it will reveal itself as the catalyst for change. It breaks you, then it makes you.
Even the sun goes down, and heroes eventually die....
The South certainly had something to say.
