outkast
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Hip-Hopâs relationship with the other coasts has long been curious, marked at times by periods of disregard, surprise and respect. For Southerners, much of that affirmative praise comes from the work of rappers like Scarface, groups like UGK, 8Ball and MJG, and OutKast, and producers like Mannie Fresh, DJ Paul and Juicy J, and the production trio, Organized Noize.
Birthed in Atlanta, the collective of the late Rico Wade, Ray Murray, and Sleepy Brown, is responsible for not only some of musicâs biggest records but also for bringing life to a persona and energy that gave the South its moniker. The Dirty South, the monikerâs inception often credited to Cool Breeze, is a nod to the Goodie Mob song and a testament to the work they put in down in Wadeâs motherâs basement, affectionately known as âThe Dungeonâ. Their work in creating the music for OutKast, guiding the careers of Goodie Mob, and producing the music for the South elevated its position and laid the foundation for future Southern producers who followed in their footsteps.
Here are nine songs from the trio that should be on your playlist.
Cool Breeze- âWatch for the Hookâ
The funk, soul, and gospel-infused hook of Southern Man from New Orleans singer Merry Clayton is the perfect theme for this posse cut from one of the Southâs premier clans, the Dungeon Family. A play on the songâs chorus and the dynamicâs battle rap flow, it stands out as one of the DFâs most enjoyable cutsâtaken from Cool Breezeâs debut album East Pointâs Greatest Hit.
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Goodie Mob â âThey Donât Dance No Moreâ
Prophetic, satirical, and visually captivating, the hook is embedded in listenerâs minds, wedged in between the keyboard chords and vocals. An honest analysis of the changing landscape in rap, Goodieâs Mobâs lyrics focus on the increasingly violent and serious tone of rap music, which is why it remains one of groupâs most memorable songs.
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Ludacris â âSaturday (Oooh! Oooh!)â
The third single from Ludacrisâ multi-platinum sophomore album, Word of Mouf, the ear worm of a sample and vocals from Sleepy Brown help give the song a feel of nostalgia and bravado. âSaturdayâsâ success helped reintroduce Organized Noize to a newer generation unfamiliar with the music of OutKast and other premier artists of the 90âs.
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Goodie Mob â âCell Therapyâ
The sonics of the piano keys only added to the songâs jarring lyrics which foreshadowed the musical experimentation of Goodie Mob. In an interview with B-High of Hot 107.9, Khujo speaks on how the song came to be.
âWe went to Stankonia Studios and Ray (Murray) had a beat. That piano came on and I was like, What is this?! I got lost in the beat.â
Serving as the groupâs first single from its debut album, Soul Food, the songâs socially conscious themes and sci-fi focus led to it being banned on MTV. Controversy aside, the songâs production showed the world how creative and passionate Organized Noize was.
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Goodie Mob- âDirty Southâ
The definitive song, which featured Cool Breeze and Big Boi, for a whole region had to be considered near or at the top of the list. Iconic references to Atlanta staples like the Red Dog police unit, Ms Ann and her historic Ghetto Burger, and now demolished housing projects serve as a time capsule of Atlanta before gentrification. Safe to say, many people didnât know about the Dirty South prior to this declaration.
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OutKast â âSo Fresh, So Cleanâ
The songâs bassline, played by longtime bassist Preston Crump, and sleek vocals provide a groovy and memorable energy to the track, making it one of the OutKastâs most memorable songs. As for the video, the visual duality of their outfits and rhymes represents the yin and yang that make them iconic and this remains one of the best examples of each memberâs contribution.
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En Vogue â Donât Let Go
Yet another signature song from a girl group that came to define them as a whole while equally performing well on the Billboard charts. Arguably the most successful record En Vogue released, the songâs powerful piano chords and vocals brought the group a level of fame unlike anything they had ever seen. Envisioned by Rico Wade who subsequently suggested the song go to En Vogue, Donât Let Go spent 35 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, peaking at #2.
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TLC- Waterfalls
One of the biggest songs of its era and arguably the biggest song by TLC, the âWateralls’â iconic guitar and horn selection showcase the musical dexterity and genius of Organized Noize. A metaphor that touched on the social and spiritual issues of that time, âWaterfallsâ showed the world just how versatile and capable both groups were at making popular music.
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OutKast â âPlayerâs Ballâ
Without the work of Organized Noize, the world would never know about the genius of OutKast and Atlanta. A Christmas Carol about the joys of brotherhood and blunts, the song introduced the world to OutKast and set the stage for their future reign. Conceived in Rico Wadeâs basement, the music that followed allowed OutKast and Goodie Mob to shine, while in the process leading us to the one of the Southâs most important groups, the Dungeon Family.
In an interview titled Hip Hop: Songs that Shook the World, Big Boi spoke on the influence of Rico Wade and Organized Noize, stating,
â He was the gateway to LA Reid and he signed OutKast to LaFace through a production deal. Without Organized, there would be no OutKast or Goodie Mob. They put all their blood, sweat, and tears into making our first album.â
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Source: handout / Rico Wade
It has been a little over a week since the untimely passing of Atlanta Hip-Hop luminary Rico Wade. The founder of the Dungeon Family will be laid to rest on Friday, April 26 at a private funeral.
The late Organized Noize members homegoing will be held at the famed Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta. Per his press representative, Wade will be eulogized âprivately and by invitation onlyâ for close friends and family.
Although the services will be private, Clark Atlantaâs band is scheduled to perform hits produced by Organized Noize (Wade, Sleep Brown and Ray Murray) outside of Ebenezer Baptist, the same church where Martin Luther King, Jr. served as co-pastor and is currently lead by US Senator Raphael Warnock.
For those wanting to pay their respects along the funeral procession, details of the scheduled arrangements are below:
Event:Â Private Funeral Service for Rico Wade
Date:Â Â Friday, April 26, 2024
Time:Â 11 AM (arrivals typically happen 30 minutes prior)
Location:Â Ebenezer Baptist Church located @ 101 Jackson St NE, Atlanta, GA 30312
Procession to Gravesite Route:
Start MLK @ Mercedes Benz
Left on Harlan Road SW â Flowers to be laid at 409 Harlon Road SW
Right on Peyton Road SW
Right on Hayne
Left on Lynhurst Drive SW
Left Cascade Road
Right on Adams Drive â Flowers to be laid at 1590 Adams Drive SW
Left on Childress Drive SW
Left on Campbellton Road
Right on Delowe Drive
Right on Headland Drive â Flowers to be laid at the corner of Delowe and Headliand
Rest in powerful peace Rico Wade.
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Source: Ben Rose / Getty
Big Boi wrote an extensive tribute to the late Rico Wade of the Dungeon Family, sharing it with fans on social media.
As the Hip-Hop world is still reeling from the sudden death of southern rap trailblazer Rico Wade, one-third of the Organized Noize production crew and Dungeon Family founder, Big Boi opened up about the loss of his dear friend and collaborator. In a post shared on Instagram on Monday (April 15), the veteran MC and one-half of OutKast displayed a collection of photos and videos from the breadth of their 30-year friendship.
âThis is a different type of hurt âŚ. Slick Ricky Wade .. I know youâre with us STILL ⌠in a bigger role now⌠Big Angel Energy⌠the Highest of Vibrations ⌠Praise Yah,â Big Boi wrote in the caption of the post, ending off with hashtags honoring Wade and the Dungeon Family. The video clip in the post was taken from The Art of Noize documentary chronicling the Atlanta, Georgia production team of Wade, Sleepy Brown, and Ray Murray which had previously been streaming on Netflix.
âRico Wade is one-third of Organized Noize and heâs like the mouthpiece for that collective of producers. He was connected to LaFace Records through Pebbles âcause he went to school with Tionne âT-Bozâ Watkins from TLC. She connected him with Pebbles and through them, Pebbles introduced Rico to LA Reid,â Big Boi says before adding: âHe was like the gateway to get to LA, as well as the producers who produced Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik. They signed OutKast. Organized Noize were responsible for us signing to LaFace Records. So without Rico Wade, Sleepy Brown, and Ray Murray, there would [be no OutKast].â
The death of the 52-year-old Wade last Saturday (April 13) took everyone by surprise. Many others expressed their grief in posts shared on social media. Grammy Award-winning artist CeeLo Green offered up a heartfelt and lengthy tribute to Wade in his Instagram post. âI speak on behalf of all my brothers and all of your sons we #love you and I cannot thank you enough! Iâm forever in your debt. and all of the goodness God has promised us for going forward I shall give you a token of gratitude.. wow my elder is a ancestor now that means you really put that work in⌠amazing! Job well done.â
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Source: Gregory Bojorquez / Getty
Outkastâs SpeakerboxxxThe Love Below album has achieved the honor of being the highest-selling album ever in rap history.
Last Friday (Sept. 29), the fifth studio album from the duo of Andre 3000 and Big Boi was certified by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) as the top-selling rap album ever, going 13x platinum. The previous record holder was Eminemâs The Eminem Show which had been certified as 12x platinum just last year. The honor coincides with the albumâs 20th anniversary on September 23, which Outkast celebrated on their official Instagram account.
https://www.instagram.com/p/Cx4AioEsT_d/
Big Boi celebrated the achievement with a post on his own Instagram account showing him unwrapping the plaque marking the certification and record. âSpecial delivery just in time for the 20th anniversary 9/23/03âŚ#speakerboxxxthelovebelow Over 13 Million albums sold. ( Diamond & a 3.5 ) What Are Your Jams? @ outkast is everlasting. Stank You Smelly Much âŚTo All Yâall đ¸,â he wrote in the caption.
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The news comes as Outkast is giving SpeakerboxxxThe Love Below and their third album, 1998âs Aquemini special vinyl releases. For Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, it will be 4 LPs featuring the âPlatinum Chainâ for Big Boiâs album and âPearlsâ vinyl for Andreâs album. For the Aquemini release, the 3 LPs will be in a gold galaxy, cloudy magenta, and cloudy green vinyl. Fans can pre-order the vinyl reissues through Get On Down with Speakerboxxx/The Love Below set to ship in November and the Aquemini release to be sent out later in October.
Aquemini also celebrated its 25th anniversary on September 29th with Outkast releasing a new video for the highly popular track âSpottieOttieDopalisciousâ. The iridescent animated video was directed by OK Motion Club. âAs ATLiens, this project means so much to us. We couldnât be prouder of what we created and none of it could have been made possible without our incredible team of creatives!â, the Atlanta production company wrote on their Instagram page.
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Source: JESSE WENSING / Getty
Black peopleâs relationship with America has never been without struggle. But as with most things in life, the Black community has found a way to turn tragedy into triumph.
Hip-Hop has often been a vehicle for folks to celebrate their joys and acknowledge their losses. In light of Independence Day, check out these Hip-Hop hits that honor and encourage the peace and liberation that Black folks deserve.
âThis Is Americaâ- Childish Gambino
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Gambinoâs 2018 track highlights many of the complexities that come with being Black in America, while reminding folks to do what grandma said: âGet your money, black man.â
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