Andre 3000 Explains Why The Flute Is More Rewarding Than Rapping

Andre 3000 has never liked conventions. He was breaking stylistic and sonic boundaries at every turn as part of Outkast. As a solo artist, he’s broken even more ground. Andre will stop appear on a rap song and deliver a devastating sixteen, but rapping doesn’t excite him like it used to. The artist prefers to play the jazz flute, as evidenced by his album New Blue Sun. Fans and rapping peers may want him to do what made him famous, but Andre 3000 is more concerned with following his muse.

The artist talked about his transformation from rapper to flute player during his recent appearance on HBO’s The Shop. He freely admitted that he was not an exceptional flute player. He went as far as to say that he doesn’t know what he’s doing when he’s on stage. The lack of awareness, and mastery, however, is part of the appeal. “I don’t know what notes I’m playing, to be completely honest,” he told the hosts. “I’m not trying to pretend like I know what I’m doing, in a way. I actually don’t know what I’m doing and that’s part of the art.”

Andre 3000 also addressed the his controversial statement about not wanting to rap over 40 years old. He told The Shop hosts that he supports people who continue to rap, but simply feels that he does not have the passion he once did. “I got homies my age and older than me that still rap,” he admitted. “So if it’s in you, you should rap until you die… But what I’m saying is, what it takes for me to do it, I’m always looking for the next.” The Outkast artist stated, very clearly, that he does not intended to do what’s expected of him simply because it’s expected.

Those lamenting the lack of Andre 3000 bars in the future needn’t throw in the towel, though. Three Stacks made it clear that he is open to rapping again, but it will need to be under circumstances that inspire him. “I can’t say [things] in a fresh, innovative way, if I feel like I’m just hanging onto the same flow that I used to do, it’s not enough for me,” he explained. “So I can’t talk for another rapper about what they doing. I just say, ‘Man, go for it. If it’s in you.'”