Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is the fifth studio album by the American hip hop duo Outkast, released on September 23, 2003 by Arista Records. Issued as a double album, its length of over two hours is spread across two solo albums from both of the group's members. Big Boi's Speakerboxxx is a Southern hip hop album with progressive qualities and influence from the P-Funk sound; André 3000's The Love Below largely departs from hip hop in favor of pop, funk, electro, psychedelia, and jazz styles while drawing inspiration from artists such as Prince and D'Angelo.[5]
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below
September 23, 2003
2002–2003
134:49
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below was supported with the hit singles "Hey Ya!" and "The Way You Move", which both reached No. 1 on the US Billboard Hot 100, and the top-10 hit "Roses". The album debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with sales of 510,000 copies in its first week. It eventually amassed a total of seven non-consecutive weeks at the top of the chart and 24 weeks in the Top 10. It has been certified diamond and 13 times platinum by the RIAA (each disc in the double album counted as a separate unit for certification). As of March 2012, it has sold 5.7 million units in the United States.[6]
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below received widespread acclaim from music critics, who praised the consistency of Big Boi's Speakerboxxx and the eclectic musical style of André 3000's The Love Below. It topped The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop critics poll, garnered the most total votes for any number-one album in the history of the poll, and won Album of the Year and Best Rap Album at the 46th Grammy Awards, while "Hey Ya!" won Best Urban/Alternative Performance. The album has been acclaimed as one of the greatest albums of the 2000s and was ranked 290th in Rolling Stone's 2020 edition of their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.
Background[edit]
Following the release of Outkast's fourth studio album Stankonia (2000), André 3000 felt urged to do something different from his previous projects and moved to Los Angeles to pursue an acting career. He was relatively unsuccessful, landing a minor role in Hollywood Homicide (2003) and a one-episode appearance in the drama series The Shield. He returned to music and recorded a solo album that was different from the material he had recorded as part of Outkast. The output was a blend of pop, jazz and funk with live instruments and more singing than rapping.[7] When writing songs, he used a microcassette recorder in order to "record melodic ideas and lyrics, then build the melody around the lyrics".[8]
The CD artwork is designed so that the Speakerboxxx artwork is on the front of the case, whereas the Love Below artwork is on the back of the case. These images are merged on the artwork displayed on online stores (Front cover on left, back cover on right). The CD booklet and the credits printed within is also divided in half and the back cover is printed on both sides, allowing fans to customize who appears on both the front and back covers.
Recording[edit]
The recording of The Love Below began at André 3000's Los Angeles home, using Pro Tools software,[8] in addition to a drum machine, keyboards and various synthesizers.[9] He enjoyed the atmosphere of recording at home instead of a studio, saying to XXL, "it didn't start in the studio because if you have a bunch of people around, they're coming from the party and I'm in there singing falsetto ... those vibes didn't match." His initial sessions were hampered by his inexperience with Pro Tools and, unaware how to edit his recordings, he opted to record songs such as "Pink & Blue" in their entirety.[8] Other gear used included an Avalon VT737 SP and AD2055 EQ and AD2044 compressors for his vocals.[9] After creating five songs, he informed Big Boi of the solo project he had been working on.[7]
Big Boi had already recorded some songs when André 3000 had contacted him, but after their conversation he decided his next project would be Speakerboxxx.[7] Describing his approach in the studio, Big Boi later commented to XXL, "the idea was just to keep it funky, keep it jamming, it's always bass-heavy. And lyricism, it's all about lyrics, taking pride in your pen and your pad." His favorite song to record was "Unhappy". He spent several days working on its hook before driving to his mother's home and playing the song in her driveway, to which she responded enthusiastically.[8] At some point in the recording, the project moved to OutKast's Stankonia Studios in downtown Atlanta, which had been used to record OutKast's previous release and namesake. John Frye, the studio manager and an engineer, would later recognise that much of the media attention surrounding the album's recording was concerned with André 3000 and Big Boi's working relationship and why they had chosen to record separately. He concedes that both enjoyed working solo and were doing so more frequently, but they continued to share and critique each other's music.[9]
John Frye also describes how the format of the projects changed rapidly. Initially intended as two separate solo releases, they decided to merge their work and create a soundtrack album as André 3000 had initially intended. The duo then began preparing to work on a motion picture, but reconsidered and compromised by interpolating background noise into songs, such as the slamming of car doors and footsteps.[8][9] They eventually settled on releasing a double album. Frye noted the end of the recording sessions as particularly stressful for André 3000, who he described as drained from working at four studios simultaneously. In total, an estimated 120 songs were recorded for Speakerboxxx/The Love Below.[9]
Music and lyrics[edit]
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below is a 135-minute double album comprising a total of 40 tracks, including 11 interludes.[10] It is a concept album with the intention of each disc showcasing each member's individual perspective and musical style.[11][8] Big Boi's Speakerboxxx is an experimental Southern hip hop record with socially conscious lyrical themes, such as single parenthood, philosophy, religion, and politics.[7][12] Journalist Roni Sarig observed the emotional range in Big Boi's lyricism as wider on Speakerboxxx than on its predecessors.[7] After a "gunshot beat"-paced intro, the disc opens with "GhettoMusick".[13] The track's eclectic musical style encompassing electroclash,[14] electro-funk,[12] hip hop,[10] and techno is juxtaposed with recurring excerpts from Patti LaBelle's 1983 song "Love, Need and Want You", which exhibit LaBelle's vocals against a "lascivious" soul background.[15][10][16] Lyrically, it displays Big Boi confronting lackluster contemporary rappers and criticizing the hip hop scene's perceived descent.[17] According to Brent DiCrescenzo of Pitchfork, "Unhappy" musically conveys Big Boi effectively asserting himself as simultaneously traditional and perverse.[18] The big band, horn-driven funk track "Bowtie" was described as reminiscent of George Clinton and Cotton Club.[19][18][20][16] It lyrically details stylishly dressing for a night out,[21] and features Sleepy Brown and Jazze Pha.[22] Brown is also featured on "The Way You Move", a Latin-influenced R&B song pairing a "Dirty South synth-drum bounce with a faux Phil Collins hook".[5][12]
Mariachi-tinged hip hop track "The Rooster" discusses Big Boi's struggles as a single parent,[10][16] against an instrumentation based on "slippery" horns and loose wah-wah guitars.[20] Killer Mike collaboration "Bust" blends hip hop with nu metal,[13] and lyrically expresses a desire for superirority.[23] On the psychedelic soul track "War", Big Boi refers to the 2000 United States presidential election, War in Afghanistan, murder of Daniel Pearl, Iraq War, Black Panther Party, and Post-9/11.[24][25][26] "Church" is a lyrical critique of organized religion.[21] A techno-gospel song, it has received comparisons to Stevie Wonder's 1970s recordings.[18][15] The interlude "Bamboo"—titled after Big Boi's son, who makes a guest appearance—precedes "Tomb of the Boom". Both tracks use an identical "bouncy" beat,[13] while the latter dismisses rumors about Outkast's disbandment,[24] and features Konkrete, Big Gipp, and Ludacris.[22] "Knowing" discusses a prostitute's plight,[21] while "Flip Flop Rock" is an ode to flip-flops.[27] Featuring Killer Mike and Jay-Z, "Flip Flop Rock" is a hip hop track built on a "springy" guitar loop and a "beatific" piano,[5] while incorporating scratches and propulsive kickdrums.[18] "Interlude", a spoken word evaluation of Outkast's history,[10] precedes the percussion-infused "Reset", which features Khujo and CeeLo Green.[12][22] Comedian Henry Welch performs the brief interlude "D-Boi",[10] while Slimm Calhoun, Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz, and Mello appear on "Last Call", a track accentuated with aggressive horns and an eccentric theremin.[22][24] Speakerboxxx closes with a 35-second reprise of "Bowtie", on which Big Boi's vocals are altered with helium.[10]
In contrast with Speakerboxxx, Sarig identified André 3000's The Love Below as a "jazzy pop-funk" record comparable to the music of Prince,[7] while Marcello Carlin of Uncut labeled it as an avant-soul concept album.[14] The disc's abounding theme is love, specifically falling in love and self-love. Sarig suggested that the end of André 3000's relationship with Erykah Badu influenced much of the lyrical content, which he saw as concerned with the search for true love.[7] André 3000's vocal performance on the string-driven intro was compared to Frank Sinatra by Andy Gill of The Independent,[21] while on the noise rock-lounge opener "Love Hater",[5] it was described as "mock crooning" by Stephen Thomas Erlewine.[20] The interlude "God" finds André 3000 embracing his "horndog" reputation in a prayer, accompanied by an acoustic guitar.[10] "Happy Valentine's Day" introduces his alter ego Cupid Valentino, a reimagination of Cupid as a "gun-toting thug".[15][28][23] Anal sex-themed "Spread" displays trumpets and piano interspersed with a pliant bassline and scattering rimshots.[5][18] Prelude "Where Are My Panties?", featuring Toni Hunter,[22] insinuates a one-night stand leading to a romantic relationship.[5] The lyrical theme continues on "Prototype",[29] a funk-neo soul ballad sung similarly to Prince, Clinton, and Sly Stone.[10][30] Alternative R&B track "She Lives in My Lap",[5] featuring actress Rosario Dawson,[29] received further comparisons to Prince, as Erlewine compared the song to Prince and the Revolution's 1985 B-side "She's Always in My Hair".[20]
Acoustic guitar and synth-bass-driven "Hey Ya!" fuses power pop, traditional soul and electro-funk styles.[18][5][20] Lyrically an "ass-shaking jam session",[19] it introduces André 3000's second alter ego Ice Cold, who instructs the listeners to "shake it like a Polaroid picture".[28][31] "Roses", the sole song on The Love Below on which Big Boi appears,[10] is a diss track directed towards a conceited ex-girlfriend referred to as "Caroline".[32] "Pink & Blue" contains samples of Aaliyah's 1994 song "Age Ain't Nothing but a Number" and reverses its lyrical theme, being directed towards an older love interest rather than a younger one.[21] A "Goth-soul cha-cha" track,[12] "Pink & Blue" ends with a brief orchestrated outro.[18] While "Love in War" is André 3000's lyrical response to Big Boi's "War",[15] the frivolous, falsetto-sung minimalist electro track "She's Alive" discusses single motherhood.[5][33] "Dracula's Wedding" follows André 3000 as a vampire infatuated with another vampire, portrayed by Kelis,[12] but fearing commitment.[29] "My Favorite Things" is a drum and bass rendition of the song of the same title from The Sound of Music.[28][27] Norah Jones is featured on "Take Off Your Cool", a string-driven acoustic track.[18] On "Vibrate", André 3000 uses pro-environmental metaphors for masturbation.[15] The dub-jazz track is built on muted trumpets and backward drumbeats.[21][12] The Love Below closes with "A Life in the Day of Benjamin André (Incomplete)", described as an "autobiographical epistolary".[12]
Commercial performance[edit]
After having had three No. 2 albums on the US Billboard 200, OutKast enjoyed their first chart-topping album with Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. The album debuted at No. 1 during the week of October 11, 2003, selling more than 510,000 copies in its first week. It became the second-biggest debut for a double album during the SoundScan-era (beginning in 1991). The album sold 235,000 copies in its second week, holding its position atop the Billboard chart. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below spent the next three weeks in the top 5 before returning to the top spot for one more week. Sales remained strong, and the album would spend another four weeks at No. 1 between January and February 2004. In all, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below amassed a total of seven weeks at No. 1, 24 weeks in the Top 10, and 56 weeks on the Billboard 200. Speakerboxxx/The Love Below has been certified diamond and 13 times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipping more than 13 million units (in this case, 6.5 million double album sets, which are double-counted by the RIAA).[42]
The single "Hey Ya!" went to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, topping the charts there for nine weeks. It was the act's second No. 1 single, following 2000's "Ms. Jackson". "Hey Ya!" also topped the singles charts in Canada and Australia and charted in 28 countries around the world. "Hey Ya!" was also the first platinum download on iTunes. Follow-up single "The Way You Move" knocked "Hey Ya!" off the top of the charts in the US in February 2004, just the seventh time a recording act replaced itself at No. 1. "The Way You Move" topped the singles chart for one week. The third single released from the album was "Roses" from The Love Below, which reached No. 9. The fourth and fifth singles released, "Prototype (The Love Below)" and "GhettoMusick (Speakerboxxx)", did not chart.
All tracks on The Love Below are written by André Benjamin, except where noted. All tracks produced by André 3000, except "Roses" produced by Dojo5 and André 3000.
Notes
Sample credits