It’s almost hard to believe, but today (August 27) officially marks 25 years since Outkast released their sophomore studio LP ATLiens, an unforgettable journey into classic hip hop from Atlanta — or hip hop, period — that contained 15 cuts and additional appearances from fellow Dungeon Family cohorts Organized Noize, Witchdoctor, T-Mo, Khujo, Big Gipp, and Cool Breeze. In addition to reaching the number two spot on the Billboard 200 with a whopping 350,000 hard copies sold, ATLiens has also since been certified double double Platinum by the RIAA.
In celebration of ATLiens’ 25th anniversary, Outkast has decided to deliver a special edition that adds on hi-res versions of the song’s instrumental tracks. In addition, fans can purchase both a limited edition 4LP set of 12” vinyls and an equally limited glow in the dark 45 of “Elevators (Me & You).” Finally, an animated visual for “Two Dope Boyz (In a Cadillac)” has surfaced, which comes courtesy of Rafatoon and dreambear and sees the legendary duo on an intergalactic journey. It’s virtually impossible to play this and not rap along with André 3000’s indelible chorus:
“Who them boys that be having it crunk every occasion, this side niggas dusting, that side niggas lacing, but in the middle we stay calm, we just drop bombs, asking where we come from, South Coast slums, it’s just two dope boys in a cadillac…”
It’s been 15 years since Outkast liberated their sixth and final album Idlewild, a 25-track project that also served as a soundtrack for the adjacent film of the same name. Since then, André — who has become quite the actor — has continued on as the occasional, oft-mythical feature on popular singles by John Legend, Beyoncé, (Young) Jeezy, Frank Ocean, Anderson .Paak, and more. On the other hand, Big Boi’s released three full-length albums and a collaborative effort with Phantogram — today, he’s reconnecting with Sleepy Brown for the forthcoming body of work The Big Sleepover, which makes landfall September 3.
Check out Outkast’s ATLiens (25th Anniversary Edition), the clip for “Two Dope Boys (In A Cadillac),” and a couple of visuals from The Big Sleepover for “Lower Case (no cap)” and “The Big Sleep Is Over.”