Outkast & Logic

This post features a rapper sampling another rap group, unlike many of the previous posts that focused on rappers borrowing form soul and R&B, among many other genres. 

Outkast is one of if not the BEST rap group of all time. The duo was formed in Atlanta, Georgia in 1992 by rappers Andre 3000 and Big Boi. They released a total of six albums, the final one being accompanied by a film, however Big Boi stated that it is still an Outkast album. Their fifth album Speakerboxx/The Love Below is their most famous album. They had already gained fam long before this album came out, but this album was a game changer. They released two singles form the album prior to it being released, the first was The Way You Move from Big Boi, and Hey Ya! from Andre 3000. They were both released at virtually the same time, yet both songs sat at number one on the Hot 100 singles chart. The latter was there for nine weeks, and the former took over for one week. The songs had made it to contemporary radio stations, which was huge for the hip-hop industry. The album ended up winning a Grammy in 2004 for Album of the Year, and both rappers got to perform these two singles at the show. Since 2007 they have been on a hiatus, and have only broken it to perform together in 2013 and 2014 around their 20th anniversary, one of which was headlining Coachella in 2013. They have since continued this hiatus. 

SpottieOttieDopaliscious appears off of their third album Aquemini, released in 1998. It is not one of my favorite Outkast songs, but it is certainly a great one. The beat is chill, and creates such a nice vibe for the song. Andre tells a story throughout the tune so this feels more like poetry than rap, but rap IS a for of poetry, so this just shows how versatile Outkast was. They took risks in their music, not worrying about what might be popular, they made a project that told a story instead. The sample that Logic uses comes from the horns that show up around 0:37 in the song. Darian Emory and Jerry Freeman Jr. are both credited as horn players on this tune. 

Here is SpottieOttieDopaliscious:

Logic is a more recent rap artist to come out of the 21st century. He has been releasing studio albums since 2014, but has been releasing mixtapes since 2010. The difference being that his studio albums are released under a record label, and his mixtapes are released on his own accord. This is an older tradition of hip-hop that he is keeping alive and well. His most famous album is Everybody, which was released in 2017. It is RIAA certified platinum, and the hit single from the album 1-800-273-8255 reached #3 on Billboard's Top 100. He has gone in and out of a hiatus lately, having said he's done with rap after his 2020 album No Pressure, but returning to rap just one year later with his mixtape Bobby Tarantino III in 2021.

In his song Man I Is off of No Pressure, he samples the horn line from Outkast's tune. I think he uses the sample very well, and even added horn in the track. I think the beat is good, but it is nothing special. The song makes me feel the same way. Logic is a great rapper, but this song does not strike me as anything special or unique. The first time we hear the sample is at 1:55 in the song. He's slightly sped up the sample, so the pitch is higher as well. 

Here is a link to Man I Is:

Man I Is