I caught OutKast’s first reunion set—during Coachella’s first weekend in April—and I didn’t hate it the way the rest of the world seemed to. I just thought it felt weird, because, A. the Atlanta hip-hop duo spent much of its performance fussing around a giant cube at the center of its setup, B. the setlist was strangely devised, chopped up with lengthy solo segments from rappers Big Boi and André 3000, and C. André didn’t act enthusiastic, at all, about being onstage.
Life Is Beautiful
Flash forward to Saturday night, when OutKast played the second-to-last scheduled date on its comeback tour. The cube remained present, if far less distracting than when it first appeared. The setlist continued to take detours into Big Boi- and André-less sessions, though those were tighter and more focused this time. And despite performing in a shirt reading “i just wanna sleep”— André actually seemed pleased to be in front of his fans.
In other words, this OutKast played like an improved version of April’s OutKast, better than no OutKast for those who’d never caught the group in its prime but nothing like that fiery live OutKast for those who had.
Hit-seekers got their wish: party-starting opener “B.O.B.,” “Rosa Parks” and “Ms. Jackson” during a leadoff stretch with both principals onstage; Big Boi’s “The Way You Move” and André’s “Hey Ya!” during the separate stints that followed; and “Roses,” “So Fresh, So Clean” and “The Whole World” during a closing run. The group also dug a bit deeper, going back to 1994 debut Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik for a handful of cuts, including “Player’s Ball,” the first song OutKast ever wrote. And the sprawling Downtown Stage crowd ate it all up, with more than a few die hards shouting lyrics back at the headliners for the entire 90 minutes.
Whether André, a notoriously reluctant performer, actually enjoyed himself or survived another perfunctory nostalgia trip—as the giant “Sold Out” price tag hanging from his clothing might have indicated—we won’t know for sure, but he at least tried to connect, joking about his “high compression shorts” and (maybe) calling out the previous night’s headliner. “We didn’t come out here to talk y’all to death,” he said, to the delight of the anti-Kanye contingent. West and his fans might counter that at least he’s put out new music during the past eight years.
