André 3000 shared an intriguing perspective on his jazz career in a recent interview with the Recording Academy. When asked about his peers in this new genre, he mentioned “a long line of historical bands like Sun Ra and the Chicago Art Ensemble,” even adding rapper Lil B to the mix. He joked, “I’m almost the Lil B of this type of music,” explaining that his son introduced him to Lil B’s work.
Elaborating on this comparison, he noted that much of Lil B’s music is improvisational and spontaneous. “It’s not this studied, perfect thing,” he said, contrasting it with the clarity and structure he experienced growing up in the ‘90s with artists like Nas and Wu-Tang. He described Lil B’s approach as “punk” and said, “What I’m doing is almost like punk jazz or punk spiritual jazz. It’s pure feeling.”
Later in the interview, André 3000 discussed his visibility over the past year, acknowledging his preference for a lower profile. He humorously referred to his current fame as “superstar lite,” stating, “It’s like Superstar Zero.” He appreciates the less intense nature of his current public presence, noting that not everyone is on board with his artistic direction, which allows him to enjoy a more manageable pace.
He also talked about his recent project, an album film titled Listening to the Sun, created to remind fans of his instrumental flute tape released a year ago. “We just released this film on YouTube,” he explained. “Now that this video is out, a lot of people are hearing it again, or for the first time. It’s a cool thing that you kind of get this second wave of people that are just now hearing it.”
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