Atlanta-born hip-hop duo OutKast has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025, a milestone that cements the South’s influence on mainstream rap.
Formed in 1992 by Atlanta natives André 3000 (André Benjamin) and Big Boi (Antwan Patton), the pair rose from the city’s booming early-’90s hip-hop scene to become one of music’s most boundary-pushing acts. Their fusion of funk, soul, and futuristic beats helped redefine how the world heard Southern rap.
OutKast: ‘Little rooms’
During the 2025 induction ceremony at the Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles, OutKast was honored alongside artists including Cyndi Lauper and Salt-N-Pepa, a lineup that reflected the genre-spanning power of their legacy and marked another proud moment for Atlanta’s cultural influence on global music.
During his Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction speech, Donald Glover, known musically as Childish Gambino, praised OutKast for redefining creativity and identity in hip-hop.
“OutKast was able to distill the polarizing nature of being not just from the South, not just being Black, but being human in a very polarizing and contradicting world,” Glover said. “They made it possible to imagine experimenting on the biggest stage and to aim for the impossible.”
Reflecting on the duo’s groundbreaking 2003 double album, Glover added, “If I had to describe what I thought a 13-times platinum, highest-selling rap album in the world would be, it probably wouldn’t have been a rap duo. It probably wouldn’t have been a double album that split the genre in half with two consecutive number one sounds. That sounds insane — until it isn’t.”
He closed by saying OutKast “made every experiment sound like a destiny.”
Taking the stage together, Big Boi and André 3000 kept their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame acceptance speech short but heartfelt, reflecting on their humble beginnings.
“One thing Jack [Black] said, he said something about a little room,” Big Boi told the crowd. “Great things start in little rooms. That’s it.”
“Lovely,” André 3000 added with a smile. “Oh, come on in.”
Donald Glover, Janelle Monáe, others on OutKast
Donald Glover, who performs as Childish Gambino, inducted OutKast into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and spoke about the honor before the ceremony.
“I’m extremely honored. I was asked a couple of weeks ago if I could do it, and they told me OutKast had once inducted Prince. Lineage-wise, I was extremely honored,” Glover said. “I can honestly say there would be no me without OutKast. Their experimental attitude on a big stage made it easy for someone like me to believe it was possible.”
Janelle Monáe, who performed during the ceremony, called OutKast her mentors and credited them with helping launch her career.
“Big Boi and André have been mentors to me since the beginning,” Monáe said. “When I was an independent artist selling CDs out of my trunk in Atlanta, they put me on the Idlewild soundtrack. We are family for life. They showed us we can be all of us, through music, art, and acting.”
Atlanta rapper J.I.D said OutKast shaped his love for hip-hop and gave him the confidence to embrace his own identity.
“They were my introduction to hip-hop,” J.I.D said. “They’re my apex. OutKast taught me to beat the insecurities and be myself.”
Filmmaker Chris Robinson said the duo deserves a place of honor in Atlanta’s landscape… literally.
“When you grow up in Atlanta, you deal with the fact that Stone Mountain has a giant statue of Confederate leaders,” Robinson said. “Personally, I think they should blow it up and put OutKast up there, or at least the Dungeon Family, so we can move into the future and be proud about Atlanta.”
Together, the tributes underscored how deeply OutKast’s influence runs through today’s music, from Atlanta’s new generation of artists to Hollywood and beyond.
André 3000 and Big Boi: Atlanta originals
André 3000 and Big Boi first crossed paths as teenagers at Atlanta’s Lenox Square mall before both enrolled at Tri-Cities High School, where their shared love of music took shape.
Their sound quickly became a reflection of Atlanta itself, vibrant, daring, and unapologetically original. Mixing Southern hip-hop with funk, psychedelia, jazz, and rock, OutKast created a blueprint for what Atlanta’s creative scene would become.
Recorded in their hometown, the 2000 album Stankonia became a cultural landmark. It opened the door to a decade of critical and commercial success that saw the duo win six Grammy Awards and release six platinum albums. Their double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below sold more than ten million copies and earned the 2004 Grammy for Album of the Year, one of the few rap records ever to claim that honor.
By the early 2000s, hits like Ms. Jackson, So Fresh, So Clean, Hey Ya! and Roses had transformed OutKast into global superstars while keeping Atlanta at the center of their story.
Their final group project, the Idlewild soundtrack in 2006, marked the end of an era, but not of their influence. After years away from the stage, OutKast reunited in 2014 for a 20th-anniversary tour celebrating Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, launching with back-to-back headlining sets at Coachella and wrapping with a triumphant Georgia homecoming at the CounterPoint Festival, a rain-soaked night where they ran through a decades-deep catalog that had changed hip-hop forever.
OutKast through the years
Here is a look at their careers:
- Early 1990s: André 3000 and Big Boi begin recording in Rico Wade’s Atlanta “dungeon” with the Dungeon Family.
- 1994: Debut album “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik” is released, marking the official start of OutKast’s recording career.
- Late 1990s to early 2000s: OutKast releases a run of platinum albums and wins six Grammys, becoming one of rap’s most decorated acts.
- 2003–2004: Double album “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” sells more than ten million copies and wins the Grammy for album of the year.
- 2006: OutKast releases “Idlewild,” their last album together to date.
- 2014: After a long hiatus from touring as a duo, OutKast reunites for a festival tour that begins at Coachella and includes a home state stop at CounterPoint, where they perform a hit-filled set despite weather delays.
- 2015: Stone Mountain petition and artist rendering propose adding OutKast to the monument, drawing national attention and thousands of signatures.
- 2019: Little Five Points mural immortalizes the duo on a thirty-foot wall, becoming a local attraction.
- 2019: OutKast is among the contenders for the Songwriters Hall of Fame class, a further sign of their influence as writers.
- 2023–2024: André 3000 releases “New Blue Sun,” breaks a Billboard chart record with a flute-centered song and earns Grammy attention for the project.
- 2024: OutKast files a federal lawsuit to protect the “ATLiens” name.
- 2024: Atlanta and the music world mourn Rico Wade.
- 2024–2025: Big Boi headlines the Peach Drop and launches a Whirlpool washer that plays “So Fresh, So Clean,” while André debuts “Listening to the Sun” and receives an honorary degree from Berklee.
- 2025: OutKast and the Black Crowes are nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, representing Atlanta in the finalist class.
- 2025: OutKast is officially inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Los Angeles, with Donald Glover presenting and a star-filled performance honoring their catalog while they stand side by side.
OutKast’s legacy
OutKast’s induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame cements their influence not just on hip-hop, but on American music as a whole. The duo redefined how the world viewed Southern rap, transforming it from a regional sound into a global force.
For Atlanta, their success marked a turning point. The city became more than a setting for hip-hop, evolving into its creative heart. OutKast’s rise from local artists to international icons reflects Atlanta’s own growth into a major center for music and culture.
Calls for OutKast celebration
It’s unclear whether André 3000 and Big Boi plan to release new music or perform together again following their induction. Fans are calling for an Atlanta celebration to honor the milestone.
