The parallel relationships between Andre 3000 & Tyler, the Creator
- Lil Uhh
- Dec 8
- 14 min read
Tyler, the Creator was recently awarded the Innovator of the Decade Award by Variety’s Hitmaker Event. Andre 3000 was brought in to present the award to Tyler, the Creator. Before doing so, he gives his own speech to the crowd (and the public as a whole), explaining how Tyler “fucking cares” and always seems to “have his antennas up,” and expressing his admiration for Tyler’s dedication to not only rap music but music as a whole. Andre expresses that how often, between album releases, Tyler would call Andre 3000 to listen to his next project, trusting his ear for any notes the rap legend may have for him. Tyler, the Creator has revealed himself to be a major OutKast fan, having performed “B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)” off their Stankonia album during the tribute to OutKast after their induction into the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Something that’s more intriguing, however, is the parallels between them, which is why we must look back and analyze both their careers and how they tie in to each other.
Andre 3000's Career & Influence:
Andre Benjamin is regarded as one of the greatest rappers of all time and is well known for being one-half of OutKast alongside Antwan Patton (Big Boi). Established in 1992, the 2 under the OutKast moniker would meet critical and commercial success having many hits under the OutKast name, such as Ms. Jackson, Roses, So Fresh, So Clean, Elevators (Me & You), & Player’s Ball. After the success of their debut album “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik”, the 2 were enabled more creative freedom which enabled them to experiment more and try to produce the music themselves without reliance on their own producers which led to the more down to earth psychedelic, conversational, jazz rap, Alternative inspired projects ATLiens & Aquemini which also went on find critical success in their own right. Following the release of their successful 2000 album Stankonia, both Andre and Big Boi began to distance themselves from OutKast. Big Boi had begun work on a solo album while Andre attempted an unsuccessful acting career. Following that, he returned to music to also begin work on his solo album. Although their label refused to let their debut albums be separate, fearing it would not be as successful as their previous, so instead the 2 completely separate projects were combined as a double album and marketed as an OutKast Album with Big Boi’s Speakerboxxx being disc 1 and Andre’s “The Love Below” being disc 2. The double album went on to be their most successful, as it touches on their individual styles in music; while Big Boi focuses more on rapping and using the known G-Funk sound, Andre 3000 (despite skepticism from Big Boi and their teams) uses a more experimental storytelling sound with the album containing excerpts from funk, jazz, and Neo-soul genres. The double album generated the solo hits “The Way You Move”, “Hey Ya!”, & “Roses”. After a final soundtrack album, “Idleworld” based on the film of the same name, both Andre 3000 and Big Boi would part ways from OutKast on amicable terms. While Big Boi went on to drop more solo albums after signing to Def Jam Recordings, Andre would go into a more reclusive hiatus as a solo act only occasionally working with other artists on their individual projects such as Beyonce’s “Party”, Frank Ocean’s “Pink Matter”, John Legend’s “Green Light”, Lil Wayne’s “Interlude”, Drake’s “The Real Her”, Rick Ross’ “Sixteen”, Future’s “Benz Friendz (Whatchutola)”, Erykah Badu’s Hello (uncredited), Travis Scott’s “the end”, N.E.R.D.’s Rollinem 7, Anderson .Paak’s Come Home, and Kanye West’s Life of the Party among others. His presence did, however, earn him 3 Grammy Awards as a featured artist. He would also contribute to other artist behind the scenes, sometimes playing instruments such as the keyboard, flute, guitar, and saxophone for other artists on their work. He would not drop a solo album for 17 years when he released “New Blue Sun”, which is clarified to not be a rap album at all, but merely an 87 minute instrumental album due to him being uninspired to rap as of recently. The said album was nominated for Album of the Year at the Grammys. Aside from music, Andre has embarked on other ventures. In 2006, he created, starred in, and executive-produced the Cartoon Network TV Show Class of 3000, inspired by his come up in Atlanta and his experiences with music. The show was picked up shortly after OutKast's disbandment. It follows Sunny Bridges (voiced by Benjamin), an extremely successful jazz musician who embarked on a hiatus from his music career to teach music full-time to a band of students and often aids them in their misadventures, as well as providing real-life advice regarding music or the industry as a whole. Each episode features a musical number that focuses on or is based on the plot of the episode itself. The songs from season 1 can be found on streaming services today. The show also features voice acting veterans from Tom Kenny (best known for SpongeBob), Jennifer Hale (Gladys from Grim Adventures, Numbuh 86/Fanny Fulbright from Kids Next Door, & Avatar Kysoshi from the Avatar series), Jeff Bennett (Johnny Bravo, Dr. Hamsterviel from Lilo & Stitch, Azmuth from Ben 10, & Kowalski from the Madagascar series) & Phil LaMar (Wilt from Foster’s, Samurai Jack, Static from DC) The show lasted until 2008 before it was cancelled due to change in management, a lawsuit accusing Cartoon Network of stealing an idea from another show, as well as Andre 3000 struggling to meet deadlines in order to submit songs for the show (which then have to be rerecorded by the cast) with only 28 episodes and 2 seasons produced and 2 unaired. To date, the show has never been rerun and is rarely mentioned or referenced in promotional material. Despite that, Andre 3000 remains confident about a revival/reboot it had also won a 2007 Emmy Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation. He’s also appeared in films such as Charlotte’s Web, Scary Movie 4, High Life, Semi-Pro, High Life, Four Brothers, among others. He would star in Jimi: All Is By My Side as Jimi Hendrix; the film itself details his career beginnings. More recently, he and Big Boi were inducted into the 2025 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as OutKast.
Andre 3000 is often noted for his impressive flow and rapping ability, with Big Boi describing him as “the poet” of Outkast, while he served as “The playa” several emcees also praising his ability and often looked to him for inspiration. His solo work on Speakerboxx/The Love Below had also received critical acclaim for his ability to dive into unconventional fields, as well as highlighting his production as well as his vocals.
Tyler, the Creator's Career and Influence:
Tyler Okonma is regarded as one of the most influential figures in music, especially in Alternative Hip-Hop. He has been noted to always have a deep-seated love for music and for starting his own brand. At age 14, he had taught himself to play piano and even once practiced learning the notes to Outkast/Andre 3000’s “She’s Alive”. In his late teens, he had started an Alternative Hip-Hop collective by the name Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All (often shortened to Odd Future or OF) with Hodgy Beats, Matt Martians, Left Brain, Casey Veggies, and Jasper Dolphin with a majority of the group being comprised of rappers, singers, producers, skateboarders, fashion designers, and filmmakers. Later editions would include Frank Ocean, Syd Bennett, Taco Bennett, Earl Sweatshirt, and Lionel Boyce. Through the collective, Tyler served as its de facto leader, often regarded as the most successful and recognizable member. Besides his own work, he has also produced many of Odd Future’s earlier projects. The collective was also well known for its controversial lyrics, which Tyler never shied away from until the later stages of his career. This also led to negative consequences in their careers as Odd Future and Tyler were barred from performing in various countries due to their various edgy lyrics which were regarded as demonic, homophobic, or misogynistic though Tyler himself had commented that it was merely a form of expression and he is not actually homophobic or a misogynist and he merely says these things purely for shock value. Nevertheless, Odd Future did have some negative impacts on certain members of the collective, as Syd recalled her parents once kicking her out of the house because they overheard the type of music they were recording, and Earl Sweatshirt’s mother sending him away to boarding school for getting in trouble with friends, causing Tyler to invoke the Free Earl movement. In 2011, Tyler, the Creator released his debut album Goblin, which features his breakout single “Yonkers” as well as his Frank Ocean collab “She” and the extremely controversial song “Tron Cat”, the former was known mainly for its video, where Tyler eats a cockroach before vomiting and ending with Tyler hanging himself. Its lyrics also garnered controversy due to its disses on Bruno Mars, B.o.B., and Haley Williams. Though Tyler had stated that the entire song was merely a joke and created at random on a “shitty New York” beat. The song had brought both Tyler and the Odd Future collective into the spotlight, with many musicians praising the song and further giving it attention. Following the success of Goblin, Tyler would drop Wolf after featuring on other projects to promote the album. Notably, the album begins to distance himself from Tyler’s earlier work and is regarded as a more raw project from him. His follow-up, Cherry Bomb, which contains features from Kanye West and Lil Wayne, would be a complete disconnect from his earlier material in favor of more jazzy, Neo-soul, and R&B type production. His 2017 album Flower Boy would ultimately earn him a grammy nomination. He was also selected by Illumination for their remake of The Grinch to curate the lead single, a hip-hop rendition of “You’re A Mean One Mr. Grinch,” along with an EP inspired by the film. By this period, Odd Future began to disband as members decided to focus mainly on solo careers, though reunion shows have been had from time to time, and members often perform in Tyler’s annual Camp Flog Gnaw music festival. Tyler would also begin to put most of his focus solely on his music career. Recalling a random encounter with a fan of the show Ridiculousness which he had guest-starred in Tyler ultimately decided to cool down his social antics in favor of letting his music take precedence. Another conversation with Pharrell also made him understand what he needed to do in order to be seen as a real artist, not just a funny gimmick. This later led to him dropping Igor, a conceptual album that tells a story about a gay man trapped in a love triangle with his ex, who’s still in love with his girlfriend. The album proved to be a major success and notable for beating out DJ Khaled’s Father of Ashad. This led to the producer crashing on live streams, genuinely confused about its popularity and referring to it as “mysterious shit”, something Tyler himself laughed at and chose to ignore on purpose, having no desire to taunt Khaled and merely took the high road. The lead single Earfquake (which was originally intended for Justin Bieber and Rihanna) featuring Playboi Carti, serves as his highest charting single and most successful song commercially to date. The success of Igor had pivoted Tyler towards mainstream success, as he would eventually win Best Rap Album for it. Although Tyler accepted the award, he would still call out the Grammys for not putting it in other categories, believing it was more of a backhanded compliment when Igor is not predominantly a rap album. He would then follow up with the braggadocio Gangsta Grillz-inspired “Call Me If You Get Lost”, which was also well received and even won Best Rap Album for the same category at the Grammys. Tyler would then go on hiatus, breaking his 2 year mark, instead releasing “Call Me If You Get Lost: The Estate Sale”, a reissue deluxe edition of the original album containing new songs that didn’t make the original cut in 2023. In 2024, Tyler would release the conversational album Chromakopia, which had the highest opening week in pure sales, surpassing his previous album and staying consistent on the charts as the number 1 album out of the US for 3 weeks before being dethroned by Kendrick Lamar’s highly anticipated GNX. In 2025, before going back on hiatus and ending his tour in support of Chromakopia, Tyler would then surprise drop the dancehall inspired “Don’t Tap The Glass” album, which he stated to have curated and developed while on tour after December 2024. Despite its limited promotion, Don’t Tap The Glass was also an instant commercial success with Sugar On My Tongue going viral on TikTok. Both albums together have currently been nominated for 5 Grammy Awards. Tyler had stated before that Chomakopia was supposed to serve as a retirement album before going on a long break, only dropping Don’t Tap The Glass after being inspired by his friends to work on the project when asked why they don’t dance. Their reasoning also implies why Tyler usually bans cell phones & cameras at his listening parties.
Besides his music career, Tyler has tapped into other fields of media. He is the founder of the Camp Flog Gnaw music festival, which is held annually during the fall time and features special guests from high-profile musicians such as Kanye West, Billie Eilish, Lana Del Ray, Kid Cudi, Drake, Lil Wayne, and Kendrick Lamar. The festival invokes Tyler’s vision of a perfect musical day, as it began originally as scribbles in Tyler’s notebook and started out in the parking lot of The Novo Theater. Originally named Odd Future Carnival, its name Flog Gnaw comes from Tyler’s other fashion brand Golf Wang as an anagram as well as inspiration for the fictional Camp Flog Gnaw, which is the main setting in the Wolf Album. Though regarded as a camp, it is strongly implied to take place within Tyler’s mind at an actual mental health correction facility. Starting off as a simple party on a block before its expansion, the festival was held annually every year for 2 days as of 2016 (except 2020–2022 due to the COVID-19 Pandemic) with Tyler usually headlining the first night. His collaboration with Goldenvoice had enabled the expansion, allowing the carnival to become more recognized globally, with tickets selling out after posting. The carnival also opens a wide, diverse range of music from mainstream to alternative, to hipster, to indie, in order to give it a carnival/campy experience. Pop-up shops, games, and carnival rides can often be seen within the festival. Though little controversy is associated with the festival, however there has been an incident in 2019 where Tyler had a surprise headliner in mind. Rumors had spread speculating that Frank Ocean was supposed to be the headliner, which neither Tyler nor Frank Ocean confirmed. The headliner turned out to be Drake, which displeased the crowd, causing them to jeer and boo. Drake then left the stage while performing his set. Tyler was also displeased by the reactions, stating that the rumors were false and unconfirmed. In 2025, due to heavy rainfall, Tyler made the controversial decision to postpone the festival, not even 24 hours before the event, much to fans' displeasure, since many of the attendees were out-of-towners. As mentioned before Tyler also has a fashioned street wear brand dubbed Golf Wang as well as GOLF le FLEUR* which delves more into luxury clothing and fragrances. Tyler has also delved into the film industry on select occasions. At one point, he, along with his Odd Future cohorts, starred in the 11 minute Adult Swim segments Loiter Squad, a sketch comedy series produced by Dickhouse productions and mainly feature various skits of the Odd Future collective and their various antics. The show had run from 2012 to 2014 before ultimately coming to an end due to the main cast focusing on other ventures. Tyler has also created another show called “The Jellies,” which lasted 2 seasons before cancelation. He has also written, produced, and performed the theme song for Bill Nye Saves the World. Tyler would also lend his voice on separate occasions, such as Regular Show, Black Dynamite, and the video game Grand Theft Auto V, voicing an NPC. He is set to appear in the 2025 Sports Comedy Film “Marty Supreme”.
Tyler is often credited as a prominent figure within the alternative industry due to his rebellious industry and desires to break out of social norms with his earlier projects. Odd Future’s Do It Yourself nature without help from professionals has also gained significant impact in desiring other artist to take alternative approaches in their career, with Tyler directly advising the younger generation to pivot their careers when one door closes. His Odd Future collective had led many of its members, especially Frank Ocean, Earl Sweatshirt, and Syd, to have successful careers on their own. Odd Future would also spawn it’s spin-off group The Internet, which went on to be a successful Grammy-nominated Neo-soul group and later lead to it’s member Steve Lacy having a successful solo career as well. Artists such as Kevin Abstract, Billie Ellish, Lil Nas X, Juice Wrld, and Playboi Carti had stated Tyler to be an influence in their careers, with Abstract creating the hip-hop collective Brockhampton based off Odd Future and Carti confirming Goblin to be influential to his highly anticipated album Whole Lotta Red.
How Does It All Tie In:
The 2 are regarded as master innovators; they both dive into unconventional fields that you don’t actually recognise when looking at mainstream rappers. They both have a unique flow and style and don’t hesitate to switch it up because they feel like it. Even when other people disagree that their vision could affect their standing in the industry. No one expected an artist such as Tyler, the Creator, the same person who profited off shock culture and edgy behaviour, to actually change their style and progress slowly as their career went on. People expected him to be in that box for a long time, which would eventually lead to him just falling off musically. No one anticipated growth within Tyler who was actually way ahead of himself than we realized this has been hinted upon in years that he is a true connoisseur and student of music. The same thing can be said for Benjamin, but in a different form. As Outkast, he’s most known for his intricate flow and energy within music. It gets to the point where he evolved beyond just lyrics; he was also a person with imagination and desires to tap into different fields in music. Despite Big Boi and his team’s doubts, he wanted to sing more and dive into different fields within music, not just rap. Of course, people were concerned this would hurt their brand as OutKast since the 2 are known mostly as South Coast Rappers and little else, but it actually elevated them to different levels. The Love Below is regarded as a masterpiece and also proves that Andre can be successful on his own and is a true visionary. His taking his time producing the album when Speakerboxx was already finished also reminds us that art cannot be rushed and neither can results. Even visually, he is an artist and would often dress slightly androgynously during performances or visuals. To a degree, it also feels like Tyler, the Creator has also taken a page off Andre 3000 (even if unintended) and used some elements of his career as a blueprint of his own. Previously, Tyler had similarly used Eminem as a blueprint for the early stages of his career when focused on horror core and shock culture, but has since distanced himself from that. From his transition and conversations with his idol and mentor Pharrell, Tyler decided to focus more on the musical aspects of his career, determined to get out of the box he had previously trapped himself in due to his various antics. In some way his musical evolution can even be compared to Andre's himself as Tyler’s Igor has a theme similar to The Love Below, where he not only touches on the topic of love but also experiments more musically and dives more into singing and producing instead of just rapping. Not only that, but he also creates an androgynous themed character to fit the narrative he was trying to create as an artist. That’s why their presence together is very important because Tyler and Andre 3000 share some similarities when it comes to their love of music while Tyler is much more active in his solo career than Andre 3000 was, his influence is still felt through many musicians including Tyler due to their desire to reinvent themselves artistically whether it’s actually learning instruments, learning how to produce beats themselves, focusing on melodies, or making their own tv series. The influence is important as it is felt. Both Andre and Tyler also inspire you to open your ears to music, while predominantly they are known as rappers, both musicians have been vocal about their respective tastes in music and how it evolved their own sound to the point where they wanted to tap into different fields and start singing more in future projects despite the doubts from their respective teams. Even before Tyler changed up his style, he has shown to have a diverse music taste that taps into different fields of music whether it’s old school rap, Neo-soul, chillwave, new age pop, soft rock, or 2000s hip hop. In 2011 & 2012, Tyler, the Creator would drop 2 DJ Mixtapes dubbed “Summer Camp Mix”, both of which contain music he would listen to on his personal time, such as Stevie Wonder, Jill Scott, Erykah Badu, Gucci Mane, Yuna, Toro Y Moi, Smith Westerns, Pharrell, A Tribe Called Quest, among others. Considering the period of time Tyler was currently in, it would likely shock people at how diverse his music taste really is in contrast to the music he was putting out at the time and would foreshadow a lot to come. Even nowadays, Tyler uses his platform to share his taste with others willing to listen especially music that is not as well known as today. Andre 3000 is no exception to the fold. Another thing the 2 inspire you to do is not to pigeonhole yourself. Whether it’s music or other ventures as the 2 desired to expand to other fields, such as television, even creating their own tv shows, despite it not lasting long. In truth, Andre had walked so that Tyler could run wild.
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