Big Boi

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Big Boi
Background information
Birth name Antwon André Patton
Born February 11, 1975
Origin Savannah, Georgia,
Atlanta, Georgia
Occupation(s) rapper
Years active 1992-present
Label(s) LaFace

Big Boi (born Antwan André Patton on February 1, 1975 in Savannah, Georgia) is an American hip hop artist and producer; one half of the successful and alternative hip-hop duo OutKast. He also goes by the aliases "Daddy Fat Sacks", "General Patton", "Sir Lucious L. Leftfoot", "Billy Ocean", "Hot Tub Tony" and "Francis the Savannah Chitlin' Pimp".

Contents

[edit] Biography

[edit] 1/2 of OutKast

Patton was born and spent the first half of his childhood in Savannah, attending Herschel V. Jenkins High School (as shown on Behind the Music) before moving to Georgia's capital of Atlanta. He had a strong interest in hip hop music, and met André "André 3000" Benjamin while attending Tri Cities High School in the late-1980s. The two eventually joined forces as OutKast and signed with LaFace Records.

In contrast to his more sedate, philosophical partner, Patton's on-record persona enjoys partying and employs a more pimp-like mentality. He can be identified by his rapid-fire delivery and intensely intricate rhymes, a style which has become more distinct since the album ATLiens. Patton is also the more direct member of the team, and has often used his lyrics to criticize the problems that plague both the African American community and the world. One example is 2002's "War," a scathing attack on the Bush administration and the "war on terror."

[edit] Solo Work

In addition to his work on much OutKast and Dungeon Family-related material, Patton has also been featured on other artists' tracks without André 3000. His most notable guest appearances were on the 1999 Missy Elliott hit, "All N My Grill", the Youngbloodz' "85 South", and Trick Daddy's 2001 single "In Da Wind".

After four increasingly successful albums as a duo, Benjamin decided to make a solo album as a side project. Patton also produced a solo effort, and the two albums were packaged together as Speakerboxxx/The Love Below in 2003. Speakerboxxx anchored the release with the original OutKast style, and was the half to receive the most recognition from the hip-hop audience. One song from each album was released in September 2003 as a single.

Patton's choice was the single "The Way You Move", featuring Sleepy Brown. It was originally supported by urban radio, but then crossed over to pop charts and became almost as big a pop hit as Benjamin's "Hey Ya!". "The Way You Move" supplanted "Hey Ya!" as the #1 song on the US pop charts, one of the few times in music history a group has replaced itself at the top of the charts. The second single from Big Boi's side of the album was "Ghetto Musick", which featured both members of OutKast and a sample from Patti LaBelle's "Love, Need & Want You".

Big Boi recently announced a solo album in the works, which may be finished in 2007. Purportedly similar in sound to Speakerboxxx, it will feature production from André and longtime Dungeon Family production team Organized Noize.[1]

Patton and Benjamin star in Idlewild, a film about music in the Depression-era South. It was released in August 2006. Patton also has plans in the works for a project partnering him with Sleepy Brown. He released a mixtape/compilation album, Got Purp? Vol 2, in conjunction with the Purple Ribbon All-Stars in November 2005 on Purple Ribbon Records; Aquemeni Records had become defunct after Benjamin left the company. The first single from the album was "Kryptonite", which cracked the Billboard Hot 100 and was a hit on hip-hop radio. Patton is also currently featured on the song "Hood Boy," which is the first single off of Fantasia's new album.

[edit] Acting & Personal Life

Patton is married to Sherlita Patton, with whom he has two children: a daughter, Jordan, and a son , Bamboo. His oldest son, Antwan Jr., is not Sherlita's child. Numerous references to the Patton family are present in Big Boi's rhymes. His younger brother James raps under the name "Lil' Brotha", and is a member of hip-hop group Konkrete.

Big Boi also appeared on Nick Cannon's Wildin Out Season 3 as one of the many guest stars, as well as guest starring and appearing as a musical guest on Chappelle's Show. Besides Idlewild he is currently reaching more into acting, having appeared in T.I.'s "ATL" and starring in the upcoming "Who's Your Caddy?"

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

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