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One of the greatest rap groups ever made history yet again this week. Click inside to read about Outkast’s latest accomplishment.
It’s official! Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, the fifth studio album by the Atlanta duo Outkast, is the highest-selling album in rap history. According to the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) the classic album has sold a total of over 13 million units domestically as of September 29th, catapulting it above Eminem’s The Eminem Show.
Ironically enough, this announcement comes on the heels of the album’s 20th anniversary (September 23). Big Boi took to Instagram to celebrate the monumental occasion, showing off his latest platinum plaque while thanking fans and reminding them that Outkast is everlasting.
The Diamond-certified LP was supported by the hit singles ‘Hey Ya!’ and ‘The Way You Move,’ which both reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and the top 10 hit ‘Roses.’ It came as a surprise to no one that Speakerboxxx/The Love Below debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 510,000 copies sold in its first week. The album eventually spent a total of seven non-consecutive weeks at number one and 24 weeks in the Top 10.
At the 2004 Grammys, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below became only the second hip-hop album (Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill was the first in 1999) to win Album of the Year. The dynamic duo also took home wins for Best Rap Album, and Best Urban/Alternative Performance for “Hey Ya!” the same night. These feats are even more amazing when you consider the fact that the album was originally supposed to be Big Boi’s solo debut album. Read more about that here.
For their respective 20th and 25th anniversaries, Speakerboxxx/The Love Below and Aquemini will be reissued on vinyl. Both classic albums will be available for fans in limited edition variants, in partnership with Get On Down. Aquemini will be pressed on three distinct gold galaxy, cloudy magenta, and cloudy green vinyls, housed in a gold foil jacket, with only 2,000 copies available. For the Speakerboxxx/The Love Below release, it will be pressed on a double ‘Platinum Chain’ and double ‘Pearl’ colored vinyl packaged in a gatefold jacket. They will ship in October and November, respectively.
Congrats to Outkast on this amazing accomplishment! They undoubtedly deserve all of their flowers as they have proved throughout their careers that the South does indeed have something to say!
