The greatest song of the century so far, according to data science
Most musicians who summit the dizzy heights of commercial chart success, often descend the mountain top with the help of some sort of vice. Sometimes obscure and almost always unhealthy, it acts as a crutch in navigating the cruel worlds of entertainment fame.
So when Outkast’s ‘Hey Ya’ subverted the entire nature of their discography to date and made them a household chart name, it was a wonder what vice Andre 3000 would recruit.
Nope, it wasn’t any hard drugs, nor was it alcohol. It was the quiet solace of a wooden double flute. During his period of relative celebrity exile, when hip-hop fans all over craved a follow-up to Outkast’s last album, the 2006 LP Idlewild, Andre explored all avenues of artistic spirituality.
After granting him expressive freedom, fans were excited at the announcement of an Andre 3000 record in 2023. But it wasn’t as the fans expected. Instead, he doubled down on his curiosity, indulging an entire 90-minute runtime on New Blue Sun to the exploration of his newfound love for flute playing.
This was an artist fully immersing himself in his own interests and curiosities, rather than giving way to commercial expectation or worse yet, the adoption of short-term cultural trends. While conventional hip-hop fans were disappointed, was this really that much of a surprise? Despite what ‘Hey Ya’ may have made you think, Andre 3000 was never an artist to simply follow suit.
Alongside Outkast’s Big Boi, Andre 3000 established himself as one of the most gifted lyricists of all time. His twisting lyrical takes and outrageously characterful flow were products of the healthy mid-’90s rap scene, but what separated his style from the rest was his ability to reference multiple genres, understanding the breadth of possibilities that existed within instrumental arrangement.
Ultimately, that’s what brought us ‘Hey Ya’. A playful exploration of 1950s references and a yearning to have fun. “The song isn’t autobiographical, it’s more like fantasies or tangents based on real life” Andre 3000 explained. Adding, “Moments from my life spark a thought when I’m writing. The story was set in the 50’s, so the song was me trying to do a Woody Allen kinda thing, a humorous kind of honesty.”
The result was a soulful pop song that still seamlessly found its place on a hip-hop LP. It showed the world that together, Andre 3000 and Big Boi could master the art of hook writing as anyone in pop, the reason why they didn’t do it more was because they simply didn’t want to.
A lack of enthusiasm that was undoubtedly confirmed after the fact. The song was released to wild commercial acclaim and became the official earworm of the early 2000s. Music listeners from the ages of five to 50 were all singing “Alright, alright, alright, alright, alright, alright, alright, alright, alright, alright alright, alright, alright, alright / Okay, now ladies”.
So it’s unsurprising that the song ranks as the greatest of the 21st century, according to data science. It is just one of two songs of this century to make it into the top 20 list, joining Paper Planes’ ‘M.I.A’. It’s a list devised by Sweden’s Henrik Franzon, who compiles all of the critics’ lists from nearly every publication, to devise a definitive list of great songs.
Ironically, knowing Andre 3000, I doubt ‘Hey Ya’ would even make it into his own list of top 20.
