The South got something to say.” André Lauren Benjamin (a.k.a. André 3000) uttered these infamous words while accepting the “Best New Artist (Group)” award with his bandmate Antwan André Patton (a.k.a. Big Boi) from the rap duo Outkast at the 1995 Source Awards. The Atlanta-based duo caused an upset when they beat out the favorites, Los Angeles–based group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. The ceremony, held at Madison Square Garden, occurred at the peak of the East Coast vs. West Coast debate in hip-hop that was dominated by artists Tupac and the Notorious B.I.G. This moment is pivotal within Black cultural history for reasons beyond just being iconic—it also shows how overlooked contributions from the American South were across contemporary Black culture.
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