OutKast’s last studio album – not counting the Idlewild misstep of course -, the double album released as Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, set up an unlikely scenario for the release of Big Boi’s first solo album. The Atlanta duo has been around for years, selling 14 million albums on the way to winning six Grammys and in the meanwhile branding a sound that some credit to birthing other Grammy award winning rappers such as Lil Wayne.

Baffled by the complexities of how to market the album, the suits at Jive records mulled over the issue while Big Boi’s album remained in obscurity. Yet finally, after three years of frustration, Big Boi was mercifully released from his contract at Jive and eventually brought his latest work over to Def Jam with LA Reid at the helm. How Jive mishandled the record so badly is a mystery. It’s not as if it was Tom Jones trying to release a gospel album (which he is). There was however another legal hurdle remaining between Big Boi and Jive. Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty featured songs with his OutKast partner Andre 3000 and therefore was legally considered to be an OutKast record, a name that Jive still owned. Spurning the label one more time, Big Boi leaked the now unincorporated collaborations with Andre 3000, setting his album free.

The fallout from the spat was that Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty was released at a time when Andre 3000, aside from his leaked appearances, has been quiet. Dre who is known for his eccentric cotton club fashion has been the media darling out of the two, and made his departure from the traditional OutKast style into the mainstream. As the ‘other half of OutKast,’ Big Boi has been living in the shadows while Andre has released mega-hits such as Hey Ya! and garnering much of the credit for the creative genius. Nevertheless, the scenario preceding the release of Big Boi’s debut solo album turned out for the best, allowing him to emerge out in the open on his own, no Andre 3000 or anyone else is stealing the limelight.

This current emergence by Big Boi has been brought about by staying the course and staying true to the definitive sound that launched the duo in the mid ‘90s. His new album is hot and fresh yet the die hard fans won’t be disappointed as Big Boi drops his flow all over the album as if he were Coltrane with a sax. Thick melodies and lyrics highlight the album that features a slew of guests including some that maybe should have been uninvited, Vonnegutt, and others like the Funkadelic mastermind George Clinton that only make you fall more in love with the dirty southern Cadillac muzik.

It’s easy to see Big Boi was looking to incorporate some different sounds into his album with songs like Follow Us providing some ‘interesting’ pop rock from the aforementioned Vonnegutt and Gucci Mane who provided some surprisingly decent verses with the sizzurp sound.

Another interesting guest appearance on the record comes from B.o.B, the newly crowned member of the Atlanta rap scene. If you had turned on one of B.o.B’s records four years ago and closed your eyes you might think you were hearing Andre 3000. Now the once upon a time teen prodigy is making heat with the very artist he imitated. Night Night, the track that he appears on with Joi, is an insidious rap that will bury itself into your head along with Fo Yo Sorrows (Ft. George Clinton, Too Short &Same Chris) and The Train Part II.

The 17 tracks of Sir Lucious Left Foot: The Son of Chico Dusty are a great testament to Big Boi’s ability as a rapper and solo artist. Listening to a rapper who doesn’t only talk about “the club” or cars or making it rain is refreshing even if at times it might be hard to understand the tightly woven staccato rhymes. Big Boi and the rest of the featured guests that highlight the Atlanta rap scene have put together one of the year’s best rap albums.