Big Boi has teamed up with AirBnb to give fans the opportunity of a lifetime.
In celebration of the 25th anniversary of Outkast’s classic sophomore album ATLiens, the hitmaker has purchased “The Dungeon” house, where the dynamic duo first got their start in music. The now iconic dungeon is the birthplace of such Outkast fan favorites as “Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik,” “Spottieottiedopaliscious” and “Elevators.”
“I wanted to preserve the legacy of the house,” he tells Billboard. “I wanted to make it a national monument. What better way to introduce it to the world than to open it up on AirBnB and have people experience firsthand what The Dungeon feels like?”
The Dungeon house will be available for guests to reserve limited bookings through AirBnb beginning June 25. AirBnB is offering three overnight stays on June 29, July 1 and July 3 -- for just $25 per night. The star jokes of the incredible deal, “You can’t even get three blunts and kush for $25 a night.”
As part of the AirBnB experience, guests will have access to “a state of the art studio with all the equipment they need," he explains. "They can record their own sound and of course they can draw inspiration from the house. It’s definitely in the vibes, the graffiti still on the walls and all that.”
And Big Boi, who plans to give guests a zoom surprise visit, says The Dungeon is "the birthplace of southern hip-hop."
For the six-time Grammy Award winner, “Every time I step in the door, it gives me chills because that’s where we started, from videos like [1993's] ‘Player’s Ball.’ We used to sleep on the floor in sleeping bags. Going from there to where I am now is a blessing, and to be able to own the real estate and the property and preserve it for the whole family has just been a dream come true.”
After kicking off his career in music with humble beginnings in The Dungeon, Big Boi has advice to emerging artists who may be struggling. “Keep going,” he says. “Go harder. Never give up. If you want it, go get it."
He adds, “You have to keep that drive, that fire. That’s why even until this day, the joy of creating music and being brave enough to give it to the people is because I’m proud of what I do, and it’s always new and refreshing. I don’t ever want to revisit anything I’ve done before. Every time we drop, it’s gonna be brand spanking new -- and the gratification comes when you deliver it to the crowd, and you perform in front of them and they’re singing every word.”
Indeed, Big Boi’s next project is the all-new collaborative album titled The Big Sleepover, alongside his longtime collaborator and friend Sleepy Brown. The pair completed the album ahead of the COVID-19 pandemic. Out next month, Big Boi describes the album as “an evolution of sound.” (The duo go way back -- Brown was on Outkast’s debut single “Player’s Ball,” and '00s smash hits like “So Fresh, So Clean” and “The Way You Move.”)
“It was a natural progression that me and him should do the record and we just got on the road touring and we started the album,” he tells Billboard. “It’s fantastic. Top tier lyricism, soulful, syrupy butter on biscuit singing from Sleepy Brown. It’s gonna be something for the summer.”
And after the year-long pandemic, Big Boi is thrilled to get back on tour. He especially misses enjoying time on the tour bus. “It’s like having three-week field trips with your partners, and the creative juices are flowing.” After all, Big Boi’s tour bus is complete with a recording studio, lots of snacks and movies -- and of course “some of the best cannabis that the United States has to offer, where it’s legal.”
He’s set to hit the road this summer, with his first tour date on Aug. 13 in Morrison, Colorado. With nostalgia already in the air, Big Boi also talks to Billboard about some of the most iconic Outkast tracks.
“I think ‘B.O.B. (Bombs Over Baghdad)’ was pretty f--king phenomenal, the way it caught fire and just went crazy,” he recalls of the 2000 track. “To this day, that’s one of my favorite songs to perform live. The energy in the song gets people moving.”
The Georgian vividly remembers the day of the music video shoot and jokes, “It was like 150 degrees in Atlanta when we shot that video, so we were sweating our hair out. That was when everybody had long hair. We were looking real greasy -- like chicken greasy.”
And speaking on what makes the beloved 2007 collaboration “Int’l Players Anthem” an all-time classic, Big Boi says, “It’s the Outkast, UGK, Three 6 Mafia collaboration. That’s the powerhouse of the south. It’s the soulfulness of the singing in the song and the message. We had a good time and the video was outstanding and people can feel it.”
Outside of music, Big Boi has quite a few forthcoming projects in the works -- including TV shows. “There’s a lot going on,” he says. “During the past year we’ve just been creating and coming up with ideas and creating content.”
The Dungeon House is available for guests to make reservations on June 25. Check out additional photos of the house below:
