As one of the most revered lyricists in Hip-Hop history, OutKast star Andre 3000‘s unofficial retirement came as a crushing blow to the group’s legion of fans in the mid-noughties.

Years of calls for new music was answered in the most unorthodox way when the GRAMMY winner unexpectedly announced his debut solo album would come courtesy of an instrumental set titled ‘New Blue Sun.’

Shwoing off his skills as a flautist, the 48-year-old’s inaugural solo LP is supported by prized instrumentalists Deantoni Parks, Jesse Peterson, Diego Gaeta, and others.

Its opening on Billboard charts this week was accompanied by history-making news. See how inside.

Among the Epic Records-rendered project’s eight tracks, the clear standout was ‘I Swear, I Really Wanted to Make a ‘Rap’ Album But This Is Literally the Way the Wind Blew Me This Time.’

With a whopping 12 minutes and 20 second-runtime, the song – which premiered at #90 on this week’s updated Hot 100 – comes as his first-ever solo appearance on the tally and also snatches a unique Taylor Swift record.

As previously reported, Swift topped the hitlist with the 10-minute-long ‘All Too Well (Taylor’s Version)’ in 2021, marking a Billboard milestone for longest-runtime of any charted song by a solo act. The Pop diva held the record until 3000’s ‘Wind’ blew into the overall top spot, exceeding ‘Well’ by 2 minutes.

Rock group Tool is in second place with the 10 minute and 21 second-long hit ‘Fear Inoculum‘).

Here are the numbers that powered Andre’s placement.

• Sales ≈ 400 digital downloads
• Radio airplay: 22,000 audience impressions
• Streaming: 5.8 million U.S.-based streams

Look below to see who joins him on our weekly Hot 100 recap ‘TGJ Chart Check.’

Hot 100 This Week

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Andre 3000’s ‘New Blue Sun’

First-Week Sales (SPS): 24,000
First-Week Sales (Pure): 8,500
First-Week Billboard Position: #34

With total sales of 24,000 (8,500 pure) garnered its first tracking week, ‘New’ entered the Billboard 200 at #34 as the top-selling new album among solo male artists.

The opening marks his first top 40 hit by his lonesome on this tally.

When all albums released on November 17 are considered, the refreshed Album Sales chart is led by Country icon Dolly Parton‘s ‘Rockstar‘ (118,500 pure) and group ENHYPHEN‘s ‘Orange Blood‘ (87,000 pure).

Look below to see who joins the trio of superstar acts on this week’s updated Billboard 200.

Billboard 200 This Week

[photos courtesy: Billboard]

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