Andre 3000 Reaches Some Very Unexpected Charts
André 3000 charts for the first time on Billboard's jazz rankings with 7 Piano Sketches, a surprise ... More instrumental EP featuring solo piano compositions. NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 05: André 3000 attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 05, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Michael Loccisano/GA/The Hollywood Reporter via Getty Images)
Later this year, André 3000 will be inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. He and his former OutKast bandmate Big Boi will then rank among the few names from hip-hop to make it into the hallowed hall, which was once reserved only for rock acts. While Big Boi has continued to deliver his signature style of rap music since the duo split, André 3000 has taken a different musical path.
Last year, he shared New Blue Sun, an instrumental project – and one of the most unexpected returns to music in recent memory. Now, he's back on the Billboard charts with an EP that once again takes him in a new direction, and to rankings he's never seen before.
On Monday (May 5), André 3000 released 7 Piano Sketches. The EP's name is a perfect fit, as the short collection features seven completely instrumental piano compositions by the Grammy winner. The project arrived with little to no warning, and while it is certainly not what most fans were expecting when they heard new music was on the way, the title has become a surprising commercial success, at least in some areas covered by Billboard.
7 Piano Sketches debuts on a pair of tallies this frame. It opens highest on the Traditional Jazz Albums chart, where it starts at No. 13. It also lands on the more all-encompassing Jazz Albums ranking, launching at No. 18. In both instances, André 3000 collects his first placement on Billboard's two jazz-focused lists.
Despite his popularity, André 3000 does not score the top debut on either tally. On this frame's Traditional Jazz Albums chart, he comes in just behind the Count Basie Orchestra, which launches Basie Rocks at No. 12 — one spot ahead of the rapper. On the Jazz Albums tally, he earns the third-highest start, with Basie once again edging him out by a single position, while Animaru by Mei Semones comes in at No. 13.
7 Piano Sketches is the latest release by André 3000 to take him in an unexpected musical direction. In late 2023, he dropped his first solo album, New Blue Sun. That effort was completely instrumental and blended ambient music, new age styles, and flute performances from the rapper throughout.
While it was not a major commercial success, New Blue Sun did earn André 3000 several Grammy nominations and showed that the music industry remains interested in whatever he has to share.
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