In the teaser clip of The Shop, André 3000 admitted to using critiques from haters as fuel.
Following André 3000’s November 2023 interview with GQ, his tank runneth over. To this day, he continues to receive pushback regarding his “rapping over 40” comment. So, during his appearance on The Shop he addressed that and latest critic of his stance, LL Cool J.
“To me, I feel like if it’s in you,” he said. “Cause I got homies my age and older than me that still rap. So if it’s in you, you should rap until you die. You should perform until you die. But what I’m saying is, what it takes for me to do it, I’m always looking for the next. I’m not trying to uphold a thing that I’ve done before.”
Despite his perceived indifference to making an official return to rap, he hasn’t completely turned away from the possibility. “Of course, I have things to say now,” he said. “But if I can’t say them in a fresh, innovative way, if I feel like I’m just hanging onto the same flow that I used to do, it’s not enough for me. So I can’t talk for another rapper about what they doing. I just say, “Man, go for it. If it’s in you.’”
Watch The Shop episode starring André 3000, Sexyy Red, Jerry Lorenzo, Jiaoying Summers, and Nigel Sylvester above.