On Tuesday morning, fans and journalists found themselves in a pleasantly bewildering state of disbelief. Crafting a sentence that conveys this news almost feels surreal, but here it is: André 3000 is set to drop an album this Friday.

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The upcoming album, titled "New Blue Sun," takes a departure from traditional hip-hop elements, described in an NPR piece as featuring "no bars, no beats, no sub-bass." Notably, André 3000 doesn't contribute vocals in the traditional sense; instead, the Outkast co-founder showcases his mastery of the flute. Reflecting on his creative process in an interview with Rodney Carmichael, André, known as "3 Stacks," acknowledged his reputation as a "slow writer," a trait he's carried since the Outkast era. Recalling the genesis of "New Blue Sun," he mentioned having around "maybe four songs" that he wanted to share with a younger audience, leading him to seek feedback from Tyler, the Creator.

During this creative exchange at Tyler's house, another luminary entered the scene: Frank Ocean.

"It's us three sitting there listening to these three songs, and I just kind of wanted to get an opinion," André explained in the NPR interview. Tyler, in particular, credited these tracks with inspiring him on a design project involving a wall of Louis Vuitton suitcases. André shared Tyler's observation, "He was listening to one of the songs, and he was like, 'It sounds like you're chasing a butterfly through a garden, and I figured it out. It helped me to figure out how to do this.' And I think Frank pointed out one of his favorite tracks out of the three."

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Expressing his satisfaction with these initial reactions, André emphasized his respect for them as musicians, highlighting their pursuit of new energy in their craft. Notably, Killer Mike, who collaborated with André on his recent "Michael" album, had previously fueled anticipation by mentioning plans to "fly out in a couple of weeks" to listen to André's new project. However, Killer Mike later clarified that he was "stoned out of my mind" when making those comments.

In the past week, Killer Mike and André 3000 received Grammy nominations for the track "Scientists & Engineers" from the "Michael" album. The song is nominated for Best Rap Song and Best Rap Performance, with "Michael" itself up for Best Rap Album.

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It's been 17 years since the release of "Idlewild," considered Outkast's final album. While André 3000 has made notable guest appearances on various projects, including Kanye West's "Donda," and released the "Look Ma No Hands" EP in 2018, the prospect of a full-length solo project from him is a monumental event for fans.