Outkast - The Way You Move ft. Sleepy Brown

2003

Outkast - The Way You Move ft. Sleepy Brown (2003) Director: Bryan Barber Era: Post-Millennial Southern Hip-Hop Peak (2003–2004) - Outkast's commercial and creative apex during the Speakerboxxx/The Love Below era; Atlanta's dominant cultural export moment Tier 1 cultural artifact representing one of the most commercially successful and aesthetically distinctive music videos of the early 2000s. The video is inseparable from Outkast's status as the defining creative force in hip-hop at the time, and its paired structure with 'Hey Ya!' makes it essential to any study of the Speakerboxxx/The Love Below multimedia moment. Bryan Barber's theatrical production design and the song's historic chart run guarantee lasting archival relevance. Context: Released August 25, 2003, as Big Boi's lead single from Speakerboxxx, the Big Boi half of Outkast's landmark double album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below, 'The Way You Move' represents the commercial pinnacle of Atlanta Southern hip-hop's crossover moment. The song blends bass music, Atlanta-style hip-hop, and 1970s soul, with Sleepy Brown's vocals channeling Marvin Gaye and the horn section evoking Earth, Wind & Fire. It reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on Valentine's Day 2004, becoming Outkast's third #1 pop single and Billboard's 900th chart-topper. It was later named the 22nd most successful song of the 2000s on the Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the Decade. The video's pairing with 'Hey Ya!', the two singles simultaneously holding #1 and #2, is a historically unprecedented chart achievement in hip-hop. Director notes: The video was directed by Bryan Barber, who also directed the companion 'Hey Ya!' video for André 3000. The two videos were designed to be shown in tandem, with a long-form combined cut featuring a bridging sequence. The video opens with Big Boi and Sleepy Brown at an automotive audio shop staffed by glamorous women, then transitions through a digital ballroom and an African savanna setting. Fonzworth Bentley, a real-life associate of Big Boi from their high school years, appears in the video descending with an umbrella in a Mary Poppins-style entrance. Actress Ki Toy Johnson also appears in the video. Big Boi's creative directive emphasized filling every location with beautiful women. The video was produced with Thomas Fanning as Head of Production and William Green as producer.