Andre 3000 talks Jimi Hendrix and Retirement

Photo credit: http://straightfromthea.com

Andre 3000 has been on the go since April traveling from festival to festival with his partner Big Boi. The group is celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut album and Andre 3000 also known as Andre Benjamin will be hitting the big screen in late September.

Andre Benjamin will play Jimi Hendrix in "Jimi: All Is by My Side", a biopic of Hendrix's breakthrough year when he relocated to London, transformed his style, and squared off against Eric Clapton. 

Over the years, Andre 3000, now 39, has been though a lot between being a figure in modern pop, transforming into an actor, and dealing with personal problems. From the passing of his parents, Dre has been dealing with self-doubt and depression, while mysterious disappearance from the spot life is called into question. 

As a result of letting himself go, Dre was alone most of the time and believed that the role of Hendrix brought him out of his funk. He described his state of mind, as a "not-so-great space" and shifted his focus once he got into the role of his character. Being surrounded by the cast and crew, Dre was in a good place and worked hard because he didn't want to let anyone down. 

Andre also believes rapping for him is at an end. He stated, "I remember, at like 25, saying, ‘ don’t want to be a 40-year-old rapper. I’m 39 now, and I’m still standing by that. I’m such a fan that I don’t want to infiltrate it with old blood." 

Andre 3000 reveals more both in an interview with Jon Caramanica at The New York Timesand in the latest installment of Esquiremagazine’s “What I’ve 
Learned” series. 

Kateri Fischer
@katikiii