ATLiens is the second studio album by American hip hop duo Outkast. It was released on August 27, 1996, by Arista Records and LaFace Records. From 1995 to 1996, Outkast recorded ATLiens in sessions at several Atlanta studios—Bosstown Recording Studios, Doppler Recording Studios, PatchWerk Recording Studio, Purple Dragon Studios, and Studio LaCoCo—as well as Chung King Recording Studio and Sound On Sound Recording in New York City. The record features outer space-inspired production sounds, with Outkast and producers Organized Noize incorporating elements of dub and gospel into the compositions. Several songs feature the duo's first attempts at producing music by themselves. Lyrically, the group discusses a wide range of topics including urban life as hustlers, existential introspection, and extraterrestrial life. The album's title is a portmanteau of "ATL" (an abbreviation of Atlanta, Georgia) and "aliens", which has been interpreted by critics as a commentary about the feeling of being isolated from American culture. ATLiens debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200 chart, and it sold nearly 350,000 copies in its first two weeks of release. The album was very well received by music critics upon its release, who praised its unique sound and lyrical content. It has been certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of two million copies in the United States. The album spawned the singles "Elevators (Me & You)", "ATLiens", and "Jazzy Belle". Since its release, ATLiens has been listed by several magazines and critics as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time. Background In 1994, Outkast released their debut album, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, which was recorded when members Big Boi and André 3000 were eighteen years old. Bolstered by the success of the single "Player's Ball", the record established Outkast as prominent figures in the Southern hip hop scene. After the album was certified platinum, LaFace Records gave Outkast more creative control and advanced money for their 1996 follow-up album ATLiens. The duo took the opportunity to recreate their image. On a trip to Jamaica with producer Mr. DJ, the two decided to abandon their cornrow hairstyles in favor of a more natural aesthetic, vowing to stop combing their hair. Dungeon Family member Big Rube observed an increase in the duo's confidence after returning from their first tour, remarking, "They started understanding the power they had in their music. They started showing a swagger that certain artists