Hip-hop duo OUTKAST have hit back at reports of a rift between them, insisting they are lifelong friends.
BIG BOI has been forced to tour as a one-man band after ANDRE 3000, real name ANDRE BENJAMIN, pulled out of last month's (JUL06) Outkast tour to concentrate on his acting career.
But Big Boi, real name ANTWAN PATTEN, insists that the MS JACKSON hitmakers remain close friends.
He says: "A lot of people just get the outside appearance mixed up. Some might take Andre not going on the road as a sign but those are our preferences. No friction, no beef.
"We just go through the same things any relationship goes through. We've known each other a long time so friendship-wise it's all a bunch of nonsense - people sensationalising a story.
"It doesn't really upset me but you do feel like slapping the s**t out of these people who say it. It's just not true."
