Class of 3000

Did You Know?

• Sunny Bridges made a cameo appearance during the end credits of the Codename: Kids Next Door and The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy crossover episode "The Grim Adventures of the KND".
• Sunny Bridges also appears in the OK K.O.! Let's Be Heroes final episode "Thank You for Watching the Show".
• The series was Cartoon Network's highest rated premiere since Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends in 2004 and ranked #1 in all of television for boys 2-11 and boys 6-11.

Characters

Sunny Bridges, whose full name is André "Sunny" Benjamin Bridges, is voiced by André 3000. He is a jazz crooner who left his career to teach at the Westley School of the Performing Arts. Lil' D, voiced by Sylvia "Small Fire" Holloway, is the unofficial leader of the music class and plays drums. Madison Spaghettini Papadopoulus, voiced by Jennifer Hale, is an optimistic flower child who plays violin and cello. Tamika Jones, voiced by Crystal Scales, is a stubborn student who plays guitar and harp. Edward "Eddie" Phillip James Lawrence III, voiced by Tom Kenny, is the richest student and heir to the Lawrence fortune; he plays trumpet and clarinet and has a crush on Tamika. Phillip "Philly" P. Phil, voiced by Phil LaMarr, is a brilliant inventor who plays double bass and bass guitar. Kim Chin, voiced by Janice Kawaye, is a DJ and plays xylophone; she is the twin sister of Kam Chin, also voiced by Janice Kawaye, who plays keyboard and piano and is considered the smartest in school. Principal Luna, voiced by Jeff Bennett, is of Hispanic descent and is Sunny's rival. Cheddar Man, voiced by Phil LaMarr, is a friend of Sunny who sells cheeses, fixes helicopters, does teeth, and is a con artist. Leela Lopez, voiced by Jennifer Hale, is a teacher at Westley who has a crush on Sunny and teaches modern dance.

Production

Thomas Lynch met with Cartoon Network vice president Mike Lazzo while pitching projects in Atlanta. Lazzo mentioned he had a pilot, and both shared a fondness for Outkast's album Speakerboxxx/The Love Below. They contacted André 3000 to turn The Love Below into an Adult Swim show, but André declined and proposed an original concept. To avoid the show becoming a licensing deal like Hammerman or Jackson 5ive, André became directly involved. His only stipulation was that the show be set in Atlanta, as no prior cartoon had used that city. André and Lazzo visited André's childhood neighborhood Bankhead and Sutton Middle School in Buckhead. Development lasted two and a half years. Joe Horne was attached as director. Lynch and André had no animation experience, so Horne had to teach them. Lynch admitted to making every mistake possible for a first animated project. Main characters were inspired by people André knew as a child; he told stories to Lynch, who identified characters from them. Diversity was important to André, who wanted to include different nationalities. He also wanted to highlight music programs being removed from schools. The premise was inspired by Dead Poets Society.

Music

Every episode features at least one original song performed by the characters, written to fit the story. André 3000 listed Peanuts and Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids as inspirations for the musical style. While recording, André would lay reference tracks by singing lines for the children characters before sending them to Cartoon Network for the actors to replace. He found it challenging to change his voice to act like a kid. André wanted the background music to have an Atlanta/southern vibe and selected Pat Irwin of The B-52's to oversee it. A CD of songs from the first season was released on July 3, 2007 via LaFace Records.

Reception

The show received mostly positive reviews. The New York Times called it an eclectic, speedy, fun-enough cartoon combining styles from anime, iPod ads, and Filmation, with energizing music combining funk and crunk. The Boston Globe described it as both sweetly innocent and urban contemporary, offering music as spiritual and celebratory. Emily Ashby of Common Sense Media gave it four out of five stars, praising the diverse cast, colorful animation, and original songs. "Eddie's Money" won a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Individual Achievement in Animation. The soundtrack is rated 4.5 stars out of 5 on Amazon. In November 2024, André 3000 expressed interest in reviving the series after a conversation with Tyler, The Creator, who knew all the songs from the show.