T.I. was born Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. on September 25, 1980 in Atlanta, Georgia.
He also goes by T.I.P. and Rubber Band Man due to his former association as a dope-boy,
and T.I.P., his alter ego. His original stage name, "T.I.P.", stems from his childhood
nickname Tip. Due to his southern drawl, fans mistook his name for "Chip", so he
began spelling it out "T.I.P". Upon signing with Arista Records subsidiary LaFace
Records in 2001, he shortened his name to T.I. out of respect for label mate Q-Tip.
He is also known to go by "Rubberband Man".
He is the leader of a rap group known as P$C (Pimp Squad Click). His debut album
I'm Serious was released through Arista Records in 2001, which spawned the single
of the same title which featured reggae vocalist Beenie Man. His debut album included
Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes, Jazze Pha and Youngbloodz. However, the album
did not sell very well, and he was dropped from the label. Undaunted, he formed Grand
Hustle Records and released several mixtapes with the assistance of DJ Drama, which
created an underground buzz. He finally resurfaced in the summer of 2003 on Bonecrusher's
song "Neva Scared". He parlayed this attention towards the release of his second
album, Trap Muzik. It was more of a success then his debut album thanks to the singles
"24s", "Be Easy", "Rubber Band Man", and "Let's Get Away".
Over the years, T.I. has also continued to expand his business portfolio. In 2005
alone, he launched his own film production company called Grand Hustle Films, signed
a multi-artist joint venture deal for his label with Atlantic Records, and established
a music publishing deal for Grand Hustle Music with Warner Chappell. He also co-executive
produced the soundtrack to the film, "Hustle & Flow," and released the collection
through Grand Hustle/Atlantic. He also did the same for the debut album of his group
P$C, "25 To Life." He has also stared in the new film, ATL, which is currently in
theaters.
However things took a turn for the worse for T.I. in the early hours of May 3,
2006, when T.I. and his entourage were involved in a gunfight after leaving a concert
after-party at the Club Ritz, a Nightclub in Cincinnati, Ohio, that has a history
of problems with the law. Four members of T.I.'s entourage were shot in the altercation,
which began in the 1500 block of Seymour Avenue then continued onto Paddock Road
before heading Southbound on I-75. T.I.'s personal assistant Philant Johnson was
killed and Janice Gillespie was seriously wounded by the gunfire. It is believed
that the altercation began at the Ritz when members of T.I.'s entourage began throwing
money from the stage into the crowd, angering male audience members.
T.I. has stepped up his community involvement as well, taking the lead on several
initiatives to help the victims devastated by Hurricane Katrina, including personally
donating $50,000 to the relief effort while leading an on-air Labor Day pledge drive
on Atlanta's V-103 FM that raised over $263,000 for Mississippi rapper David Banner's
"Heal the Hood" Foundation. He also partnered with David Banner and Atlanta newcomer
Young Jeezy (It is said that Young Jeezy didn't want people to know about his charity
work) for a two-day food and clothing drive at Atlanta's Club Vision and co-headlined
a massive benefit concert on September 17, sharing the bill with heavyweights such
as Nelly, OutKast's Big Boi, and David Banner - with 100 percent of the proceeds
going to "Heal the Hood."
