| T.I.
T.I. (born Clifford Harris) is a widely called-for American rapper who is compared for a long time with famous Jay-Z not so much for style of performance as for popularity level.
As many other performers of rap and hip-hop, T.I. has been keen on these directions since the early childhood. However, real popularity came to him only at the beginning of a new millennium when T.I. became famous owing to his album «Trap Muzik», released in 2003, and the follow-up «Urban Legend» that became a real hit in 2004. In his songs T.I. generally orientates to teenagers and tries to touch upon those burning and painful problems that rising generation are faced with. In addition to that T.I. actively propagandize education, emphasizing that owing to aspiration for knowledge and its successful realization it is possible to achieve many things during your life even if you are starting from the gutter.
In 2006 T.I. proclaimed himself the «King of the South» and under label Atlantic Records released an album with a relevant title «King». It turned out the most successful work of the performer (one of the album's singles - «What You Know» - reached a number-four in the list of best tracks of a year, according to Rolling Stone magazine) and the most successful commercial project of the label for the last 15 years. In the same year T.I. for the first time was nominated for Grammy but he didn't become the award winner.
The following, 2007, year became more productive as to cherished statuettes. Then T.I. with his song «What You Know» (the first place in the Billboard chart during five weeks) received award for the «Best Rap Solo Performance». Moreover, having performed together with Justin Timberlake singing their mutual hit entitled «My Love», he also won a Grammy Award for "Best Rap Collaboration".
At the same time, in 2007, T.I. released his fifth studio album – «T.I. Vs T.I.P» that if not surpassed then repeated in many respects the success of his previous works. For MTV Video Music Awards T.I. was nominated as the best male artist and, in all respects, 2007 could be one of the happiest and significant years in the musician’s life... But for all his fans and partners news about T.I. arrest for purchase of unregistered weapons became a big and distressing surprise.
Being under house arrest after the incident, T.I. prepared for release his next album under title «Paper Trail» that, as a result, appeared among the best-selling albums in the territory of the USA in 2008. And in 2010 the musician managed to distinguish himself, representing his album «No Mercy» that started from number-four at the Billboard Chart and that was liked both by the audience and critics. It is rumoured that at present T.I. is working on his next studio project but the details are kept secret.
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