Clifford Joseph Harris Jr., better known to the world as T.I., has never been a man to be held down by circumstance. Not even spending nine months at a Forest City, Ark. low-security prison could hold him back from his goals and ambitions. Only a few short months after his release from prison, T.I. has wasted no time getting back to his career, and more important, his life. With his new movie Takers, opening on August 27th, and a new, appropriately titled album, King Uncaged, debuting soon, it is evident that T.I. doesn’t want the public to see him as a criminal, but instead as the entertainer he is.
At 29 years old, this Riverdale and Bankhead native is at the peak of his career. He’s making some huge changes in his lifestyle, as he recently married his longtime girlfriend, Tameka Cottle, on July 30. While the release of his highly- anticipated album is near, T.I. is trying to shed more light on his acting career.
On August 13th, T.I. held a college conference for Sony Pictures. Different journalists were allowed to ask T.I. about his role as Ghost in Takers. In this interview, the public begins to see T.I. in a new light, as if he is hinting to his fans about a huge transition he is about to make.
Lindsey Rupp of the Duke Chronicle asked T.I. what kind of message he is trying to send to his fans.
T.I. replied, “I’m an actor. I’m really just being used to convey a message, the message of the writer or director. This is not T.I. or Clifford Harris’ message. I’m just accurately portraying what the story calls for.”
Lindsey also asked if his greatest joy still was in his music. The answer might be shocking to some of T.I.’s biggest fans.
“Right now music is oversaturated…back in ’88, ’89, when I first decided I wanted to be a rapper, if you were to make it and become a rapper and get a record deal and go platinum or gold, man you were something special.”
“[But these days] there is no exclusivity to the artistry anymore…you got to find another way to be special,” he continued. “You got to step outside of this and do something else.”
So T.I. is taking his career in a new direction—rapping, according to him, has become “diluted.” So what can we expect from the “King of the South” in the future?
“I’d rather be a full-time actor at 40 than a full-time actor at 30. I’d rather be winning Oscars at the age of 40 than still trying to win Grammys,” T.I. told Nicholas Maslow of Miami Hurricane.
And maybe it’s the fact that T.I. has “been there, done that.” Spanning his eight-year career, T.I has been nominated for eight Grammys and won three. He’s no stranger to the limelight of the music industry. He’s also won five Billboard Music awards and has been awarded as the Best Male Hip-Hop artist from BET.
Maybe he is striving to stray away from the industry and culture that has caused him so much strife in the past.
In a May 13 interview with Larry King, T.I. said, “Guns have always been a part of my environment and my culture.”
Also in the interview, a viewer asked why black rappers shoot each other. T.I. simply said, “Our music was born in an environment where this is a common activity… it’s like a common thread.”
T.I. is slowly but surely separating himself from all the previous things that were part of his “past life.” But by no means is he ever going to deviate from what his fans want. His overall goal is to entertain the people who are “parting with their dollars and cents…I’m more concerned with their perceptions and opinions of my work than I am of the critics.”
“I’m the first to say ‘your life is what you make it’,” he said.
And T.I. is certainly making the most out of his life. Not only is he starring in Takers, he’s also the film’s executive producer. His label, Grand Hustle Records, just released a new artist (the up- and-coming, super-hyped B.o.B.) who is climbing up the charts. It’s clear that T.I. isn’t going to take his career sitting down—until he’s at the Oscars, in a row with his idols Denzel Washington and Will Smith.