TI is the stage name of an American rapper, songwriter, and record producer. The musician is one of the "old-timers" of the genre, as he began his career back in 1996 and managed to catch several "waves" of the genre's popularity.
TI has received many prestigious music awards and is still a successful and well-known artist.
The formation of the musical career of TI
The real name of the musician is Cliffort Joseph Harris. He was born on September 25, 1980 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. The boy fell in love with hip-hop since childhood, having caught the wave of old-school rap. He collected cassettes and CDs, actively observed new trends in the genre, until he began to try to make music himself.
In the mid-1990s, his musical taste and songwriting talent became visible to other rappers as well. Many hip-hop groups asked TI to write their songs. Around this time, he was a member of the Pimp Squad Click.
By 2001, the rapper was ready to release his debut release. The album I'm Serious and the single of the same name did not attract wide public attention, but the performer became famous in his circles. This release also helped to attract the attention of the famous music label Atlantic Records, which in 2003 offered him not only a contract, but also help in creating his own label based on Atlantic.
Cliffort Joseph Harris acknowledgment from the second album
Grand Hustle Records was established in 2003, and one of the company's first releases was TI's second album Trap Muzik. By the way, the name of the album has nothing to do with the trend of trap music that is popular in our time.
The word "trap" denoted a place of drug dealing, so the name reflected more of the criminal situation on the streets of the city and in the atmosphere of the album.
The Trap Muzik album was certified gold by the end of 2003. It sold well, became very famous in hip-hop circles, and TI received real recognition. Tracks from the album have become truly fashionable. Every night they played in the best clubs in Atlanta, they were the soundtracks of films, even computer games.
Imprisonment and the continuation of a successful TI career
From 2003 to 2006 the musician had serious problems with the law (he was sentenced to three years in prison for possession of drugs).
By the way, he received a term almost immediately after the release of the second disc, so the rapper did not have time to fully enjoy the success. However, an early release occurred, so Cliffort was soon able to work on new music.
Therefore, already in 2004, the third album Urban Legend was released. The release took place just a year and a half after Trap Muzik, which, given the time spent in prison, was a record result. The third album was even more successful than the second. Nearly 200 copies sold in the first week.
TI was at the top of all kinds of music charts. In this he was helped in part by numerous collaborations with other famous artists. Appeared on the album: Nelly, Lil Jon, Lil' Kim, etc.
Instrumentals for the album were created by famous beatmakers of that time. The album was destined for success. Six months later, the album passed the "platinum" certification, while its predecessor for the same period - only "gold".
Cooperation for T.I. album
Against the background of solo success in 2005, TI, together with his old band Pimp Squad Click (which, by the way, has not yet released a single release), decided to release a debut album. The release also became a commercial success.
In 2006, a new album of the musician was released, which was called King. The release was published by Atlantic Records and literally brought the label back to life. The fact is that King has become the most commercially successful record released by this company over the past decade.
With this album, TI unashamedly proclaimed himself the king of southern rap. The most successful and notable single from the album was What You Know. The track got into the influential rating of The Billboard Hot 100 and reached the leading position there.
A month after the release of the release, the musician got into a serious shootout, during which one of his friends died. However, the career of a musician has always been associated with crime, so the attack did not force Cliffort to leave the music, and he continued to record new songs.
TI established itself in the mainstream by releasing the single My Love with Justin Timberlake in 2006. The song became a real hit, and TI became known to the mass listener.
In the same year, he received two Grammy awards at once (for songs from the previous disc), the American Music Awards and became an artist popular all over the world. For songs from the King album, he received several awards already in 2007.
Further development of TI
After such a resounding success, TI released another several successful albums. These are TI vs. TIP, which almost completely repeated the success of the previous disc (by the way, 2007 was marked by a general decline in sales of physical media of music, so TI's results in this regard were very good), Paper Trail was recorded almost entirely at home (due to the arrest of the musician).
Until now, the musician is actively releasing new releases. They are not very successful commercially, but receive positive reviews from listeners and critics.
