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Clifford Harris Jr., better known as T.I., is a popular American rapper and hip hop singer-songwriter.

Born 25^th September 1980 in Atlanta, Georgia, Harris began rapping at the age of seven under the pseudonym ‘Tip’. After a troubled upbringing and eventful teenage years – during which he dealt drugs and was arrested on a number of occasions – Harris was eventually signed to LaFace Records in 2001. It was then he changed his name to T.I. to avoid confusion to rapper Q-Tip, who was signed to the same label.

T.I. released his debut album, I’m Serious, along with the title track, in 2001. Unfortunately, it was a critical and commercial flop – leading to him being dropped from his label. However, undeterred, T.I. formed Grand Hustle Entertainment and reappeared in 2003 on Bone Crusher’s song Never Scared. This led to him signing a joint venture deal with Atlantic Records, and gave him the financial muscle to release his debut album in 2003.

Trap Muzik, unlike his previous album, was an unqualified success. It debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 and produced the singles Be Easy, 24s, Rubberband Man and Let’s Get Away. He followed this with the release of his third studio album Urban Legend in 2004. It instantly became successful when the lead single Bring ‘Em Out reached number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, and the album ultimately sold over one million copies in the US. The track U Don’t Know Me also earned T.I. a Grammy nomination.

Since then, T.I. has been one of the biggest names in hip hop. His fourth studio album King debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and spawned the hit singles Front Back, What You Know and Live in the Sky, while his fifth album, 2007’s T.I. vs. T.I.P., produced the Top 10 hits Big Things Poppin’ (Do It) and You Know What It Is.

His latest album Paper Trail gave T.I. his first and second number one hits with Live Your Life and the Grammy Award-winning Swing Ya Rag, and he also scored Top 5s with the tracks Whatever You Like and Dead and Gone.