Is He For Real?

If you are reading this blog, then I'm sure you know who T.I. is. You probably also know that he is currently is a bunch of legal trouble and has been in the past as well. In recent interviews, stories, and also portrayed in his latest album Paper Trail, T.I. has said that he has learned from his mistakes, understands what he has done wrong and will be a better person because of it. My question to everyone is: Do you believe him?

T.I.'s legal problems began in 1998 when he was convicted for problems dealing with a state controlled substances act and for giving false information. This was when he was put on probation. From then till 2006 T.I. was charged with numerous crimes for things such as possession of a firearm and possession of marijuana. In 2007, T.I. was hit with his biggest arrest just hours before the BET Hip-Hop awards (a show he was supposed to perform at). He was charged with two felonies: possession of three unregistered machine guns and two silencers and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. T.I. was hit with a $3 million bond and was required to be confined to his home until sentencing. In early 2008 T.I. pleaded guilty to the court for federal weapons charges. He will begin his year sentence in jail in March 2009 after completing the sentenced 1,000 hours of community service.

During the past year or so, T.I. has made some public efforts in attempt to show that he has become a better person because of his past and this will all be a changing experience for him. One of these includes his 6th and most recent solo album, Paper Trail. There are a couple particular songs I'd like to discuss. 1st is "Ready for Whatever." In this song, Clifford tries to explain why he had the firearms in the first place. In addition to having a pretty smooth beat, the song offers some insight into his thought process and why he had the guns in the first place. According to TIP, he feels all sorts of pressure mentally worrying about his life and his security. After seeing his partner and best friend Philant Johnson, he felt like it was absolutely necessary to be "ready for whatever" and to protect himself in a manner he thought necessary: with guns. He adds that he spends about $500,000 on security to insure that nothing happens to him. While he says, "But I'm wrong and I know it, my excuse is unimportant," the rest of the song gives you the vibe that he is doing exactly that: giving excuses. He says that he didn't break the law maliciously (aka along the lines of robbing or killing somebody), which may be true, but does it really matter? He still committed felonies, and while he may be in more danger than the average person, does this make it right? He also adds the lines about "father to my son, asset to my community" which is there to sympathize more with him. What all of this sounds like to me is that he knows he is doing something wrong and flat out doesn't give a shit. He knows he was wrong but did it anyway in his own self interest. Is that $500k on security still not enough?

The second song I'd like to discuss is "Dead and Gone," which has recently shot up the charts after a great performance with Justin Timberlake at the Grammy's. In the first verse of the song Harris discusses some ordinary occurances in the hood. He talks about people gettin' shot becasue of nothing more than their Pride. He says it happens becasue of gangs, money and drugs, and talks about how you could get shot and die anyday. He ends all of the verses with these lines: "No more stress, now I'm straight, now i get it now I take, Time to think, before I make mistakes just for my family's sake, that part of me left yesterday the heart of me is strong today, no regrets I'm blessed to say the old me dead and gone away." And this is exactly what I'm writing about. These lines seem pretty sincere. He is getting older and is possibly realizing that it's time to put away the more rough side of himself (T.I.P) for good and get used to the life of T.I. as a business man and family man.

He certainly is starting to put out that image. He currently has a show on MTV called T.I.'s Road to Redemption, where he is helping younger gangbangers and kids in the hood. He is trying to get them out of that lifestyle at a younger age and steer them in a direction that will better their future. While the couple of episodes I have seen do seem a little fake, that could just be becasue it is on MTV and its a TV show. Above all, he is doing something good to help kids who could use a rolemodel like him to show them that there is a better way of living and doing things.

Though it seems that he has turned the corner and made a decision to live a better life, I just don't see his attitude changing that much. He felt that he needed the guns to live before, so how is that going to change from being in jail for a year. I would like to believe that he won't have anymore problems after he gets out of the cell, but I just don't see it happening. To be honest, if it keeps him making more albums like Paper Trail, and he isn't causing anybody real harm, let him do it. Cause no matter what, he's gonna do whatever he likes.