West Coast Connection Forum
DUBCC - Tha Connection => Outbound Connection => Topic started by: Meho on May 01, 2007, 03:36:24 AM
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'T.I. is trying to tell Marshall [Mathers] how to deal with Slim based on how he deals with Tip,' rapper reveals about new song.
ATLANTA No doubt about it: The side of Clifford Harris that came out during a recent interview was his more boisterous half, Tip. He had the floor and a few heated words to share about the recent controversy over rap lyrics.
"Ain't nobody bring Martin Scorsese up for 'The Departed.' He won a Oscar," the man most commonly referred to as T.I. said, citing the violent film. His voice escalating from his usually laid-back tone to stirring and riled up, the rapper was upset about the portrayal of rap music in the media as of late. He wanted to know why rap is being singled out in the wake of Don Imus' firing (see "Hip-Hop Hits Back At Imus, Critics: T.I., Snoop, Fat Joe, Common Weigh In").
"In the movie, they threw a white man out a window, shot so many people," he continued. "Ain't nobody bringing this up because it's artistically very creative. Everybody ... enjoyed it. Look at 'Saw,' 'Saw 2' and '3,' the sh-- that goes on there ..."
But aside from Tip's anger over the flak that rap has been drawing lately, the mood at his Grand Hustle studios was actually filled with camaraderie. Even after losing a game of pool, Tip kept his smile. Young Dro, checking on a song Tip approved, started a spontaneous freestyle session. And later, the studio engineer got a much-deserved break, feasting his eyes instead on T-Pain and Pretty Ricky videos.
"I never get a chance to watch any TV," Tip said as one of the models in Pain's "Buy You a Drank (Shawty Snappin')" video showed that, yes, the snap dance can be done in high heels. "Is this what I've been missing?"
T.I.'s recording schedule doesn't know any pace other than full steam ahead. Unlike a lot of artists, he doesn't have a "cycle": There's no chilling for a couple of years after an album is done being promoted. He always has an album out, and while T.I. vs. T.I.P. is set to drop July 3, 2006's King is still getting titanic spins on radio. Like King, T.I. has recorded in excess of 60 songs for T.I. vs. T.I.P. and is still laying tracks for it (see "T.I. Taking On T.I.P. With Help From Eminem, Justin Timberlake").
If you haven't heard this for the millionth time, T.I. is the rapper's more laid-back, business-savvy side, while Tip is his uncut, raw incarnation. Both have taken the forefront on his records, occasionally bumping heads on a song here and there.
"All the albums prior to this one, Tip would work harder to make the album, T.I. would work harder to sell it," he said. On T.I. vs. T.I.P. a conceptual LP about his life they get at it on six tracks. Another third of the project is dedicated solely to T.I. and the remainder goes to Tip.
"This is my life, this is the struggle I had to go through to bring myself to release another album," said T.I., who lost both his newborn daughter and personal assistant within the last year (see "Deadly Shooting Causes T.I. To Re-Evaluate His Life"). "After all the stuff I went through following the success of King, it took a lot to even muster the effort or even care enough about the world outside my circle to even care about doing another album. ... All I did was take notes and record it along the way."
One of the more recent sessions he held for the album was with Eminem, someone who has his own dual-identity issues.
"It was an experience," T.I. said about working with Em. "He's probably one of the most lyrical cats in the game right now. Me being known as one of the most lyrical cats in the game, I had to get myself up. He lived up to all my expectations. He's a rappin' fool. He made me step my game up.
"We did three records," he continued. "One we did for him. You know how Marshall Mathers and Slim Shady have their beefs? Well [on that song], T.I. is trying to tell Marshall how to deal with Slim based on how he deals with Tip. Then Tip butts in, like, 'You can't tell nobody nothing.' Then Em comes in and tells me, 'Who are you to tell me anything?' I was like, 'I'm just trying to help, homie.' "
Their other two collaborations could end up on T.I. vs. T.I.P., including a song called "Touchdown."
"It's out of Eminem's norm, if Eminem has a norm," T.I. said of the track. "It's a record you wouldn't expect to hear him on, kinda like how you heard [him] on 'Smack That' for Akon or [Em's] 'Shake That' with Nate Dogg. You'll be like, 'OK, he's switching it up.' ['Touchdown' is] basically [him] talking about when you touch down in everybody's city, what you do. Hit the mall, buy a car or leave the club with all the girls. We have yet to finish that one.
"The one we finished is 'Whatever You Want It to Be,' " he added. "It's saying, 'I'm a man, if I ain't nothing else. Before I'm a rapper, before I'm anything else, I'm a man. If you don't respect that, it can be whatever you want it to be.' "
The producer Tip went the most in-depth with for this project, however, was of all people Wyclef Jean. It has yet to be determined if all their records will make the cut, but two front-runners are "Swagger" and "U Know What It Is."
"You can quote me," Tip burst out with a grin. " 'U Know What It Is' will tear the clubs up this summer."
"Had the album of the year, Grammy or not," he raps on the song. "Frank Lucas [Denzel Washington's character in 'American Gangster'] ain't the only one who made a million. You got the real American gangsta right here in your face."
"Me and 'Clef got together over a weekend," he explained about the collaborations. "We wasn't on each other's itinerary to work with each other. He hit me one day when I was in L.A. and was like, 'I gotta come to Atlanta, you got anywhere I can record?' "
T.I. graciously turned over the main room in his studio and it was on from there. T.I. came home about a day into Wyclef's sessions and immediately started snatching up tracks for himself.
"He started pulling up [beats] and I was like, 'Who is that for?' He said, 'You, if you want it.' We wound up knocking seven songs from Friday to Monday. It's just us having a good time. We just bonded."
"Show It 2 Me," which features Nelly, sounds like it could easily be a sequel to their previous teaming on Urban Legend's "Get Loose." The two go back and forth at points and Nelly uses an old-school flow like UTFO on "Roxanne Roxanne." Lil Wayne appears on "Yeah" and drops lines such as, "I'm flyer than a vampire."
Andre 3000 could also possibly check in, on a song called "Life of the Party." On that track, Tip talks about maturity, why he's now "too grown to be the life of the party," and how he has no time to argue with bouncers, overzealous fans or pestering playa haters.
"Listen buddy, you're way too close to me," he raps.
Of course, you should have already heard Mannie Fresh chiming in on "Big Things Poppin'," which is already on the radio (see "T.I. Has 'Big Things Poppin' ' With Mannie Fresh, Himself On T.I.P.").
"A lot of energy," T.I. said about what the former Cash Money Millionaire brings to the table. "Fresh is a cool cat, one of the coolest. One of the most down-to-earth, well-rounded cats I met in music. ... He ain't trippin' off no fame. He's coming in to make music, have a good time, enjoy himself as long as he can and when he gets sleepy, he's going home. It ain't a bunch of politics going on.
" 'Big Things Poppin', it's about the quest for the finest things in life and ignorance of the smaller things," he smiled. "I ain't doing nothing small. If I buy a car, I'm buying the biggest car on the lot for the simple fact that I got 17 cars. So what am I buying another car for unless it's the best car on the lot? If I'm going out, I'm going to the best club in town. If I'mma go shopping, I'm gonna go tear the mall down. Why? Because I'm in a position to do so."
Ultimately, T.I. and his alter ego meet up on a few records, such as "Respect the Hustle."
"It's basically T.I. and Tip telling each other, 'Let me do what I do, you do what you do,' " he explained. "T.I. tells Tip, 'I don't knock you when you trying to do records like 'Top Back,' 'What You Know,' so don't knock me when I wanna do 'Why You Wanna.' If I want to go to Hawaii and be on the beach, why do I have to come back and explain myself? They're basically trying to find a understanding of each other."
Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland are all also scheduled to appear on the set, while Akon, Scott Storch and Danja have already performed and produced for the album
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T.I. >>> Eminem
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So we get another watered down eminem rapping bullshit, instead of focusing on making his final album as worthy as it should be grrrrreat ::)
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nice read,props Timbo
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So we get another watered down eminem rapping bullshit, instead of focusing on making his final album as worthy as it should be grrrrreat ::)
Hold up, is this T.I.'s final album?
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^^^^ he's talking about Em
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^^^^ he's talking about Em
Oh, yeah. Nothing to worry about then :P
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'T.I. is trying to tell Marshall [Mathers] how to deal with Slim based on how he deals with Tip,' rapper reveals about new song.
ATLANTA No doubt about it: The side of Clifford Harris that came out during a recent interview was his more boisterous half, Tip. He had the floor and a few heated words to share about the recent controversy over rap lyrics.
"Ain't nobody bring Martin Scorsese up for 'The Departed.' He won a Oscar," the man most commonly referred to as T.I. said, citing the violent film. His voice escalating from his usually laid-back tone to stirring and riled up, the rapper was upset about the portrayal of rap music in the media as of late. He wanted to know why rap is being singled out in the wake of Don Imus' firing (see "Hip-Hop Hits Back At Imus, Critics: T.I., Snoop, Fat Joe, Common Weigh In").
"In the movie, they threw a white man out a window, shot so many people," he continued. "Ain't nobody bringing this up because it's artistically very creative. Everybody ... enjoyed it. Look at 'Saw,' 'Saw 2' and '3,' the sh-- that goes on there ..."
But aside from Tip's anger over the flak that rap has been drawing lately, the mood at his Grand Hustle studios was actually filled with camaraderie. Even after losing a game of pool, Tip kept his smile. Young Dro, checking on a song Tip approved, started a spontaneous freestyle session. And later, the studio engineer got a much-deserved break, feasting his eyes instead on T-Pain and Pretty Ricky videos.
"I never get a chance to watch any TV," Tip said as one of the models in Pain's "Buy You a Drank (Shawty Snappin')" video showed that, yes, the snap dance can be done in high heels. "Is this what I've been missing?"
T.I.'s recording schedule doesn't know any pace other than full steam ahead. Unlike a lot of artists, he doesn't have a "cycle": There's no chilling for a couple of years after an album is done being promoted. He always has an album out, and while T.I. vs. T.I.P. is set to drop July 3, 2006's King is still getting titanic spins on radio. Like King, T.I. has recorded in excess of 60 songs for T.I. vs. T.I.P. and is still laying tracks for it (see "T.I. Taking On T.I.P. With Help From Eminem, Justin Timberlake").
If you haven't heard this for the millionth time, T.I. is the rapper's more laid-back, business-savvy side, while Tip is his uncut, raw incarnation. Both have taken the forefront on his records, occasionally bumping heads on a song here and there.
"All the albums prior to this one, Tip would work harder to make the album, T.I. would work harder to sell it," he said. On T.I. vs. T.I.P. a conceptual LP about his life they get at it on six tracks. Another third of the project is dedicated solely to T.I. and the remainder goes to Tip.
"This is my life, this is the struggle I had to go through to bring myself to release another album," said T.I., who lost both his newborn daughter and personal assistant within the last year (see "Deadly Shooting Causes T.I. To Re-Evaluate His Life"). "After all the stuff I went through following the success of King, it took a lot to even muster the effort or even care enough about the world outside my circle to even care about doing another album. ... All I did was take notes and record it along the way."
One of the more recent sessions he held for the album was with Eminem, someone who has his own dual-identity issues.
"It was an experience," T.I. said about working with Em. "He's probably one of the most lyrical cats in the game right now. Me being known as one of the most lyrical cats in the game, I had to get myself up. He lived up to all my expectations. He's a rappin' fool. He made me step my game up.
"We did three records," he continued. "One we did for him. You know how Marshall Mathers and Slim Shady have their beefs? Well [on that song], T.I. is trying to tell Marshall how to deal with Slim based on how he deals with Tip. Then Tip butts in, like, 'You can't tell nobody nothing.' Then Em comes in and tells me, 'Who are you to tell me anything?' I was like, 'I'm just trying to help, homie.' "
Their other two collaborations could end up on T.I. vs. T.I.P., including a song called "Touchdown."
"It's out of Eminem's norm, if Eminem has a norm," T.I. said of the track. "It's a record you wouldn't expect to hear him on, kinda like how you heard [him] on 'Smack That' for Akon or [Em's] 'Shake That' with Nate Dogg. You'll be like, 'OK, he's switching it up.' ['Touchdown' is] basically [him] talking about when you touch down in everybody's city, what you do. Hit the mall, buy a car or leave the club with all the girls. We have yet to finish that one.
"The one we finished is 'Whatever You Want It to Be,' " he added. "It's saying, 'I'm a man, if I ain't nothing else. Before I'm a rapper, before I'm anything else, I'm a man. If you don't respect that, it can be whatever you want it to be.' "
The producer Tip went the most in-depth with for this project, however, was of all people Wyclef Jean. It has yet to be determined if all their records will make the cut, but two front-runners are "Swagger" and "U Know What It Is."
"You can quote me," Tip burst out with a grin. " 'U Know What It Is' will tear the clubs up this summer."
"Had the album of the year, Grammy or not," he raps on the song. "Frank Lucas [Denzel Washington's character in 'American Gangster'] ain't the only one who made a million. You got the real American gangsta right here in your face."
"Me and 'Clef got together over a weekend," he explained about the collaborations. "We wasn't on each other's itinerary to work with each other. He hit me one day when I was in L.A. and was like, 'I gotta come to Atlanta, you got anywhere I can record?' "
T.I. graciously turned over the main room in his studio and it was on from there. T.I. came home about a day into Wyclef's sessions and immediately started snatching up tracks for himself.
"He started pulling up [beats] and I was like, 'Who is that for?' He said, 'You, if you want it.' We wound up knocking seven songs from Friday to Monday. It's just us having a good time. We just bonded."
"Show It 2 Me," which features Nelly, sounds like it could easily be a sequel to their previous teaming on Urban Legend's "Get Loose." The two go back and forth at points and Nelly uses an old-school flow like UTFO on "Roxanne Roxanne." Lil Wayne appears on "Yeah" and drops lines such as, "I'm flyer than a vampire."
Andre 3000 could also possibly check in, on a song called "Life of the Party." On that track, Tip talks about maturity, why he's now "too grown to be the life of the party," and how he has no time to argue with bouncers, overzealous fans or pestering playa haters.
"Listen buddy, you're way too close to me," he raps.
Of course, you should have already heard Mannie Fresh chiming in on "Big Things Poppin'," which is already on the radio (see "T.I. Has 'Big Things Poppin' ' With Mannie Fresh, Himself On T.I.P.").
"A lot of energy," T.I. said about what the former Cash Money Millionaire brings to the table. "Fresh is a cool cat, one of the coolest. One of the most down-to-earth, well-rounded cats I met in music. ... He ain't trippin' off no fame. He's coming in to make music, have a good time, enjoy himself as long as he can and when he gets sleepy, he's going home. It ain't a bunch of politics going on.
" 'Big Things Poppin', it's about the quest for the finest things in life and ignorance of the smaller things," he smiled. "I ain't doing nothing small. If I buy a car, I'm buying the biggest car on the lot for the simple fact that I got 17 cars. So what am I buying another car for unless it's the best car on the lot? If I'm going out, I'm going to the best club in town. If I'mma go shopping, I'm gonna go tear the mall down. Why? Because I'm in a position to do so."
Ultimately, T.I. and his alter ego meet up on a few records, such as "Respect the Hustle."
"It's basically T.I. and Tip telling each other, 'Let me do what I do, you do what you do,' " he explained. "T.I. tells Tip, 'I don't knock you when you trying to do records like 'Top Back,' 'What You Know,' so don't knock me when I wanna do 'Why You Wanna.' If I want to go to Hawaii and be on the beach, why do I have to come back and explain myself? They're basically trying to find a understanding of each other."
Jay-Z, Justin Timberlake and Timbaland are all also scheduled to appear on the set, while Akon, Scott Storch and Danja have already performed and produced for the album
--he got a good point about the whole departed thing, rap tends to receive alot more criticism then movies when they both usually deliver poor messages
--seems like the 3 tracks Em & T.I. did are a reality, and will appear on there albums. Good mix of club bangers & serious tracks for them
--can't wait to hear u know what it is, i'm down with any1 can produce a hot record, if thats wyclef, it don't matter
--get loose was dope, so will be show it 2 me. Not big on wayne, but i'm down for a T.I./Wayne collabo
--when i first heard about the "life of the party" track i expected a club banger, not a mature song, but itll be cool, especially if andre 3000 checks in :o
--the hype for this album continues to grow ;D
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SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSo gay
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TI is overrated.
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westcoast: your opinion, but he's highest selling rapper of 06, so its all good 8)
L.Sanford: better then ALL of the commercial rappers running the game.
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highest selling with like 1.5 platinum huh? wow the guy's a giant
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highest selling with like 1.5 platinum huh? wow the guy's a giant
1.7
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highest selling with like 1.5 platinum huh? wow the guy's a giant
hahahaha... thats quite a bit in todays world
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oh yea he also made that awesome movie with one of those dancing guys
he's runnin shit no doubt
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oh yea he also made that awesome movie with one of those dancing guys
he's runnin shit no doubt
dancing guys? ???
if he ain't runnin shit, NOBODY IS ;D
shit stop hating. Jay-Z came outta retirement (big publicity right there) and dropped a hardcore radio friendly single and STILL couldn't touch T.I. #s
"Dominated 06' Now I'm Goin Right Back" :) ;) ;D 8) :P
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
And answer me this because I'm not a TI fan and I really don't know... I think TI's success has really been driven by the great beats on his singles. I know he released that wack ass single w/ Swizz Beats back in like 04, but outside of that he's done a really good job at picking really dope beats on his singles. And the thing that set him apart was these beats were done by either in-house producers or producers who weren't already on every other mainstream rap album at the time.
King was a huge album because those singles were laced w/ beats that were both dope and unpredictable. I don't mean like they caught you off guard, but I mean it's not like you're getting a lead single produced by Scott Storch in which you know exactly what the song is gonna sound like before you hear it. And because TI had his own crew largely responsible for the beats on his singles he actually amassed a core fanbase and that fanbase expanded w/ every album. He had something that the other mainstream losers didn't have. THAT is how you sell albums, and thats how you have a career w/ some longevity.
So here we are in 2007. TI went platinum w/ his last album, which causes the major labels to flip the fuck out because they somehow released a successful album. So now, they are throwing every big name mainstream artist on their label to try and get an appearance on TI's new album. Guest producers, rappers, and singers and all the HYPE. And yes, I realize that his prior albums had features and beats outside his camp. But not to this degree. Where in all these hyped up articles are they mentioning the cats that are most responsible for TI's success? All I'm hearing is Timbaland, Timberlake, Scott Storch, Wyclef, Jay-Z, Eminem, Nelly. TI has officially entered the generic, hype, hype, hype, zone. And now you've got corporate america trying to milk his platinum status by putting him in Chevy ads w/ Dale Earnhardt. My god this is gay.
I have no idea how anybody is excited to hear the same album sold to them month after month. The same fucking people put out every goddamn mainstream album!!!! Does anyone see a pattern here?!?!? Does anybody wonder why the majors struggle to sell fucking records? Its because they keep releasing the same album over and over and over! It's played out!
If his label doesn't push a couple of singles that are produced by his core producers, it's a MASSIVE fuck up. They're gonna alienate his core fanbase that has steadily grown every album.
Mark my words, for you cats that have bought all his prior work, this will end up being your least favorite album. I promise you after a little time has passed you'll compare this to his other albums and you won't like it as much as the others.
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
And answer me this because I'm not a TI fan and I really don't know... I think TI's success has really been driven by the great beats on his singles. I know he released that wack ass single w/ Swizz Beats back in like 04, but outside of that he's done a really good job at picking really dope beats on his singles. And the thing that set him apart was these beats were done by either in-house producers or producers who weren't already on every other mainstream rap album at the time.
King was a huge album because those singles were laced w/ beats that were both dope and unpredictable. I don't mean like they caught you off guard, but I mean it's not like you're getting a lead single produced by Scott Storch in which you know exactly what the song is gonna sound like before you hear it. And because TI had his own crew largely responsible for the beats on his singles he actually amassed a core fanbase and that fanbase expanded w/ every album. He had something that the other mainstream losers didn't have. THAT is how you sell albums, and thats how you have a career w/ some longevity.
So here we are in 2007. TI went platinum w/ his last album, which causes the major labels to flip the fuck out because they somehow released a successful album. So now, they are throwing every big name mainstream artist on their label to try and get an appearance on TI's new album. Guest producers, rappers, and singers and all the HYPE. And yes, I realize that his prior albums had features and beats outside his camp. But not to this degree. Where in all these hyped up articles are they mentioning the cats that are most responsible for TI's success? All I'm hearing is Timbaland, Timberlake, Scott Storch, Wyclef, Jay-Z, Eminem, Nelly. TI has officially entered the generic, hype, hype, hype, zone. And now you've got corporate america trying to milk his platinum status by putting him in Chevy ads w/ Dale Earnhardt. My god this is gay.
I have no idea how anybody is excited to hear the same album sold to them month after month. The same fucking people put out every goddamn mainstream album!!!! Does anyone see a pattern here?!?!? Does anybody wonder why the majors struggle to sell fucking records? Its because they keep releasing the same album over and over and over! It's played out!
If his label doesn't push a couple of singles that are produced by his core producers, it's a MASSIVE fuck up. They're gonna alienate his core fanbase that has steadily grown every album.
Mark my words, for you cats that have bought all his prior work, this will end up being your least favorite album. I promise you after a little time has passed you'll compare this to his other albums and you won't like it as much as the others.
i cant really argue with too much of what you said...the reason i loved King so much was like you mentioned (all in-house,no gay features etc.) but im not gonna knock him quite yet...until i actually get Vs. and give it a good listen i cant call it. but you do make alot of sense +1
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L.Sanford: better then ALL of the commercial rappers running the game.
Chamillionaire > TI ;D
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:'(
I'm starting to think Nas was right..
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It's just after midnight and T.I. is waiting to go home from Teterboro, N.J.'s Atlantic airport in a private G-3 aircraft, courtesy of producer Wyclef Jean. The plane is equipped with 10 seats, a padded bench and an overeager stewardess tending to Atlanta's favorite rapper and his three friends, who are indulging in a sh*t-talking game of spades over the cabin's coffee table.
It's all fun and games on the airplane, but the lighthearted banter may actually speak to a darker side of T.I. -- a side that T.I. himself is showcasing in his upcoming album, "T.I. vs T.I.P.," due July 3. Much of the public knows T.I. as the ultra-suave, super-stylish rapper, the guy who guests in Justin Timberlake videos and makes the ladies swoon. But hip-hop heads and those closest to T.I. know he's a man fighting demons and thus fighting to hold onto his blistering career momentum. That's the essence of T.I.'s new album. He is the pop star, focused on expanding his horizons and his bottom line. T.I.P. -- a childhood nickname shortened to T.I. when the rapper signed his first deal, out of respect to Q-Tip -- is the bad boy.
No doubt, life has been good. His last album, "King," featured arguably the song of the year in 2006, "What You Know." The song sat at No. 1 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for six weeks and was the theme for the movie in which he starred, "ATL." The album was one of the top sellers of the year, entering The Billboard 200 at No. 1 and moving 522,000 its first week. It has sold 1.7 million to date, according to Nielsen SoundScan.
Then, in spring 2006, while his Grand Hustle label celebrated the release of its first artist, Young Dro, and his song, "Shoulder Lean," earning the No.1 hip-hop slot in the country, Jive's now-president of urban music, Mark Pitts, reached out to see if T.I. might be interested in working with Timberlake. The pop star's "My Love" featuring T.I. hit No. 1 on The Billboard Hot 100, hurtling T.I. from hip-hop star to pop success. In the fall, T.I. was nominated for four Grammy Awards and won two for best rap solo performance for "What You Know" and best rap/sung collaboration for "My Love."
His hot streak hasn't stopped. Currently "Top Back," from "King," "Where They At," from his upcoming album, and his feature on R. Kelly's "I'm a Flirt" sit on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
But then T.I.P. -- friends and label execs refer to him as "Tip" routinely -- always seems to be lurking around the corner. In 1997, a pre-rap T.I.P. was arrested, convicted and sentenced to parole for drug charges and giving authorities a false name. Then in 2004, just as his "Rubberband Man" single was proving itself as a hit, T.I. turned himself in for violating parole and served roughly four months in Cobb County jail. Instead of promoting his sophomore album, "Trap Muzik," T.I.P. sat behind bars. Upon his release, T.I.P., in response to what he felt were Houston MC Lil Flip's disses, brandished photos of Flip dressed as a leprechaun at a local concert. The pair's rivalry grew and culminated in a street-boxing match behind a few cars during a T.I. video shoot in Houston.
The new album mixes plenty of still-hood tracks -- that would be T.I.P. -- and some poppier moments. The just-released first official single, "Big Sh*t Poppin'," produced by Mannie Fresh, could be a remix to "Top Back," the last single from "King," still on the charts. The new song's repeatable chorus, "Big sh*t poppin' and little sh*t stoppin'," is classic T.I.P.
Though the album's final sequence isn't hammered out yet, Timbaland, Eminem, Danja Hands, Swizz Beatz, the Runners, Just Blaze, Scott Storch, Akon, Wyclef Jean and in-house Grand Hustle producer Lil C have lent their production talents to "T.I. vs T.I.P." so far. One song, "Goodbye My Dear," T.I. wrote and produced himself. The track sports lazy drums, a synthy piano and Ciara on the hook, while T.I. rhymes about why his relationship must end. It's clearly a track aimed for the ladies.
"I can never go pop -- the hood is in me," T.I. says. "I'm just going for a different audience than I usually target. It's not fair to me to keep talking about the same things. I've gone so far past the hood that I've got to talk about other things."
The only question remaining is whether the rapper will be focused enough to stay out of trouble and promote his album. In other words, all his Grand Hustle signings, his executives at Atlantic and those closest to him will be waiting to see the winner of "T.I. vs T.I.P."
The rapper says he's confident. "Letting my rage and my temper get the best of me, like missing the second half of 'Trap Muzik' for serving a sentence-things like that, these are the things that hold me back," he says. "These are the things that T.I.P. does to keep T.I. from getting where T.I. thinks he can be ... The only person that can beat me is me."
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L.Sanford: better then ALL of the commercial rappers running the game.
Chamillionaire > TI ;D
I'm waiting for Cham's new album before I agree with u on that ;)
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
:sign_werd:
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
:sign_werd:
T.I. got that swag, ya know
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
:sign_werd:
T.I. got that swag, ya know
he needs to stick to that
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
:sign_werd:
T.I. got that swag, ya know
he needs to stick to that
Let's hope he does
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Wow, TI vs. TIP. Thats some deep shit. And one side is the business man and the other is like the street dude? I swear to God I think i've heard statements exactly like that in about 100 rapper interviews. How do you guys get hyped hearing about this crap? Do you not get tired of the same wack fucking gimmicks?
And answer me this because I'm not a TI fan and I really don't know... I think TI's success has really been driven by the great beats on his singles. I know he released that wack ass single w/ Swizz Beats back in like 04, but outside of that he's done a really good job at picking really dope beats on his singles. And the thing that set him apart was these beats were done by either in-house producers or producers who weren't already on every other mainstream rap album at the time.
King was a huge album because those singles were laced w/ beats that were both dope and unpredictable. I don't mean like they caught you off guard, but I mean it's not like you're getting a lead single produced by Scott Storch in which you know exactly what the song is gonna sound like before you hear it. And because TI had his own crew largely responsible for the beats on his singles he actually amassed a core fanbase and that fanbase expanded w/ every album. He had something that the other mainstream losers didn't have. THAT is how you sell albums, and thats how you have a career w/ some longevity.
So here we are in 2007. TI went platinum w/ his last album, which causes the major labels to flip the fuck out because they somehow released a successful album. So now, they are throwing every big name mainstream artist on their label to try and get an appearance on TI's new album. Guest producers, rappers, and singers and all the HYPE. And yes, I realize that his prior albums had features and beats outside his camp. But not to this degree. Where in all these hyped up articles are they mentioning the cats that are most responsible for TI's success? All I'm hearing is Timbaland, Timberlake, Scott Storch, Wyclef, Jay-Z, Eminem, Nelly. TI has officially entered the generic, hype, hype, hype, zone. And now you've got corporate america trying to milk his platinum status by putting him in Chevy ads w/ Dale Earnhardt. My god this is gay.
I have no idea how anybody is excited to hear the same album sold to them month after month. The same fucking people put out every goddamn mainstream album!!!! Does anyone see a pattern here?!?!? Does anybody wonder why the majors struggle to sell fucking records? Its because they keep releasing the same album over and over and over! It's played out!
If his label doesn't push a couple of singles that are produced by his core producers, it's a MASSIVE fuck up. They're gonna alienate his core fanbase that has steadily grown every album.
Mark my words, for you cats that have bought all his prior work, this will end up being your least favorite album. I promise you after a little time has passed you'll compare this to his other albums and you won't like it as much as the others.
--Beats have helped him, but you can easily argue any rapper who sells alot of copies must have hot beats on his singles
--that swizz beats track wasn't wack on a mainstream level, that album sold 1.3 million copies
--DJ Toomp is most responsible for T.I.'s hit singles, and he's not an in-house producer. He just doesn't really work with alot of big names (i know you mentioned that), but he's not a grand hustle producer, just stating that. Khao, Lil' C, Keith Mack are the in-house boys
--Then give T.I. credit on picking dope beats. And the flow on What You Know was as amazing to me as the beat itself
--Urban Legend also saw T.I. work with alot of ppl outside his camp. You saw Nelly, B.G., Mannie Fresh, Lil' Kim, Scott Storch, Swizz Beatz, Trick Daddy, Lil' Wayne. Shit even Daz Dillinger
I've loved all his prior work, and I don't think this will be much different. Urban Legend & King were already big cross-overs for him, and that's the way it's gonna be. Also, T.I. has the ability to NEVER be outshined on his own shit. Don't matter who's spittin on his album, you know T.I.'s gonna come the hardest, and he usually doesn't let the features play a big role. I'm confident he'll make the right decisions.