With a Pharrell-produced single, a beef with 50 Cent, and a fresh fade, the Atlanta legend is mounting an independent comeback that echoes his KING era.
Ten years ago, on Tuesday, March 28, 2006, Clifford “T.I.” Harris released his highly anticipated fourth album, KING. It was the culmination of a half-decade run that saw him coin the term “trap muzik,” drop a succession of trunk-rattling hits, run afoul of the law a few times, and become one of the faces of a new generation of southern rap royalty that included Lil Wayne and Young Jeezy. The run-up to the album was flawless.
The then 26-year-old Atlanta native seemed to move from strength to strength. Even a major song leak wasn’t enough to derail the rollout. Instead of pouting, Tip flipped the situation and released a mixtape made up of the songs called Gangsta Grillz: The Leak. The Leak featured a few early versions of songs that wound up on KING, including singles “Ride Wit Me” and the Jamie Foxx-assisted “Live in the Sky.” But one song the project did not have was the DJ Toomp-produced “What You Know.” Released in January of that year, the majestic, stadium-sized anthem hit No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and became not only the breakthrough single for the album but one of T.I.’s trademark songs. The video was directed by Chris Robinson, who was gearing up to release his theatrical debut, ATL, which, as you know, starred a young Clifford Harris.
So, in the span of three months, T.I. managed to notch a top three Billboard Hot 100 hit, a No. 1 album and a starring role in what became the No. 1 movie in the country. You couldn’t ask for a better rollout for an album. And, if we’re being honest, he never had one as good. The rollout for Paper Trail came close, with him decimating Shawty Lo in their short-lived beef, dropping a hit with prime Rihanna and gearing up for a stint in prison. But it wasn’t the same. Every other album cycle that came after that didn’t have the same shock and awe. Until now.
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If you weren’t aware, T.I. is on a roll. Yes, for real. If you’ve only had a passing interest in his career, you likely think that he’s still embarking on a stand-up comedy career. After taking a break from music, T.I. started hopping on amateur stages around the country working on new material. “I fell in love with it,” he told CBS News. “Every day, I was coming back to try and get back on stage everywhere I was. I think that’s what kind of made people know that I was serious about it.” It got so serious that Dave Chappelle gave him a spot opening for him on a few occasions. He went so far as to release a comedy special called Cheaper Than Therapy earlier this year. T.I. fans thought that this was it — the guy who invented trap music was going to spend the rest of his days trying to be a funny raconteur.
Then, seemingly out of nowhere, T.I., who had been sporting long braids, posted a short video of him in a barber chair getting a haircut similar to the tight fade he sported back in his KING days, with a catchy, synth-heavy beat playing in the background. The clip ended with white text over a black background that read “T.I. Is Back.” The clip took off. Not only were people excited to see Tip looking like himself, they were more excited that the song snippet actually sounded fire.
The song turned out to be the Pharrell-produced “Let Em Know.” The two have a long musical history together, with Pharrell producing on T.I.‘s first album and bringing him on Robin Thicke’s massive 2013 hit “Blurred Lines.” To capitalize on the rabid excitement generated by the track, T.I. released a steady stream of short-form video of him performing the song in different places while they worked on the official music video. It was to be the first single for what T.I. said is his final album, Kill the King.
But no rollout is complete without a little extracurricular activity. And that came courtesy of everyone’s favorite rabble-rouser, 50 Cent. What started out as a pretty innocuous back-and-forth rooted in T.I. claiming that 50 backed out of doing a Verzuz with him quickly turned into a foul beef that had the two legends trading increasingly insensitive barbs on song and social media. 50 Cent insulted Tiny Harris, T.I.‘s wife, and T.I. said disparaging things about 50’s mother and the mother of his son. It reached a crescendo when T.I.’s two sons tapped into the beef and released songs of their own going at 50 and defending their mom and dad. Despite the ugliness of the battle, T.I. presenting a unified front of not other rappers but his family members became an unexpected flex.
All the while, T.I. continued to promote “Let Em Know,” which currently sits atop Billboard’s Mainstream R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. When it broke into the top 40 on the Hot 100 last month, it became his 58th entry on the chart. When it came time to shoot the video, he tapped another legend in Hype Williams. The clip, which features a signature Hype style that he made popular in the 2010s, is clean and cool and currently has over 11 million views on YouTube.
Not content on riding the success of a song produced by the current head of Louis Vuitton Men’s who just won a Grammy for his work on the Clipse’s comeback album, T.I. released another single with a more southern element to it. While “Trauma Bond” could be seen as a sly subliminal to 50 Cent and any others who thought it OK to take shots at his family, it more easily can be seen as an ode to his home. The song features the Tuskegee University marching band interpolating the iconic record “Ball N’ Parlay” by Texas underground legend Big Pokey. Produced by Corey “Mr. Hanky” Dennard, an Atlanta native who used to produce for Collipark Music, the track acts as a veritable wink and a nod for those who know.
With all of this, you would think T.I. is still signed to a major label, but nope. His last album is being released independently through his Grand Hustle imprint and EMPIRE. T.I. is a star and, at this point, a legacy act, but it’s still impressive to see all of this happen without one of the majors calling the shots. It doesn’t come close to the rollout of KING (even if it has been confirmed that ATL 2 is happening), but more than a decade on from that feat, it’s clear that T.I. still has what it takes to make the game pay attention.
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