T.I.‘s had an eventful week. After two Grammy performances [click to read] and the debut of a new show, MTV‘s Road to Redemption [click to read], Tip
is quite the busy emcee. Recently, he spoke on a variety of issues,
ranging from jail time to why he would purchase an album by Katy Perry. in this interview with Blender [click here], T.I. reveals information about his upbringing and more.
On selling drugs as a young man:
“When we were hustling, we had a
certain discipline about ourselves at a young age. We
carried ourselves like adults. We played at times, but we weren’t the
silly kids. We knew how to take a joke, we knew how to crack a joke,
but we ain’t no joke. Also, ain’t no room for bein’ silly and playin’
when you’re in and out of jail a lot. …I’ve been
arrested somewhere around 32 times.”
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On spending time in jail:
“You stay to yourself as much as possible. …Speak when spoken to. And just mind your business. You ain’t
there to make friends. You ain’t there to join in on the jailhouse
games. You just there to do your time and go home.”
“I’ll read The Bible a lot. Biographies, magazines. I don’t
really read fiction. I read for information, rather than for
entertainment. I’ll talk on the phone a lot. I’ll spend a whole day on
the phone, checkin’ on what’s goin’ on, makin’ sure things are taken
care of. Ain’t a lot to do.”
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“People are in awe at times about who I am. ‘I can’t believe I’m in here with T.I.,’ but that usually goes away in about three, four days. After so long, everybody just inmates.”
On surprising album choices:
“I bought Katy Perry, too. How can you not buy a record about two girls kissing?” he said before revealing that one of his favorite bands is Maroon 5.
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In related news, T.I. recently hit Carson Daly‘s talk show and said he spoke with Chris Brown after the Rihanna incident.
In the interview, he noted that he gave Brown advice on dealing with the matter.
“I spoke to him today. He’s cool. I guess he’s a little concerned about the situation, but he’s still the same Chris.”
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“This too shall pass,” He said on the show. “We’re celebrities, we’re
entertainers, but we’re still human — all of us. Don’t expect us not
to make mistakes because we will.“
Now, he has retracted the statement, noting that he “made a mistake of commenting before understanding the situation.”
He isn’t alone. Actor Terrence Howard also retracted statements he made on the Rihanna/Brown story.
