It's crazy how forgettable T.I's discography is

[Tetris v2.0]

I wouldnt say his catalog is any worse than his peers from the post 00s mainstream hits-driven era

Almost every album released on major from that era had blatant radio chasers, and TI was a big proponent of that. That said, his lyrics and content aged pretty gracefully IMO

He's still rapping his ass off most of the time, which is a plus for me

We can argue back and forth about whose albums had more of an impact, but truly the only objective argument there is for TM101 from Jeezy. Undeniable classic and gamechanger, but TI was the bigger star from that era so theres that as well

 

[CrimsonTider]

What messed up TI's legacy is beging on fire and then going to prison right after dropping a weak album (TI vs TIP). He started feeling himself too much and dropped a dud.

Paper Trail had mainstream hits but him trying to appear to be reformed & make pop songs like Whatever You Like went against his whole trap image.

He gets out of prison and becomes a reality show family man but tries to make hard trap music and it just doesn't resonate.

You got a whole generation that sees him as Major's dad and outside of All About The Money it's been over 10 years since he's had a real bonafide lasting hit.

He's in Lil Wayne territory where he's been bad (impact wise) longer than he was good. For example Dime Trap may not have been a bad album but it came and went. His concert set 99% consists of 10+ year old songs even though he's dropped 7 projects since 2008.

He's a legend but his last 10 years have been forgettable.

His legacy isn’t messed up

 

[Long Live The Kane]

Nah...random album cuts from his peak still have me like



This shyt in the whip is magnificent... should've been a single

Mannie one of the GOATs

The album he dropped last year was dope as fukk too... quality don't really matter though, it's not "cool" to give him his props anymore

 

[Stick Up Kid]

The 2006-2012 era of rap is legendary that class of jeezy Ross Wayne T.I. Kanye being at the top of the game was honestly better and more impactful than the 90’s

TheColi.com y’all

 

[Marlo Barksdale]

His legacy isn’t messed up

For all intents and purposes he was supposed to be the Southern Jay-Z but jail caused him to try to do too many different images at once. He plays a different role depending on the day (trapper, reality star, family man, activist, etc). Musically he went away from what people loved him for and has become more known as a personality. Shame becaue he could be a personality AND a relevant rapper.

 

[The Intergalactic Koala]

His greatest moment was having the best verse on Never Scared. Beyond that

 

[CrimsonTider]

For all intents and purposes he was supposed to be the Southern Jay-Z but jail caused him to try to do too many different images at once. He plays a different role depending on the day (trapper, reality star, family man, activist, etc). Musically he went away from what people loved him for and has become more known as a personality. Shame becaue he could be a personality AND a relevant rapper.

He had one of the greatest runs in rap history and is a legend in every single way

What he’s doing 15 years since his peak matters none

 

[ReadOneBookAWeek]

Easy, most these nikkas out right lying or exaggerating and putting on extras...

I can acknowledge when I think somebody is fronting, but I listen for the quality. Ross' music is legendary and I can make an argument he in the Top 25 All-Time, easy...

In regards to his background, the biggest lie was that he didn't grow up dealing, and he wasn't a Booby Boy, and he denied being a CO. But there's a manner in which Ross raps about large scale trafficking that anybody can't do. Its believable to me that he got into dealing as a grown ass man. He likely exaggerated the money he made, but there's a resonance in it, I can't really describe, if you've had a hand in major trafficking. But he was a goofy for early in his career basically saying he was a pusher as a kid, that was disproven...

Ice Cube said years ago all rappers lie or exaggerate to some degree. It's an art. If we all keep that in mind it's easier to listen for the quality. It's still fun to call out and pick on nikkas you know be lying though lol...


...

He knows Noreaga, the real Noreaga....and he owes him 100 bricks

Nothing believable about him being a wholesale kilo buyer either

 

[murksiderock]

For all intents and purposes he was supposed to be the Southern Jay-Z but jail caused him to try to do too many different images at once. He plays a different role depending on the day (trapper, reality star, family man, activist, etc). Musically he went away from what people loved him for and has become more known as a personality. Shame becaue he could be a personality AND a relevant rapper.

This is great analysis! The Jay-Z comparisons were great buzz at the time (most of us believed the hype, I def did), but they were always more ambitious than grounded in reality...

His greatest moment was having the best verse on Never Scared. Beyond that

Lol you funny mane...

He had one of the greatest runs in rap history and is a legend in every single way

What he’s doing 15 years since his peak matters none

Tip did not have one of the greatest runs in rap history. Compared to LL? Hov? Cube? Ross? Wayne? Pac? Big? Em?

We can keep going, man hell no...

Again I'll reiterate I've always been a TI fan, still am. One of the most relatable rappers to my own personal story. But this thread is lacking balance, too many guys are going to the extreme on both sides!

 

[ReadOneBookAWeek]

I hate to say it but at the end of the day it’s ENTERTAINMENT

No matter how much of a boss they act or how many football teams they own there’s always entertainers

Al Pacino never pretended to really be Michael Corleone in interviews & real life.

If it was just entertainment dudes wouldn't be trying so hard for people to BELIEVE the CHARACTER they portray is real.

It's really some clown shyt but hip hop fans aren't critical thinkers anymore so

 

[ReadOneBookAWeek]

As opposed to other rappers telling the truth?

Yeah Nipsey, KRIT, Cole, Common, Lupe are telling the truth in their raps. Lupe & Nas let you know when they're telling stories. Rick Ross stole a nikkas name, acted like he didn't know him and pretended to be a wholesale cocaine distributor his entire career.


It's only the ones who want everyone to believe that they're super thugs or super drug dealers that go around lying. I've never been a fan of those kinds of rappers

 

[murksiderock]

He knows Noreaga, the real Noreaga....and he owes him 100 bricks

Nothing believable about him being a wholesale kilo buyer either

That whole Noreaga shyt was easy to call from the jump, nobody name dropping at that stage lmao...

I definitely think he lied and exaggerated the quantities of cocaine he was around, but I can believe he may have had a little something in rotation. Rick obviously was one of those dudes who admired gangsts so much, he wanted to be one. So I can believe he started chasing that image until he felt he fit it, know what I'm saying?

Just my two cents, not that I know for a fact anyway, though years ago it was outed that he wasn't a Booby Boy and didn't sell a gotdamn thing in his adolescence like he initially said he did, he was a full grown man when/if he started messing with coke. Lol...I don't view dude as a g. I do think he's a visionary and he sold himself in the image he created and became one of the greatest of all time. To do that in the face of repeated (justifiable) attacks on his credibility speaks to his ability to market himself, and his talent...

 

[Big Mel]

T.I. was trash the moment I heard him. Screechin' ass bama on that horrible rubberband man song. actually i think there was an even worse song before that.

 

[HiphopRelated]

I'm sorry but I got "I'm Serious" when it came out and nobody was fukkin with dude. shyt is a personal classic to me and I can listen to it anytime without skipping through. Production was on point wit Neptunes, Toomp, Jazze Pha, etc... thats my favorite album by him although he had a lot of better songs on his other albums. so like homie said, I just compiled my own playlist of TIP faves.

I remember picking that album up on the fly 'cause there was some special at the store and I needed to pick another album. Never heard of him at that point, but ended up like damn, the boy got skills

 

[murksiderock]

Al Pacino never pretended to really be Michael Corleone in interviews & real life.

If it was just entertainment dudes wouldn't be trying so hard for people to BELIEVE the CHARACTER they portray is real.

It's really some clown shyt but hip hop fans aren't critical thinkers anymore so

All facts, though I'll say while Nas never seemed to push an image off wax, he definitely sold an unbelievable image of himself on wax at times. Doesn't take away from his talent and legacy, and I don't think it detracts from Ross legacy either. We know Ross wasn't this high level dealer. The dude is a GOAT, outside of Wayne, he has as good a claim as anyone for #2 South rapper ever...