The big wigs over at PETA apparently want rapper T.I. to pose nude in their famous “I’d Rather Go Naked Than Wear Fur” campaign. PETA Executive VP Tracy Reimain says, “We’re asking T.I. to use his fame and his experiences to bare the truth about the fur industry by baring his skin.”

The Atlanta based rapper is currently serving a 366 day prison term on illegal weapons charges and Michelle Cho, the leader of the famous animal rights organization, wrote a letter to T.I. on behalf of the organization, asking that he publicly show his support by baring his skin when he’s released from prison. Continue reading to peep the letter they sent to Tip.

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Fellow Atlanta rappers T.I. and Soulja Boy performed on stage Sunday night at the Philips Arena in ATL as fans came out in droves (the show was completely SOLD OUT!) to watch Tip perform live for the last time before he began his 366-day stint in prison in Arkansas. Continue reading for more exclusive pics, courtesy of our boy Freddy O!

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A lot of stories are circulating about the Internet saying that T.I. and his longtime girlfriend Tameka “Tiny” Cottle tied the knot before Tip reported to Forrest City prison to serve his 366-day prison sentence. The reports state that the couple got married in a secret ceremony last Friday (May 22) in Miami.

But Gossip On This is here to let you know that although T.I. and Tiny are no doubt in love, but him going to prison for a year-and-a-day did not prompt the two to quickly get married in a “secret ceremony” in Miami. A highly placed source close to the couple revealed the news to us yesterday and T.I.’s publicist Sydney Margetson also told Sister 2 Sister that the news is “absolutely not true.”

So there you have it. They’re not married … yet! Shame on you Essence!

After a couple of push-backs and a bit of confusion here and there on just when T.I. would begin his sentence, the Atlanta raper turned himself in Tuesday (May 26) at an Arkansas federal prison, where he began serving his notorious 366-day sentence stemming from those weapons charges he received in Atlanta back in 2007.

According to several reports, Mr. Clifford Joseph Harris is now in custody at a low-security section of the Forrest City Federal Correctional Center, where he will reportedly be in the general population with the rest of the inmates, despite his celebrity status.

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Actor Denzel Washington and singer/songwriter Justin Timberlake chatted it up courtside Tuesday night at Game One of the Western Conference Finals between the Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles for the 2009 NBA Playoffs in LA at the Staples Center. Other famous faces including T.I. and Timbaland were also at the game. Continue reading for more!

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According to Charysse Alexander, a spokesperson for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, reports of T.I. only serving two months in prison are completely inaccurate. She told MTV News that the Atlanta rapper was definitely given credit for his 305 days of house arrest, but that, unfortunately, has nothing to do with his year-and-a-day prison sentence.

She went on to say that according to federal sentencing guidelines, anyone who serves more than a year in prison is eligible for a 15 percent “good time” credit, which in T.I.’s case would mean that he could get close to 55 days knocked off of his total sentence.

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Rapper and Grand Hustle CEO T.I. (real name Clifford J. Harris Jr.) will report to an Arkansas federal prison on Tuesday, May 26th 2009 to begin his very generous one year and one day jail sentence after pleading guilty to felony weapons charges back in March.. According to court filings and a report from The Associated Press, T.I. must report to the Forrest City low security federal prison by noon, where he will join 1,500 other inmates.

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Ja Rule, Kevin Liles, Rev. Al Sharpton and others joined T.I. Monday afternoon in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City to collectively speak out against gun violence as T.I. and the K.I.N.G. Foundation held an anti-gun rally.

The event also honored the memory of two slain local teenagers, 13-year-old Christopher Owen and 17-year-old Corey Squires, both recently gun down. Continue reading for a few more photos from the rally.

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Rappers Young Jeezy, T.I. and Nelly hit up Saturday night’s Atlanta Hawks vs. Cleveland Cavaliers NBA Playoff Game (Game 4) at the Philips Arena in ATL. Keyshia Cole was also in attendance and sang the National Anthem before the opening tip.

And the house was PACKED with black star power! Continue reading to peep even more photos of Jermaine Dupri, Polow Da Don and Monica also enjoying the game via their exclusive high-priced celebrity courtside seats (yes, we ARE hating).

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After exposing the fabricated realities of Akon and Rick Ross‘ respective careers in the music industry, The Smoking Gun went at Grand Hustle recording artist Alfamega and uncovered some dirt on the former T.I. protege. To make a long story short, old Alfy once worked as a DEA informant. A government witness. A snitch! And apparently, T.I. did NOT like that at all … which is why we called him T.I.’s former protege.

In light of the Smoking Gun’s shocking revelation, T.I. dropped Alfamega like a bad habit live on air via Atlanta’s Hot 107.9 radio station saying that he doesn’t see him or Grand Hustle playing a role in his personal or professional business … ever.

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Rapper T.I. dapped up Mike Bibby (#10) of the Atlanta Hawks Sunday night. The Atlanta native was spotted enjoying his last few weeks of freedom as he sat courtside at Sunday evening’s Atlanta Hawks vs. Miami Heat basketball game in ATL. He has about 2 or 3 weeks before he is legally required to turn himself in to serve his year and a day prison sentence. Continue reading for more photos from last night’s game!

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Word is Atlanta rapper T.I. has already started work on his follow up to his platinum studded album Paper Trail. MTV News says he’s already recorded 20 tracks to prepare for the new project, which is set to be released sometime in 2010. A lot of the tracks were recorded straight from the top of his dome!

“I’m doing it half and half,” he told MTV of his writing process. “It depends on the type of record I’m doing. I have records now I did and I just went and did it like I used to, and I got some where I wrote it down. I’m not committing myself to one way or another. It’d have to be an infusion, just depending on what sort of album I want to make.” [Watch Below]

“Recording is never a problem for me,” he added. “I’m able to record any time. Through the best of times and through the worst of times, I’m still able to record. It may change the sort of song you do, but you never can tell. You never know until that moment gets there.”

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In addition to the upcoming 2010 album release, the Grand Hustle HNIC will also be re-releasing Paper Trail with 5 brand new songs as well as other content. No word on when that album will drop, but T.I. has until May of this year to turn himself in to serve time for those illegal weapons charges.

It has been confirmed that Corey Williams has been given the same sentence (via a very nice plea deal) as his former boss T.I. A judge sentenced the former bodyguard/informant to one year and a day behind bars in a federal prison for his role in T.I.’s recent weapons scandal.

In court records, Williams revealed that he started working for T.I. in July 2007. Soon after, Williams’ previously clean record allowed him to purchase weapons for T.I., who is barred from obtaining any due to his previous criminal convictions. The arrangement was discovered by ATF (Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms) authorities when Williams attempted to purchase a machine gun without registering the weapon, which is required by federal law.

Upon his arrest, Williams agreed to wear a wire during face-to-face meetings with T.I., which led to the rapper’s arrest on felony weapons charges. Although no charges were filed, Williams also implicated T.I. protégé Alfamega in the conspiracy.

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Now THAT’S what you call a snitch! SMH…

If you were among the group of MTV viewers who sat in front of your tubes Tuesday night to catch the final episode of T.I.’s Road to Redemption, you’re probably a little disappointed and wondering what the hell is going on. According to MTV News, the show’s finale has been postponed until next Tuesday, April 7th, due to a computer glitch. The episode that aired this past Tuesday was a re-run. Michael Hirschorn, an executive producer of the show, said this type of screw-up has never happened before.

“Basically, as I understand it, it’s a kind of screw-up that’s never happened before,” Michael Hirschorn, an executive producer of “Road to Redemption,” told MTV News on Wednesday (April 1). “The materials for show were collected for final assembly, everything was good and signed-off, and then the media became corrupted. It was sort of like having a file on a home computer, and the computer screws it up — only much bigger than that.”

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Rapper T.I. was sentenced Friday to one year and one day in prison on federal weapons violations, reports the Associated Press. In March of this year, the Atlanta native, whose real name is Clifford Harris, pleaded guilty to three charges of illegal weapons possessions after he was arrested following the purchase of illegal weapons and silencers prior to the 2007 BET Hip-Hop Awards.

He originally faced up to 10 years and a $250,000 fine for each count and had initially pleaded not guilty. But since changing his plea, he has performed over 1,000 hours of community service and with the help of MTV created a new reality series, “T.I.’s Road to Redemption,” where he warns young teenagers about the dangers of guns, drugs and violence.

He has 30 to 60 days to turn himself in.

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T.I. told MTV News that his former feud with fellow Atlanta rapper Shawty Lo wasn’t beef. Because he’s just too grown for a word like “beef.”

“See, I’m a grown man. These situations are not that major for me, you know? It’s always more blown up in the media than it is in my mind. That’s nothing to me. I never even considered it to be a big deal to begin with. So, something like that, I just didn’t do it for publicity,” Tip told MTV News. “I’m not doing it for the purposes of taking pictures, and for people online to talk about it and people on TV to talk about it. As a man, I don’t mean anybody no harm, I wish everybody the best, I ain’t never been a hater, I congratulate success, and I move on and keep doing what I’m doing … That word ‘beef’ is used too loosely, to me. ‘Beef’ is kind of like ’swag.’ People just throwin’ that word around,” T.I. said. “To me, man, if I don’t mean you no harm, we can’t be beefin’. If I see you, and I don’t attack you, it ain’t no beef, and vice versa. Everything else is just entertainment to me.”

Peep a video of the reformed rapper talking to MTV’s Sway after the cut!

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Rapper T.I., his artist Yung LA (left), and Vibe Magazine’s editor-in-chief Danyel Smith attended a private reception at the Eldridge Monday night in Brooklyn, NY celebrating Tip’s latest cover with Vibe. Continue reading for the rest of the pics.

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Atlanta rappers T.I. and Shawty Lo surprised concertgoers Friday night when the two reportedly united onstage at T.I.’s Club Crucial in Atlanta. The two have been going back and forth with diss tracks and numerous verbal jabs in interviews for over a year. Their biggest blow-out was back in November 2008 at the Dirty Awards when Tip’s crew and Lo’s crew got into two separate physical altercations during the ceremony, eventually shutting the whole thing down prematurely. But according to recent reports, the two have made up and ended the childish beef, just in time for T.I. to serve his 1-year prison sentence on weapons charges (beginning in two weeks).

“After that last altercation at the Dirty Awards, I told him my side of the story,” Lo said Sunday in his studio, located in Atlanta’s Bankhead neighborhood. “We talked for, like, 15 minutes. We decided in 2009, we’re coming into a clean slate. And he’s finnin’ to go in. What better place to do it than in Bankhead at Club Crucial? … It was unexpected,” Lo continued. “We already talked. Me being a man, I just went up there, and the crowd went crazy. They was shocked. We dapped each other as soon as I hit the stage. It was a good feeling.”

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T.I. and his reality show tv cameras were reportedly “too commercial” for a Brooklyn middle school where the prison-bound rapper was set to make an appearance. According to the NY Daily News, Crown Heights’ Middle School of the Arts was all down for T.I. talking to their students about how to “avoid the wrong side of the law,” but when they heard about the television cameras, they nixed the scheduled appearance upsetting parents, students and school faculty who were looking forward to seeing the Atlanta native speak at the school.

T.I.’s visit, which would have aired on his MTV reality show “T.I.’s Road to Redemption,” was too “commercial” a venture to be allowed in Crown Heights’ Middle School of the Arts, Department of Education spokeswoman Margie Feinberg said Friday.

The “Live Your Life” entertainer, facing jail time because of gun charges stemming from a drug conviction, would have spent the day teaching students how to avoid the wrong side of the law. Before officials canceled the event, students, parents and faculty at the school said they were looking forward to meeting the rapper. “We’re very excited about his visit if it’s going to help the children do positive things with their lives,” Principal Susan Hobson-Ransom said.

“It’s a positive spin on a negative situation,” said Seth Byrd, 31, whose son Daniel Jefferson is in sixth grade.

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“His guilt was never seriously questioned in our mind,” U.S. Attorney David Nahmias told Vibe of how the rapper was sentenced. “We often give significant sentence reductions to people who cooperate in a more traditional way by providing information about other criminals. What [the defense] proposed, and what I ultimately thought was reasonable, is that Mr. Harris has the ability to reach thousands, probably tens of thousands of people, particularly at-risk young people. And that out of the tens of thousands of people he could reach, he has the real possibility of getting at least a few of them not to commit the kinds of crimes we would prosecute.”

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Rapper T.I. is featured on the April 2009 issue of VIBE Magazine. This will be his last magazine cover as a free man before he heads to prison later this month to serve a year-long sentence for charges related to his illegal possession of firearms. The issue basically talks about how people screamed “Snitch!” when T.I. got his sentencing. Most were expecting him to be put away for a very long while, but when news broke of him only getting a year, people began to question his integrity. T.I. wants everyone to know that is definitely not the case. Peep the press release, which was sent out today, below and after the break.

In an extensive report titled “Cell Therapy,” VIBE Senior Editor Benjamin Meadows-Ingram chronicles the superstar’s history-making legal battle and gut-wrenching journey since his 2007 arrest for attempting to collect three unregistered machine guns and two silencers following his BET Hip Hop Awards performance rehearsal.

After the announcement on March 27, 2008 of what many felt was a shockingly light slap on the wrist for the serious charges, many responded by screaming, “Snitch!” However, authorities agreed to a groundbreaking plea deal negotiated by heavyweight Criminal Defense Attorney, Steve Sadow, who cited the star’s ability to influence others by serving 1500 hours of community service.

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As we reported last week, T.I. is currently on a 12-city “farewell tour” to promote his latest album, Paper Trail, before he begins his year-long prison sentence this month. Friday night in Miami, the Atlanta native brought along fellow entertainers Young Jeezy, Lloyd, Sean Paul and Nas to perform a special show for Miamians at the American Airlines Center. Continue reading to peep the rest of the pics!

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Here’s DJ Drama’s brand new music video for his latest single, “Day Dreaming,” which features some of the biggest names in hip-hop (Akon, Snoop Dogg & T.I.). We posted the pictures of the four of them (with cameo appearances from Lil Jon, The Jabbawockeez, and more) on the set earlier this month, and now you can check out the Rage-directed video above.

BET’s annual fashion show, Rip The Runway, was held Saturday (Feb. 21st) at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York and features appearances and performances from Toccara Jones, Bobby Valentino, The Dream, Joy Bryant (host), T.I. and more. The show airs on BET March 2nd at 9 PM EST. Continue reading for the rest of the pics!

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According to All Hip Hop, T.I. recently launched a 12-city “farewell tour” to promote his latest album Paper Trail. This will be the Atlanta rapper’s last tour before he begins his year-long prison sentence in March, and he also said that he plans on working on new material for a brand new album while on the tour, which kicked off in St. Louis, MO last Thursday (Feb. 19th). Continue reading to peep the tour dates and to read about him speaking to a group of Atlanta students on the importance of education.

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Here’s the official GOT premiere of T.I. and Justin Timberlake’s brand new music video for “Dead and Gone,” the latest from T.I.’s most recent album, Paper Trail. Be sure to catch T.I. on his “Road to Redemption” reality series that airs weekly on Tuesdays at 9:30 PM only on MTV. Check out his new video above!

Jay-Z and his Rocawear clothing line hosted the Rocawear Retreat party and concert in Scottsdale, Arizona after Sunday night’s NBA All-Star Game nearby in Phoenix. T.I. performed at the concert, rocking threads from his Akoo clothing line, and Beyonce and Young Jeezy chilled VIP style at the party.

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Ciroc Vodka and 944 Magazine hosted another NBA All-Star Weekend 2009 party at the W Hotel in Phoenix Friday night. The guest list inclued the likes of T.I., Fabolous (who also performed at the event), Akon and more. Continue reading to see who else hit up the party!

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T.I. talked to Carson Daly the other day when he appeared on “Last Call” and when the interview got to Chrianna-gate ‘09, T.I. said this:

“Yeah, I spoke to him today. He cool, you know. He’s still the same Chris. I told him this too shall pass. 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.”

Continue reading to peep a statement from the Atlanta native to retract what he told Carson.

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T.I. and little Major, the latest addition to his clan of children, share the limelight in the March 2009 issue of Blender Magazine. In the issue, the rapper, who faces a year and a day behind bars beginning this March, says what he plans on doing with his time.

“You stay to yourself as much as possible,” he says. “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.”

So how will he get through each day?

“Well, that depends on the facility. Some luxuries are available in some facilities that aren’t available in others. Some facilities have a TV, but you can’t watch it ’cause cats in there wild out so much. 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.”

He says his fame won’t really make much of a difference: “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.”

Continue reading for more pics from inside the issue!

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FEAT. M.I.A., LIL’ WAYNE, JAY-Z AND KANYE WEST

Check out these performances (courtesy of the good people over at On Smash) form Sunday night’s Grammy Awards!

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Celebrity entrepreneur Russell Simmons and rapper T.I. posed for photos on the red carpet at Simmons’ “Salute to Grammy Award Nominees” celebration on February 8, 2009. The event was held at a private mansion in Beverly Hills and had a guest list that included Keyshia Cole, Anthony Hamilton, Taraji P. Henson and more. Continue reading for the rest of the photos!

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Check out these candid shots of Diddy, T.I., Kanye West, T-Pain and more chilling either backstage or in the audience at last night’s Grammy Awards. Continue reading for more!

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Here are the photos from last night’s Grammy Awards, which featured a big performance of “Swagger Like Us” with T.I., Lil’ Wayne, Jay-Z, Kanye West and M.I.A., who was reportedly performing on stage on her due date! Crazy… Continue reading for the rest of the flicks!

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The 51st annual Grammy Awards went down last night in Hollywood, despite all of the hoopla surrounding the whole Chris Brown and Rihanna situation, and dozens and dozens of the biggest names in celebrity entertainment showed up on the red carpet to pose for photos: Jay-Z, T.I., Keyshia Cole, Jennifer Hudson, T-Pain, Diddy, Robin Thicke and more! Continue reading for the rest of the photos.

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T.I. and Justin Timberlake were spotted on location at the video shoot for their latest collaboration, “Dead and Gone,” off of T.I.’s latest LP Paper Trail. The video was shot in Lancaster, CA and should premiere sometime before T.I. heads to prison in March of this year. Continue reading for more pics.

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DJ Drama, T.I., Snoop Dogg and Akon were spotted on the set of DJ Drama’s latest music video for his new single, “Daydreamin.” The video was filmed in Hollwood, CA and here are the photos from last night’s shoot. This will probably be T.I.’s last music video appearance (if he doesn’t release his own) before he heads back to jail for one year beginning in March of this year. Continue reading for the rest of the photos and to see who else dropped by the set!

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Anybody who was anybody made a trip to Washington, D.C. last weekend to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama. That event alone made it okay for everyone in town to celebrate and party the weekend away. Young Jeezy kicked things off with his Presidential Status Inauguration Ball at Club Love in D.C. on January 18th 2009. Celebrities like Jay-Z, Beyonce, Trey Songz, Nelly and more all showed up to party for Barack! Continue reading for the rest of the photos.

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Atlanta rapper T.I. is trying to set people (young teens, mainly) straight with this new MTV reality series of his, “Road to Redemption,” which is set to premiere on Tuesday, Februrary 10th 2009 at 9 PM ET/PT.

According to reports published by The Associated Press, T.I. will have an MTV camera crew following him, in an effort to set teens straight, as he prepares to go to jail this March. Crews have already been following the Atlanta rapper since June 2008, and will continue to follow him after the show, “T.I.’s Road to Redemption,” premieres next month.

He’s already logged over 864 hours of community service, and must complete 136 more before March when he goes behind bars. According to reports, this show will only be in addition to, and not count towards his community service hours, but he hopes that it will scare teens straight.

Rapper T.I. performed at the New Year’s Eve celebration at Gansevoort South in Miami. The Atlanta rapper hosted the event.

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The guy responsible for murdering T.I.’s childhood friend and assistant, Philant Johnson, was sentenced to 66 years in prison. Hosea Thomas received his sentencing in an Ohio courtroom one day before Christmas Eve (Dec. 23rd) after being convicted in November for the murder of Johnson, stemming from a gunfire exchange in May 2006. Justice has definitely been served!

As of yet, no more information has been released as far as parole eligibility and when his sentence actually begins. But we do know math, and since Hosea Thomas is 40 years old, he’ll be 106 years old when he’s released from prison. Or dead … whichever comes first. Even though this won’t bring Philant Johnson back, T.I. and Johnson’s other friends and family can rest a little easier.

Nassau Colisseum in Uniondale, NY played host to the 2008 Holiday Bash, sponsored by popular NYC radio station Hot 97, Saturday night (Dec. 27th), which featured performances from T.I., Ludacris, Busta Rhymes, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana and more. Check out more photos from the concert, and photos of some famous faces backstage, when you continue reading…

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Atlanta natives T.I. and Antwan “Big Boi” Patton attended Domaine de Canton’s holiday dinner at Mason Murer Fine Art in Atlanta, Georgia Monday night (Dec. 22nd). T.I. and Big Boi hosted the event. Other Atlanta celebrities who attended the event were Grand Hustle’s own Big Kuntry King and Yung Dro. BET’s Toure was there also. Continue reading for the rest of the pics!

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Rapper T.I. got into the festive mood a couple of days ago in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia as he handed out gifts to under privileged children Monday afternoon.

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CLICK EACH IMAGE TO ENLARGE

Rap-Up Magazine’s Winter Issue is now available and is ending and beginning the year with someone who’ll be missed in the future, T.I. In the issue, T.I.P. discuss his jail sentence and even touches on the effects it’ll bring to him and his family. Accompanied on the 2008/2009 issue is sexy Christina Milian. This will be the first official magazine spread she’s done since parting ways with her former record label Island Def Jam. Christina will also reveal her feelings on the recent marriage of her ex, Nick Cannon, to Mariah Carey. Check out this issue on stands now!

T.I. says that he wants his friends, family, and business associates to remember him as he they last saw him before entering jail in March 2009. When asked about conjugal visits on the Howard Stern show the rapper said: “I don’t accept visits. I want people to remember as I am. I’ll see you on release day.”

The self-proclaimed “king of the south” also revisited the federal gun possessions that lead to his forthcoming sentence.

“It’s definitely not about looking cool or people seeing you carrying anything around,” he explained. “If you were familiar with my past, you would recognize that there are certain significant dangers that are very real. In 2006 my best friend got killed right in front of me. They made an attempt on my life.”

To let Tip tell it, those days are over. “The thing is right now, I’m the safest I’ve ever been,” he shred. ”I’m federally monitored daily.”

[ SOURCE ]

T.I. and a couple of sexy models that go by the names Chanta Patton & Daphne Joy are featured on the cover of the latest issue of Black Men Magazine. Continue reading to peep more photos from the issue.

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Here’s the official GOT music video premiere of Jamie Foxx’s brand new music video, featuring T.I., “Just Like Me.” Love the “Guitar Hero” reference in the video … we love Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock!

Leading Lady Taraji P. Henson talked about the video in a recent interview with AOL Black Voices.

Taraji P. Henson: It was so much fun working with Jamie Foxx and Bret Ratner, whom I had never worked with before. I’m looking forward to doing more work with the both of them. It was a chance for those who have seen my work to see me be really silly. I don’t think my audience understands that I’m a stronger comedic actress or that I’m a comedic actress. You have seen me in more dramatic films, but in my opinion, comedy is my strongest attribute. It was a chance for me to be as silly as I want to be.

AOL BV: What’s the story in the video about?

Taraji P. Henson: The song is called ‘Just Like Me’ and Jamie and I have been rivals since we were kids. The video opens with us as toddlers having a hot dog eating contest, and we go through these vignettes of competition. Silly competitions like a ‘High Five competition’ or ‘The Stare Down competetion’, and it goes through who wins. I win the majority of the time, but since it’s his video, he has to win in the end.

HOSEA THOMAS CHARGED FOR MURDER OF T.I.’S FRIEND » The man suspected of shooting T.I.’s assistant and childhood friend, Philant Johnson, was found guilty by a jury last week. We discussed T.I.’s testimony a couple of weeks ago. 34-year-old Hosea Thomas was on trial for the shooting death of Philant Johnson and firing at T.I. and his entourage following a May 2006 concert in Cincinatti. In T.I.’s testimony, he told the court that he sincerely believed those bullets were meant for him.

T.I. told jurors that he believes the bullets fired at him and his entourage during a gun battle two years ago were meant for him, but they struck and killed Johnson, his assistant and longtime friend. T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris, was not injured in the shooting on Interstate 75. Harris had been at Club Ritz following a post-concert party, and police said his entourage became involved with Thomas in a dispute over access to the club’s VIP area.

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