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3:30 P.M.
Backstage at MTV, there are about 10 people in the green room.
Atlantic Records executives like Mike Kyser mingle with employees of T.I.’s Grand Hustle Records as DJ Drama kicks it in the background. While T.I. consults with his stylist for his appearance on MTV Tr3s’ Mi TRL , the execs discuss the following night’s album release party, and, most importantly, who T.I.
will bring out onstage for a surprise performance.“We need a moment,” one exec says, which seems to be a running theme.
When T.I. finally wanders into the dressing room, complaining of a tight neck and a headache, he’s wearing a black shirt, dark denim jeans, and black Prada sneakers. There’s a
Louis Vuitton Damier print wallet peeking conspicuously from his back pocket. “Man, you don’t never stop running your mouth,” he says to Pee Wee, the youngest member of the crew, who is also the resident comedian. Kyser is flipping though an issue of SMOOTH , and T.I. jokes with him about writing down the numbers for the ads in the back.
4:00 P.M.
MTV handlers call for T.I., and he swaggers to the edge of the set. Stepping out of the backstage darkness, his diamond dog tags, diamond cross, and diamond Frank Mueller watch glitter in the bright lights of the studio. If he’s at all nervous about this live interview, he doesn’t show it, at least not to any of the crewmembers who watch from the sidelines. After the interview (all four minutes of it), T.I.’s back in the green room, devouring pizza and soda with his crew and flipping through magazines until Kyser, who seems to be the taskmaster for the day, says it’s time to roll out.
4:30 P.M.
Outside the MTV building in Times Square, the crew disperses, filling up an armada of cars and trucks. The publicist and your intrepid SMOOTH correspondent are stuck without a ride, until a black van carrying T.I. and DJ Drama pulls up. It’s already filled, but T.I. tells us to get in anyway. It’s hard to imagine another star of his stature sitting four to a seat in the back of a van.
En route to BET, there’s a group discussion about T.I.’s upcoming performance on Jay Leno. “Maybe I should get some background singers,”he brainstorms aloud, and everyone in the van starts spitballing ideas on how to make it happen.
5:00 P.M.
The crew is escorted upstairs to the BET green room. Before everyone can get comfortable, T.I.—still suffering from a headache and lack of sleep—is told he’ll have to go on-set for his sound check. The crew follows him. DJ Drama gets behind the turntables and starts the music. T.I. performs “Whatever
You Like,” at one point dancing around like a member of an old Motown group and singing his hook in an exaggerated falsetto. “Y’all didn’t know nothing about that right there, did you?” he says on the mic, getting a laugh from the crew.
Back in the green room, T.I. slumps on the couch, not a performer anymore but an ordinary man feeling the effects of sleep deprivation. The local news is broadcasting headlines of
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the historic Dow Jones crash. A conversation ensues about the effect it will have on the economy.“A lot of people, when they say ‘America,’ they’re only talking about ‘me and the people I know,’”T.I.says.“And f-ck everyone else.”Meanwhile, various well-wishers poke their heads in, BET Vice President
Stephen Hill among them.
6:15 P.M.
Apparently, the pizza at MTV wasn’t enough, because T.I.
wants to walk to the pizzeria across the street. As soon as he says this, the crew perks up, as if everyone else just discovered they were still hungry, too. The dozen-plus entourage all follow him out. When T.I. walks through the front doors of the CBS building where they film 106 &
Park , dozens of screaming young fans greet him. He signs a few autographs and then hurries across the street to the pizzeria.“Y’all got some Italian icees?” he asks the counterperson. Outside the pizzeria, a new crowd swarms, snapping pics on their cell phones and whispering amongst each other.While he waits for the beef patties he orders,T.I.walks
out into the crowd, giving high-fives, signing more autographs, and posing for pictures.
Back at BET, he ducks out to get a massage in another room. When he returns, it’s almost showtime, so he chooses his wardrobe for his performance. This time, he picks black jeans, a black button-down, an army-green vest, and black and green Air Force Ones. The stylist gives him a few pairs of shades to choose from, and he tries each of them before settling on a pair with gold frames.
7:25 P.M.
The crew heads down to the 106 & Park set.T.I. waits in the wings while Terrence J introduces him. The crowd of zealous teenagers rushes to the edge of the small stage when
T.I. walks out on-set. From the performance he gives, you’d never guess that he’s functioning on very little sleep or that he’s still suffering through a headache and neck pain.During
his interview afterward, he interacts with the crowd so much that Terrance J comments on it.“A lot of artists come in here and don’t say nothing to the crowd,” he says.
“But T.I.’s been interacting the whole time. I got to give it up to you, man.” confirmation on a performance later that evening. The details are sketchy. Via speakerphone, Geter explains that it isn’t a show, merely an appearance, and although the fee is smaller than what T.I. normally asks, this is about building a worthwhile relationship. T.I. accepts that logic.
“If they had hundred stacks on deck, they could get a show, though,” he says.
8:15 P.M.
After 106 & Park , the crew crowds back into the van. The next stop is a secret Hot 97 location for an interview with
Funkmaster Flex. On the way there, T.I. calls his business partner and Grand Hustle Records co-CEO Jason Geter to get
8:35 P.M.
At the Hot 97 location, there’s a swollen security guard at the front door.“If you’re carrying, just let me see some ID,” the guard says, “because I’m carrying.” “Well, I’m definitely not carrying nothing,” says T.I. as he slides past. Upstairs, the waiting area looks more like an apartment undergoing renovation than the most popular station in New York.
Flex enters what looks like a makeshift studio about five
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a daunting 14. The manager says he’ll accommodate, and while everyone waits outside with the paparazzi who are snapping away at other famous Waverly guests, T.I. stands still long enough to do his SMOOTH interview.
who do this on this level do it with the expectations of being the absolute best. So, of course, a part of me says
I want to have the absolute best release of the year.
But at the end of the day, I just want my work to be appreciated.
10:00 P.M.
Afterwards, the van searches for the Waverly Inn in the
West Village, where T.I. will meet with his lawyer to discuss business.“Where the hell are we?” he asks after driving in circles for ten minutes.“I’m hungry as shit. I could’ve went uptown and got me some food.” Eventually, we find the restaurant along a dark, tree-lined street. When T.I. steps out of the van, paparazzi cameras flash. Unfazed, he and his business partner Geter walk into the restaurant and tell the manager that his party has gone from an intimate four to
Your album comes out tomorrow. Are you feeling any pressure?
Nah, I’m just anxious to deliver my hard work to the world.
There’s no pressure. Anything I do right now is better than what I could’ve been doing.
What are the expectations? Are you concentrating on your first-week sales?
Of course, all of us have a competitive spirit. All of us
On “Live Your Life,” you talk about how a rapper can get himself out of poverty and still not be happy because of a lack of morality. How important is that to you? Would you sacrifice a little success to maintain your morals?
It’s very important. I’m a rapper and a businessman, but
I’m a man first. I think moral standards and principles are what a person stands for, how serious he is about his beliefs, that’s more important than any amount of money.
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To be taken seriously and respected is more important than being admired.
When you went through your troubles last year, did you ever think that you could lose everything you’d built?
Of course. But then I felt like if it was gonna be over, then it would have been over already. If that was my purpose and my place, if that’s where God wanted me to be, then he would’ve already put me there.
Are you making any preparations for your upcoming prison term?
Oh, absolutely. I definitely had to prepare, so that while I’m gone, my family can maintain the way they’ve been living.
You definitely want to put things in place to continue to generate revenue. That’s the most you can do.
The title Paper Trail is feeling ironic in light of the current financial crisis. Are you scared that it’s going to hurt your sales?
I don’t think it’s really going to affect me that much. If
9/11 couldn’t affect Jay on The Blueprin t, then I think I’m safe.
Is there anything you’re still working for? Some luxuries that you’d still like to buy?
There are a lot of things that I’d like to obtain, but mostly,
I’m working for perfection. I’m working towards my spot in history. Working to create the most magnificent legacy
I can leave behind for my children, and to make my father and family and everybody who supported me proud.
On “Swagger Like Us,” you talk about the different things that listeners get from Young Jeezy, Lil Wayne,
Kanye, and you. What’s your lane?
I’m real diversified.I think I’ve proven that I can do just about anything. It’s all about what I feel like doing. Like I said, you go to Jeezy for the birdplay, Weezy for the wordplay, Yeezy for diversity, and me for controversy. And that’s how I feel.
A lot of people are great at being artists, but when it comes to people really spitting what they’ve lived and what they’ve been through on a beat, I think I’m the best at doing that right now. It’s like, you always had other people who could rap. You had Big, who was an outstanding, phenomenal lyricist, and so is Jay-Z, Andre 3000, Big Boi, and so many others. But when Pac spit, you could tell that he was speaking sincerely about his experiences. That’s why you felt him.
And I think that’s my lane right now.
When we were talking about the economy earlier, you said something about “rich people,” as if they were in another class than yourself. It’s like you still see yourself as one of the common folk.

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Man, I am. I ain’t rich. I might seem rich to somebody who ain’t got no money, but to me, man, Trump is rich. Hugh
Hefner is rich. Oprah Winfrey, Martha Stewart, Bill Cosby, Bill
Gates, Steve Jobs, those people are rich. I’m just a workingclass millionaire. I’m just doing my thing and doing it well enough to assume a certain level of success. I’m still trying to get to that $100,000,000 mark.
You’ve been out there encouraging the youngsters to vote. If you could speak to Obama and have him address some issues that affect the people of Atlanta, what would they be?
Man, as far as choosing sides, I’m trying to stay out of things as much as I can, because I think that somewhat hurts more than helps. You don’t want to make it a Black and White thing, where all the Blacks support Obama and all the Whites support McCain.You want people to support the person who is most credible and most intelligent. I think McCain and
Obama should focus on the issues that are relevant and not create new ones.
You seem to be a level-headed dude for someone in your position. Does this come from having the right people around you? Is there someone you can always count on to let you know if you’re steering off course?
Several of them. You’re around them right now. Jay, Doug,
C-Rod. That’s what they’re here for. That’s how we got this far and stayed this long. Those are the same guys who’ve been around forever.
Looks like our table’s ready.
Okay, I need to go see about making me some more money.
11:15 P.M.
After dinner, the crew pulls up at the Marquee nightclub.
There are hundreds of people outside waiting to get in, not to mention the reporters and their forest of microphones and recorders. T.I. poses for pics on the red carpet and answers a few questions before being escorted inside.
Security carves out a small space for him and a few members of his crew alongside labelmate Trey Songz and Grand
Hustle artist Alfamega. A crowd builds around T.I., squawking girls and gawking guys, all flashing cameras.“Oh, I love you!” one girl squeals.“Can I give you a kiss?”There are other celebs in the building, but none with the wattage of T.I. The
DJ runs through a medley of his hits, and when the Swizz
Beatz–produced “Swing Ya Rag” comes on, a mic surfaces and floats over to the man everyone’s trying to glimpse.With
his crew around him, T.I. pumps up the crowd.“Pick up that paper trail!” he says, rapping along with his song. And like it does everywhere he goes, the crowd goes wild.