T.I.

Rapper • Actor • Entrepreneur

Birth Date: September 25, 1980

Age: 42 years old

Birth Place: Atlanta, Georgia

Once described as "the Jay-Z of the South," R&B artist, actor and all-around entrepreneur T.I. was no stranger to success, or to the seemingly predestined pitfalls that so often come with the tumultuous rapper lifestyle. Emerging as a rising star in the R&B greenhouse environment of Georgia, T.I. built a growing reputation with early albums like 2003's "Trap Muzik" and "Urban Legend" the following year. His album "King" made it to No. 1 in the Billboard charts in 2006, and his collaboration with pop superstar Justin Timberlake on the song "My Love" was in heavy rotation on radio and video channels worldwide. Like many rappers before him, such as Ice T and Queen Latifah, T.I. also jumped into feature films, starring in such projects as "ATL" (2006), "American Gangster" (2007) and "Takers" (2010). A nearly year-long stint in federal prison on weapons charges failed to derail the determined artist who came back with his own reality show, "T.I. and Tiny: The Family Hustle" (VH1, 2011- ), a novel, "Power & Beauty: A Love Story of Life on the Streets" and a recurring role on the political drama series "Boss" (Starz, 2011-12). Despite the legal issues and highly-publicized feuds with fellow artists that came with the territory, T.I. consistently defied attempts to categorize him as just another rapper.