Ever since T.I. hit the mainstream music scene back in 2001 with his album I’m Serious, he’s been virtually nonstop. With 10 studio albums under his belt and 110 singles so far, the Atlanta rapper is bound to be one of the genre’s legends. Even 18 years later, T.I. aka Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. has managed to stay relevant. He continuously transforms and acclimates his music to the current culture, and he’s also found his way into other ventures as well. Over the course of his long career, T.I. has accumulated a net worth of about $50 million. Let’s break down exactly how this talented artist made his fortune.
Net Worth $50 Million Name Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. Age 39 Born Atlanta, Georgia Birth Date September 25, 1980 Source of Wealth American Rapper, Actor, Songwriter, Producer, Entrepreneur, Record Executive, and Author Country United States
The Music
T.I. started rapping when he was only 8 years old. There really was no denying his talent even when he was young. His grandparents raised T.I., and his yearning to create music was virtually unstoppable. With the kind of passion he had, he knew early on that he had only one path to follow. He started high school, but T.I. only stayed in school briefly. He soon dropped out in order to pursue his music, but his first studio album with Arista Records wouldn’t come out until 2001—he was 21 years old. Some of the tracks on this album were actually written while T.I. was serving a 72-month sentence for drug sales. The album itself didn’t perform very well, and there have only been over 270,000 copies sold commercially to date.
That particular album didn’t make T.I. a ton of money. And because of the album’s poor performance in sales, Arista Records ended up dropping T.I. from its artist roster. True to his craft, that downfall didn’t stop the talented young man from pursuing his dreams. T.I. went on to record several studio albums, singles, and mix tapes. He’s also worked with some of the biggest record labels in the country including Roc Nation, Columbia, Atlantic, and LaFace. T.I. is currently recording with Epic Records, but he also ended up starting his own record label company—Grand Hustle Records.
T.I. launched Grand Hustle in 2003 along with Jason Geter. The record company also goes by the name of Hustle Gang Music, and remains to be a small company according to Crunchbase.com . Atlantic Records distributed the label up until 2012, and it’s home to some of today’s biggest hip hop and rap artists such as Travis Scott and Trae the Truth. T.I. remains to play an active role in the company. The record label surely has made T.I. quite a bit of money. And add that on to the money he has made through his own music, T.I. has probably counted millions at this point just from music alone.
The Screen
Believe it or not, T.I. actually has 115 acting credits to his name according to his IMDB page. That’s quite a substantial number for a rapper, but T.I. has transformed himself into a decent actor over the years. His first acting role was in a movie called ATL, which was actually based on his early life growing up in Atlanta. That film alone grossed at about $21 million. His next big role came in the hit movie American Gangster. T.I. played the role of Stevie Lucas, drug lord Frank Lucas’ nephew. Some of the other movies that featured T.I.’s acting skills include Takers, Identity Thief, Get Hard, and Entourage. His latest film was in the blockbuster Marvel movie, Ant-Man and the Wasp. T.I. played the role of one of Scott Lang’s (Paul Rudd) associates. While none of these movies showed T.I. in the biggest or heaviest roles, he’s amassed enough money from being in movies to add to his net worth today.
In addition to his movie roles, T.I. has also acted on television. He was a recurring character in the show Boss in 2012. He’s also had roles in a number of other TV shows including House of Lies, Single Ladies, Roots, and The Breaks. He also starred in his own reality show, T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle. That show followed him and his wife and family through 6 entire seasons of their lives.
Aside from acting, T.I. also has producer and directing credits. His first show, T.I.’s Road to Redemption, was a reality show that aired on MTV. The show was a documentary and intervention mixture; it received generally positive reviews and was even regarded as one of MTV’s “most sobering show” for a good period of time. After that show, T.I. went on to produce other reality shows including 2018’s The Grand Hustle. This was more of a competition reality show. This is T.I.’s latest TV venture, and it’s currently awaiting a second season release.
Other Ventures
Speaking of ventures, T.I.’s net worth of $50 million would’ve been difficult to achieve if he stuck with music and shows alone. T.I. also happens to have a book under his name. The novel, Power & Beauty: A Love Story on the Streets, received generally positive reviews from critics and readers alike. He also has other business ventures that have made him money over the years. He opened his own nightclub in Atlanta known as Club Crucial, as well as a strip club called V Live. He’s also had endorsem*nts from a few brands including Chevrolet and Axe. Unfortunately, both companies dropped him back then due to his arrests for gun charges and drug possession.
In 2008, T.I. also launched his own clothing line known as A.K.O.O. The acronym stands for A King Of Oneself, and it offered urban style apparel. In 2010, he became a consultant for a liquor company, Rémy Martin Cognac. All of these ventures added up to bring T.I.’s net worth up to $50 million to this date. T.I. is still young and very much active on the mainstream. We can only imagine what he’ll be up to next in order to increase his net worth even more.
