T.I., in many ways, is the Gilbert Arenas of hip-hop. Both men began their careers as overlooked talents, with T.I. seeing his major label debut album flop and Gilbert being completely passed over in the first round of the NBA Draft. Through hard work and perseverance, however, both elevated themselves to the top of their respective years over the next few years (in fact, I’d still welcome an ’06-level T.I. or Gilbert Arenas as great addition to any hip-hop record or basketball team). But after nearly reaching “best in the world” status, both came crashing back down to Earth, mainly due to their terrible decision-making regarding where and in front of whom they brandished their firearms. Now, Tip can barely find an audience for his music, and Agent Zero can’t find a fan base that wants to watch him play basketball.

While Gilbert’s best days may be behind him, T.I. seems insistent on regaining his place as a hip-hop King. His plan of action to realize his vision? Fuck Da City Up, of course! Which city? His own, of course! Do I understand why he would do this? No. But his flow on this tape is much more reminiscent of his T.I. Vs. T.I.P.-style rhymes than the two disappointing albums he has released since, and that’s already a step in the right direction.

The first song on the tape, the title track, sees T.I. returning to what he knows best; intimidating boasts, nonspecific-yet-convincing threats, and selling drugs with the assistance of rubber bands. However, the presence of Young Jeezy, another Atlanta rapper struggling to recover his previous place of power in the rap game, somewhat confuses the purpose of the entire affair.

This being an Atlanta mixtape from perhaps the most seminal “trap muzik” artist in the history of mixtapes, the cut-and-paste descriptions from most similar releases apply; some bass-heavy bangers, some Frooty-Loops-sounding crap, and a whole lot of features. Among the mercenaries enlisted are those you’d expect (B.o.B. on the awesomely-titled “Pissin’ On Your Ego”) and those you definitely wouldn’t (Pimp C on the not-so-creatively titled “Pimp”).

The best feature, however is one that may or may not have been influenced by the very similar Drake-The Weeknd collabo, “The Ride,” a track titled “Oh Yeah,” on which Trey Songz’s “feature” is more a part of the beat than a standalone-part. T.I. goes H.A.M. on the whole thing and if there’s more of this type of output in Tip’s near future, I may upgrade his status from Gilbert Arenas to Vince Carter; still past his prime, but capable of contributing something worth paying attention to.

3 / 5 bars

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

T.I. – Fuck Da City Up (Feat. Young Jeezy)

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

T.I. – Oh Yeah (Feat. Trey Songz)

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

T.I. – Pissin’ On Your Ego (Feat. B.o.B.)