T.I. can’t seem to escape those pesky rumors accusing him of being a snitch.
A resurfaced clip of his podcast “ExpediTIously” is yet again shedding light on the one time T.I. admitted to ratting someone out to spare himself from serving a prison bid. In the clip from 2020, the “Dead and Gone” emcee details how an attempt to sell stolen high-end clothing resulted in he and his cousin Toot being pulled over by the cops while he had a gun in the car.
“We caught those gun cases; Toot died. My lawyer said, ‘Well, you know, I could make everything go away if it was Toot’s [gun], it was Tremel’s,’ ” T.I. recalled of a discussion with his lawyer. “After he [Toot] had passed, I had a talk with him. Toot said, ‘I’ll take all the charges you got! If you can walk away free and put it on me, godd—n right! ‘Cause I’ll be d—ned if they gon’ come and muthaf—king extradite me from here!’ “
He continued, “That’s the only time I done ever said or gave information, because that’s my big cousin. He was dead and he told me that it was okay.” Online, social media users reacted to the old clip by saying that it proves the rumors are true. “I mean bro is dead so I mean it doesn’t really count, it’s not like like his cousin can serve time. But I still feel like he can be labeled a snitch?”
“T.I. said he snitch on his dead cousin, ain’t that snitching.”
“Dead man ain’t tell him nothing. You did what you wanted to do TIP Harris.”
As many of the rapper’s fans know, he accepted a plea deal in connection to his 2009 weapons case, where he was found guilty of attempting to purchase guns from off-duty cops. As part of his agreement, he was to serve one year behind bars, complete 11 months of home confinement, pay a $100,000 fine and complete 1,500 hours of community service. Noticeably missing were any terms laying out a deal for him to become an informant.
But none of that mattered when the Hustle Gang head honcho appeared in a Crime Stoppers commercial, urging Atlanta residents to call in with information on open cases. He made matters worse with his wordplay, which saw his moniker, TIP, used throughout the advertisement.
T.I. defended himself against former reality TV star Apollo Nida’s remarks about him being a federal informant. In 2014, Nina pleaded guilty to bank and wire fraud after accepting a plea deal that stipulated he would act as an informant for the government, and allow them to record his conversations with known criminals.
In since-deleted tweets, Nida said his agreement was similar to those that former Atlanta Falcons quarterback Michael Vick and the “King of the South” secured in their respective cases. The comparison did not sit well with T.I., who opted to address Nida in person. In a video of the encounter, the “Bring Em Out” rapper said he never snitched on anyone nor did he agree to be an informant.
