Paper Trail (Grand Hustle, 2008) by T.I.

I was not a huge fan of T.I. when his career first started to be honest.  Not until I heard his remake of UGK's "Front Back" and "Big Shit Poppin'" (Mannie Fresh provided awesome beats as well) did I began to pay attention to Tip Harris.  It was then that I learned T.I. didn't write his rhymes down and that he was going to on his next album, Paper Trail.  I loved "No Matter What" and was writing for Billboard at the time so I bought the album the day that it was released so I could be ready immediately when the next single from the set was announced.  I was impressed to say the least.  The collaborations were great (especially Ludacris on "On Top of the World" and Justin Timberlake on "Dead and Gone"), the singles had substance ("Live Your Life"), and his lyrics were deep ("Slide Show").  It is one of my favorite southern rap albums and a modern hip-hop classic.   {Writer's note: Because of a family emergency, I was unable to post for multiple days and so I am posting multiple times now to make up for it.  I apologize for any confusion and/or inconvenience.}