T.I. does good
Facing fallout from a recent arrest, T.I. raised money yesterday in Atlanta for his family's new Alzheimer's disease charity and explained how the idea for it took shape during a previous period of legal trouble.
T.I. (a/k/a Clifford Harris Jr.), and his wife, Tameka "Tiny" Cottle, held a luncheon for the foundation called "For the Love of Our Fathers," which honors their fathers' battles with Alzheimer's disease.
The rapper said the inspiration for the foundation came in the aftermath of his 2007 arrest on his way to the BET AZwards show on weapons charges.
"It's very, very personally close to our family," said T.I., who served seven months in prison for the firearms offenses. "And while I was, you know, while I was going through my . . . period of hiatus, Tameka had the idea of . . . starting this foundation. And I thought it was an outstanding idea."
Tameka's father, Charles Pope, has Alzheimer's, an irreversible neurological disorder that causes its victims to lose their memory, become disoriented and suffer personality changes. No cure is known. T.I. said his father and grandmother also had the disease when they died.
The couple said the charity would raise funds for disease research and possibly offer relief to caregivers.
"The King of the South" has sold millions of albums with hits such as "Whatever You Like" and "U Don't Know Me." He also recently starred in "Takers," a movie about an armored-car robbery gone wrong, and is working on a new album.
But his career has been threatened by legal trouble. Still on supervised release for his 2007 offense, T.I. was arrested last month in L.A. and accused of drug offenses.
