Peaks of success are when some of the most valuable lessons are learned.
When T.I. was taking over the rap game, he fell victim to an imprudent choice that ultimately altered his decision-making regarding his finances.
During the rapper’s interview on Shannon Sharpe’s Club Shay Shay podcast, he recalled a time when he bought a home for more than what it was worth.
“I overpaid for a house. We wanted to stay on the lake so bad and with this, I was just proving a point,” T.I. admitted to Sharpe. “It’s a lake called Lake Spivey in Atlanta. And it’s the only sports lake within the metro area.”
He continued: “We found this house and it was almost finished and we had fell in love with it. I’d already put in an offer and they accepted our offer. We were going to get this house.”
Then, things took a turn when the seller decided to not want to sell the house to T.I. and Tiny. After seeing his wife Tiny’s disappointment, he chose to keep pushing for a house on the lake.
“We started knocking door to door, man…We pulled up and said, ‘Hey, y’all want to sell y’all house?’ And we found one — the one that I’m in now on the lake. It was a middle-aged Indian man who had a family and he had just built the house maybe two or three years ago. He said, ‘You want this house?’ I was like, ‘Yeah.’ And I paid him about $500,000 over what it was worth.”
Although T.I. calls it “one of the dumbest things” he’s done, he cherishes the memories he’s made with his family in it, and his own lessons have allowed him to guide fellow rappers.
As previously reported by AfroTech, he shared that he once declined to sign the likes of Young Thug and 21 Savage for $1 million deals to his Grand Hustle label.
“Like nah, I ain’t gonna do that, because if I give you a million, I gotta take back something that’s gonna be worth way more, and we ain’t gon’ be able to be friends from there,” T.I. also explained during Sharpe’s podcast. “I always tell ’em, man, ‘Don’t worry about the money up front ’cause it’s gon’ come.’”
“I remember telling that to Slime, I remember telling that to 21…every time he sees me now, he’ll hit me and say, ‘Aye, it came,’” he continued. “And that puts a smile on my face because I just know how impactful every generation has the opportunity to be even more than the last.”