I'm Serious
I'm Serious is the debut studio album by American rapper T.I., released on October 9, 2001 through Arista Records. The album included guests appearances from Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes (who called T.I. "the Jay-Z of the South"), Jazze Pha, Too Short, Bone Crusher, Lil Jon, Mac Boney, Pastor Troy, P$C and Youngbloodz. The album featured production from DJ Toomp, Craig Love, Maseo, Brian Kidd, The Neptunes, Jazze Pha, Yung D, Lil Jon and T.I. himself. Despite the album's guests appearances and production team, the album underperformed nationally at #98 on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, and only sold over 165,000 copies in the United States. Upon its release, critics pointed to the fact that many of the tracks sounded the same and that a few were blatant rip-offs. Other critics commented saying, "T.I. claims to be the king of the South, but fails to show and prove. He does, however, have potential. If his talent ever matches his confidence, he may just be headed for stardom." Background In 1999, T.I. was discovered by fellow Atlanta native Kawan "KP" Prather—whose company Ghet-O-Vision, is frequently mentioned on the album. As Prather was signed to Babyface and L.A. Reid's Atlanta-based imprint LaFace