Going back to prison may have interfered with rapper T.I.’s plans to become a reality TV star, but his debut novel is arriving as scheduled on October 16th. In fact, Amazon posted their pre-order page for T.I.’s book, complete with its synopsis and jacket cover.
Written by Tip “T.I.” Harris (real name Clifford Harris) and “bestselling celebrity collaborator” David Ritz, ‘Power & Beauty: A Love Story of Life on the Streets’ is, according to Amazon, an “epic love story” between budding gangster Paul “Power” Clay and his friend, Tanya “Beauty” Long.
Based on the synopsis, the novel sounds a lot like the “up-and-coming hoodlum” films that T.I. himself has starred in, like ‘American Gangster’ and ‘Takers’, with a dash of coming-of-age ‘ATL’ thrown in. There doesn’t seem to be that many parallels between the fictional story and T.I. life, but don’t be surprised if Power’s mentor, a local businessman named Slim, draws some inspiration from Tip’s own good friend Philant Johnson, who was shot and killed in 2006.
Note to fledgling novelists out there: Going to prison is an excellent way to get some writing done. Power & Beauty is 352 pages long and weighs 1.4 pounds! (It currently ranks at 62,263 on Amazon’s Best Sellers list).
