Rapper T.I. admits that he was first excited about his children’s careers in the entertainment world.
The father of seven is married to Tameka “Tiny” Harris, and they have three children: Heiress, 7, Major Harris, 16, and King Harris, 19.
He has three elder children, Messiah (23), Domani (22), and Deyjah (22); Tiny has a 27-year-old daughter, Zonnique, who was an adolescent when they married in 2010.
The primary focus is on high school, while Deyjah works as a model and social media influencer for various fashion firms. The other Harris children have each entered the music business, focusing on their distinctive sound.
Heiress is now learning to sing like their mother, but Zonnique has been in the industry since 2009 as a part of the OMG Girlz before launching her solo career.
However, their Grammy-winning father claims he never intended for his children to work in the same field he did over 20 years ago.
“To be honest with you, I never wanted them involved,” T.I. told presenter Arian Simone during his appearance on her “Welcome to the Fearlessly Living” podcast. “Not just my daughters, none of my children.”
Domani’s son King is also a promising rapper, and his flow has been likened to that of his father at a young age and J. Cole. Meanwhile, Messiah has established himself as a country-blues singer by the stage name Buddy Red.
“I just know how much treachery, how much betrayal … how much of the dark side exists in this, and I never wanted to expose them to that,” says the “Urban Legend” writer and illustrator.
“I always wanted them to be able to tailor make their own path and create their own motion coming from different areas given the influence we’ve already created in this industry.”
T.I., who completed his first affordable, local housing project in Atlanta last year as part of his Buy Back The Block program, expressed regret that his children did not pursue more significant jobs that were not popular in Black households.
“There aren’t enough lawyers, doctors, engineers, and architects…” “There aren’t enough of them in the world from our households.”
The 43-year-old revealed hundreds of rappers, including himself, and models, actors, producers, DJs, etc. However, he feels the Black community would benefit from exposure to different advancement pathways.
“To keep us where we need to be, to get us … post-metamorphosis, to allow us to evolve the way that I envision us evolving, we need more Thurgood Marshalls,” said T.I. in a statement. “We need more Ben Crumps.” We need more than simply entertainment. We can’t amuse our way out of this slump.”
Many others online seemed to agree with T.I.’s viewpoint, noting that he is simultaneously growing his name as a stand-up comedian as he prepares his retirement album. Others questioned if the children had been exposed to careers other than those pursued by their parents.
One remarked, “He understands what’s up; kudos to TI also for transitioning to the humor side of the business,” another asked, “Did he tell his kids what he’s telling us now? And as a parent, if you wanted to instill it in your children, did you expose them to anything other than entertainment?”
The Harris family has been in reality television for years due to their series, “T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle,” which ran on VH1 for six seasons, followed by “T.I. & Tiny: Friends & Family Hustle.”
T.I. appeared onstage with his wife, Tiny, and their mixed family to commemorate the 20th anniversary of his second album, “Trap Muzik.”
