Clifford “T.I.” Harris’ career should be over.

Last year, the Atlanta rapper was arrested on two counts of felony weapon charges that could have landed him in jail until 2027. Somehow, he beat the rap and will now serve only one year in jail after he completes 1,000 hours of community service.

Now, with his sixth album, “Paper Trail,” T.I. has thrust himself back onto the throne of being the self-proclaimed “King of the South.” He’s taken the time to re-focus after last year’s disappointing “T.I. vs. T.I.P.” and finally gotten comfortable laying down his usual swagger, backed up by lyrics that are more complex than the usual dope boy flow.

Look no further than the album’s first single: the Danja produced “No Matter What.” In it, T.I. boasts that no matter what happens to him, here he is, unscathed. Advice like “manage to conquer every obstacle / make impossible possible / even when winning’s illogical” demonstrates the tone T.I. has set with his latest album. Sure, he’ll still make hits for the streets, but he’s expanding his vocabulary as well as his artistic integrity.

Something that appears often throughout the album is the constant attention T.I. gives to fellow Atlanta rapper Shawty Lo. The two have gone back and forth on T.I. being from Bankhead, Atlanta. While T.I. was on house arrest awaiting trial, Shawty Lo blew up on the music scene and released the track “Dunn, Dunn,” taking dead aim at the controversy.

Now, with the lines of communication open for all to hear, T.I. holds nothing back. Although he never mentions Lo by name, nearly every song on the album contains at least one reference to him. On “What Up, What’s Haapnin,” T.I. inadvertently dedicates the whole song to his enemy with lines like “you disgraced the A / gave the city such a bad name,” thus making the blooming career of Shawty Lo bigger than it already is. T.I. complains Lo is small time and on small songs, yet the whole message of the song revolves around Lo.

As usual, a T.I. album features a load of guest spots and “Paper Trail” is no different. The pounding, hypnotic M.I.A. sample in “Swagga Like Us” overshadows the verses from Kanye West and Lil’ Wayne, yet somehow accentuates Jay-Z’s “murder every verse” mentality.

“On Top Of The World,” featuring former rival Ludacris, adds well to the vibe that “Whatever You Like” and “My Life Your Entertainment” possess, but it sounds more like a B-side.

The only track that feels really out of place is the Justin Timberlake featured and produced “Dead and Gone.” It’s reminiscent of the Lil’ Wayne and Robin Thicke collaboration “Tie My Hands,” one that sounded interesting but ultimately anti-climactic and dry.

With releases from Rick Ross, Young Jeezy and Wayne already dominating the rap world this year, T.I. raises his MC immortality with his best album since “Urban Legend.” In 2006, T.I. was the hottest thing around musically; He just hopes you haven’t forgotten about him.

Two years have passed, 30 years have been avoided and now T.I. can finally reclaim his crown.

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