ATLANTA – A rapper who filmed a video in a jail while he was on work release from another jail disputes Fulton County officials' claim that the shoot had not been authorized.
T.I., whose real name is Clifford Harris (search), told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution that Thursday's video shoot was intended as an introduction to a concert in Atlanta Saturday.
The video showed him in a jail cell, apologizing to fans for not appearing at the event. Then, it showed two uniformed officers escorting him out of the cell shortly before he took the stage.
Harris, 23, said he planned the video because "basically, it was a lot of speculation — he say, she say — about my incarceration. I chose to take advantage of that."
Harris was serving jail time in neighboring Cobb County on a probation violation when he received permission to leave the jail to make the video at the Fulton jail, Cobb County Chief Deputy Sheriff Lynda Coker said.
Fulton County Sheriff Jackie Barrett said she never approved the video shoot, and sheriff's officials can't agree on who gave the rapper clearance to be in the maximum security area of their jail.
Under orders from his attorney, T.I. won't say who gave him clearance. The rapper will meet with Fulton investigators Monday.
T.I.'s second album, "Trap Muzik," was a best seller last year, spawning the hit single "Rubber Band Man."
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