 Over this past weekend I decided that I would finally give in and give TI's new comedy special "Cheaper Than Therapy" a try. You may be thinking why? Like you, I questioned my decision in thinking the same. Why now? Why Comedy? But my curiosity had gotten the best of me. For one, because I am an avid T.I. fan, we're talking about I'm Serious, Trap Muzik, and of course, King. Since T.I. came on the scene in the early 2000s, I've always admired T.I's songwriting ability, his swag, his vocabulary (which has become a social media inside joke), and that he always stood on morals. His album King was practically the soundtrack to my 2006. But as I grew, I noticed that there was a clear disconnect between his new music and the music he I had grew up listening to. I met him as dope boy TIP, and he had become T.I. the reality star and social activist. Now even further from his 2006 album King, T.I. has switched gears to comedy. Before I press play on the review here are a few thoughts about it. What qualifies me to critique comedy? I have watched every Dave Chappelle special and every Kevin Hart special, which shows a complete spectrum of comedy, Dave’s dark humor and Kevin Hart’s comedic timing when it comes to his mannerisms, plus I watch Chocolate Sundaes on YouTube, but my most proud qualification of all, I was a Comic View baby. There were so many nights I would stay up watching Comic View on BET. Also, I used to watch Def Comedy Jam, we only had HBO for a bit, but when we did, best believe I was tuned in. Stand Up Comedy is a genre I regularly look for on NetFlix, so with well over 100 watch hours of comedic routines and from a wide range of comedians, this qualifies me to answer the question for T.I.'s comedy special. For T.I. is comedy really cheaper than therapy? We start with his appearance, which was undoubtedly inspired by Eddie Murphy's outfit in his special "Raw". But it also seemed inspired by Martin Lawrence's loose look in his special "You So Crazy". With a swagger and an outfit that paid homage to Eddie Murphy’s Raw red leather suit I can say, at least he's done some studying of the greats. But did he really put in his 10,000 hours? He’s only 3 years in and has a comedy special in his hometown of Atlanta, which from the start of the show he made sure to let the crowd know that this wasn't a concert. A clever jab to start off the job, but this is heavyweight fight and it's gonna take more than a snicker to get a good laugh from me.  Let's talk about some of the science of comedy. Comedy is an artform that has so many measurable metrics, one of the most important ones being, timing. I've gotta admit his timing seemed off. His jokes ran together. He didn't know how to let some jokes breathe and when to breathe at times. They just didn’t land the way he had in his head. A lot of the laughs seemed to be forced from the crowd more like a studio audience on queue than a real audience that connected with the jokes. It was a room of friends and it seemed like his friends were being nice. But there were a few bright spots. T.I. has always been a great storyteller and this did translate to his show. He came out to his song “About The Money” which he used to set up his jokes about Young Thug. He talked about the government using his lyrics against him in his RICO charge, which he told a great joke about nobody knowing what Young Thug says in the verse of the song, "He obviously rappin in cursive." Then he proved that know one knows what Young Thug is really saying as he had the crowd hilariously try to recite his "Live My Lifestyle" verse, the first 4 bars nobody could repeat. Then went into a story about repeating back Thug what he thought he said in the verse, which Young Thug hilariously replied, "OG you right!" Atlanta has a lot of competition when it comes to dating and T.I. let the crowd know that love in Atlanta is circumstantial, she with you until she sees someone like Usher. He then went into a story about walking home because Usher called shotgun with the person he rode to the club with, which then led into a horrible imitation of Usher. It's his transitions from joke to joke that were really rough and often were awkward and off kilter. He then gets a little personal as he goes into his relationship with Tiny, starting with his jokes about her beating him, the way his voice inflections came off it sounded more like boy who cries wolf than funny joke. It’s like his jokes that were building from a story at times weren’t fully flushed out and just went to a dead end. But I've gotta say one of the most disappointing parts of the special was the part he used in the trailer. In real-time the joke wasn't funny. It was the edit of the trailer that made it funny. Mostly because the timing was off so bad. Back to relationship jokes. He also had this joke about he and his wife going on a double date with friends and that comparison is the thief of joy. Great life advice. But bad joke. The joke didn’t land when he was comparing his reaction to his wife being late to his wife’s friend being late. But the story never really took a funny turn. It was funny when he said take me on a double date with couple that’s been tested like Kirk and Rasheda. Cardi B and Offset. Yea that's a real test.  A shining moment. I gotta give it to him on the part where he talked about his kids, it was one of the funnier parts of the special, especially when he talked about his son King. He literally talked for the last 15 minutes of the show just about his son. But his timing was still off at times, and he hasn’t perfected mannerisms the way Kevin Hart has. He talked about being shocked his son graduated, I was thinking, us too. He talked about his son Messiah slash Buddy Red being the one who had the ultimate confidence and a free spirit. Which he says his kids all got a piece of him, "But King, he got the skip fade, cap to the side T.I. How does he act like me at a time he didn’t even know me." He also did an impression of King standing up on the table and yelling, “Hell, naw where were y'all niggas at when the Feds hit?" The End! Well, that's what it felt like, the ending was so awkward, he just said, "Thank you Atlanta" and walked off stage with his single "I'm Serious“ playing in the background. It seemed like he was on a time crunch, like he would have to penalty to the building if they didn't get everyone out before the hour was up. There weren't any end credits, no pictures, or audience reactions. Just The End! The verdict. T.I. is on a side mission. Not all side missions earn money. Not all side missions make you popular, for the right reasons. Truthfully, I say don’t watch this after watching a Chappelle special. This is like watching a new comedian that is still finding his own style and delivery. He put this special out too soon. But he has the money to do it, and he tried, which I can't knock him for trying. This is a new medium that will take time. He's still a rap legend. He still can get audiences to buy tickets. But would I recommend you paying to see this comedy special. Maybe not sober because a by shot 5, who cares how bad the joke is. And as always, drink responsibly. So to answer the question. Therapy might not have been cheaper than comedy. But At least with therapy, the therapist isn't laughing at you, or at least in your face. Let us know what you think of the comedy special and if you see T.I. having a real future in comedy. Watch the comedy special here: TIP AINT FUNNY
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 Master P said it best, "Ain't no money in the music business." He was speaking about the fact that streaming has become the preferred form of consumption when it comes how people access music. This has caused record labels to scramble to adapt, with many missing the ball on creating their own platforms and eventually just conceding to the major streaming platforms. The industry has never been the same. Everything's digital. But when everyone's going digital, this is the opportunity for artists to pivot and go back to physical media. But who's really making the money? The tech companies, the Spotify's, the Apple Music's, the YouTube's. Not only are they getting money from the fans by charging monthly fees, but artists also pay to rent digital space on their platforms, sometimes indirectly by going through a distributor or getting on a playlist, and other times directly by paying for advertising on the streaming platforms. Artists pay for advertising to run ad campaigns on these platforms in hopes of getting new listeners, but they don't have the analytics to see the listeners' emails or phone numbers in order to directly talk and cultivate an audience. Not to mention, these streaming companies get free advertising every time an artist or a fan posts a link to their platform. When you own the house, you can control the rent. Get it out the trunk like P. How do artists go physical? To go physical means to sell your music on CDs, Vinyl, USBs, cassette tapes, etc. I know what you're thinking. Who owns a CD player? Who owns a vinyl player? As far as vinyl, there's actually a community of vinyl collectors who are already expecting to pay for the premium product that vinyl offers. Also, a selling point is that these physical products offer a sound quality that streaming sites can't match. It also offers an opportunity to get into the physical product space. Why not buy some CD Players off Amazon or Alibaba in bulk and create a packaged experience? In this example, you get to control how your music is consumed. You're not competing with other artists; you’re not competing with algorithms or even annoying ads. It’s your music that is a curated experience that your audience would love to have. Also, there is a generational shift occurring where people are choosing to unplug, meaning no smartphones or even just dedicated time away from a screen, and this is where music shines brightest. The example has been proven. Kanye West’s Stem Player is an example of how controlling the listeners' experience can make millions. Going physical also means that you can gather information from your customers like their emails or phone numbers, or even birthdays, in order to keep the relationship open to a second transaction, or third, and so on.  Lastly, don't forget merch. Master P also said, “Get you some products”. Do you have a song that resonates, or a quote that everyone likes? Put it on a shirt, make an item that is unique to what you like, and share it with your audience. One example of this is Larry June. He’s seen the benefits of creating products that coincide with his healthy lifestyle brand that he raps about in his music. Some of the items he sells include a branded bike light, branded water bottles, and tote bags made from recycled material, all products are true to his lifestyle brand. Even Dame Dash saw the importance of merch and he literally used music videos and movies as hidden advertising for Roc-A-Wear and all the products under the Roc-A-Fella umbrella. This caused fans around the world to buy the merch that their favorite rapper wears in videos. The thing about merch is that it sells when you’re sleeping. Companies like Printful can even do all the printing and drop shipping for you with you ever having to touch the product. Now that’s distribution, without a Def Jam!
The Tides are slowly turning. When you look at Spotify and all the major streaming companies, people are getting upset. The prices of these platforms continue to rise as the economy gets worse and worse. Soon people may have to decide between music and going out to eat. But this is where Physical media is starting to make a comeback because also people are seeing that some of their favorite music is being taken off streaming sites or even altered, which may ultimately lead everyone back to the Napster days of pirating. Also streaming services that aren’t morally aligned with their customers are seeing mass cancellations. We saw this with Spotify after it was discovered that their CEO had been investing through his private equity firm into a software company that uses AI to operate weapons used in war. Just this past year major artists like 2 Chainz who is releasing his short film Red Clay on a digital VHS which streams to your phone, and Chance The Rapper released his new album Star Line on CD that has a tap feature that allows users also to stream the album from his website. These are not only physical releases, but it also gives fans something unique and collectible. Believe me, if the major artists are doing it, then Indie artists should be doubling down on it.  One artist that took this idea and ran with it is Oklahoma City artist Chris "The God MC" Cain, who at his recent show in OKC, dropped a merch pack that included a CD player along with a burnt disc of his 2 albums "A EASTSIDE STORY" and "Bird's Fly East" that he sold for $40. This same album (that is on Spotify) would take 28,500 streams of his music to make $100, but with this concept of selling this packaged album experience, all he has to do is to sell 3 and he's already passed the $100 target. Like Jay said, "I can divide".
Is the solution only physical? Is the solution only digital? No. The answer is somewhere in between. Spotify, Apple, and YouTube still have a huge audience that you can’t deny. This is where the market is. And you always want to go where the market is. But you also want to give the market another option. That means releasing 2 to 3 songs off a project but only releasing the full project independently through physical media. Another option would also be sites like BandCamp and EvenApp that give the artists a way bigger payout and allows people to talk directly to their customers including giving them their customer's emails. Customers can stream on the app, or they can just simply download the project. This is how you can exist in both worlds and participate in the business of making music. Art is meant to be shared with the world. In the end you have to decide how you want to share it. Do you want to be an artist who follows the trends? Or do you want to be one who can create their own rules? That’s what going physical means. It’s owning the house and being able to set the rent. It’s being able to control the listener’s experience without having to compete for attention. It’s being in front of the trend and never having to worry about being behind it. Lastly, it’s how you show that you’re in the music business and not the music hobby. Physical media gives you back control in a world fighting against digital monsters. The artist can still win and reap the rewards bigger than any dream they could’ve imagined. Because like Master P’s vision, there’s NO LIMIT! 
We dropped a new mixtape. The Purple Tape Volume 3: Thunder in 5. I would like to thank all the artists who continue to trust us with their music, this series has become a labor of love and one we continue to do. Our goal with this tape was to celebrate the amazing artists from Oklahoma as well as to celebrate the Oklahoma City Thunder's championship win. We also wanted to destroy the argument from anyone who still says that Oklahoma artists all sound the same, because if you listen to this tape there is so much range that if you still say it after listening to this tape, then you're just hating. This tape truly is a collection of talented Oklahoma artists who are showing why Oklahoma has such an amazing music scene. But don't take my word for it. Listen to the album exclusively on BandCamp! 
We also have 5 limited-edition MP3 players that include: - 1 MP3 Player - 1 wired white earbuds - 32 GB Micro SD Card - The Purple Tape Volume 3: Thunder in 5 (preloaded on MP3 player Hit us up if you want a copy! Go jam the album and let us know what you think! Also, here's the track list. Again, thank you to all the amazing artist who contributed to the album: The Purple Tape 3 - Thunder in 5 (Tracklist)
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