Seems Justin Timberlake doesn’t release anything by himself these days, he’s just happy to meander onto any given rap track and sing a few lines. No real hard work to be done, the audience is happy, and everybody goes home satisfied.

Except T.I. – he’s headed for prison in a few weeks, isn’t he?

You’ve got to admire the guy’s spirit though – not going to be held back by the minor inconvenience of being incarcerated, he’s releasing the fourth official single from his Paper Trail album.

A tribute to T.I.’s assistant Philant Johnson, who was killed back in 2006, the song’s a lot more serious in subject matter, and Timberlake’s contribution is more than just a celeb cameo: he actually delivers a smooth vocal that doesn’t seem shoehorned in.

Difficult to find a good version of the video online to share with you. The single gets a UK release on 23 Feb 2009.

Wow. After a phenomenal year in the American charts for rapper T.I., he’s due to go to prison in March after being convicted on federal weapons charges.

But before he takes a one-year break from da industry, T.I. is going to wrap up with a private concert at Chloe Sveigny’s New Years Eve party in Miami. I’d imagine the private gig will result in a decent payday for the 28 year old.

The weapons charges include the illegal possession of three machine guns. Which begs the question – what the hell is an aspiring rapper doing dealing in weapons? Regardless, he seems to be taking the matter seriously enough:

"While I’m not looking forward to being incarcerated, I have a long road of redemption to travel," T.I. told reporters outside the courtroom, according to The Associated Press. "I am dedicated and committed to that. I’m looking forward to turning this negative time in my life into a positive. I’d like to thank God for blessing me with a second chance in life and success. I realize I completely violated the law, and I take it very seriously."

For someone with two top 5 singles in the Billboard chart, the impending jail sentence obviously isn’t harming his popularity.