Name	Prophet Jonah
Birth date	8th Century BC
Feast day	July 31
Venerated in	JudaismIslamChristianity
Titles	Prophet, Seer, ''Apostle to Nineveh'', ''Companion of the Fish''
Major shrine	''Tomb of Prophet Jonah'', Mosul, Iraq
Prayer attrib	}}

Jonah (; , ''Yūnus'' or يونان, ''Yūnān''; Greek/Latin: Ionas) is the name given in the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh/Old Testament) to a prophet of the northern kingdom of Israel in about the 8th century BC, the eponymous central character in the Book of Jonah, famous for being swallowed by a fish or a whale, depending on translation. The Biblical story of Jonah is repeated in the Qur'an.

The story of Jonah

Jonah son of Amittai appears in 2 Kings as a prophet from Gath-Hepher (a few miles north of Nazareth) active during the reign of Jeroboam II (c.786-746 BC), where he predicts that Jeroboam will recover certain lost territories.

Jonah is also the central character in the Book of Jonah. Ordered by God to go to the city of Nineveh to prophesy against it "for their great wickedness is come up before me." Jonah seeks instead to flee from "the presence of the Lord" by going to Jaffa and sailing to Tarshish, which, geographically, in the opposite direction. A huge storm arises and the sailors, realizing this is no ordinary storm, cast lots and learn that Jonah is to blame. Jonah admits this and states that if he is thrown overboard the storm will cease. The sailors try to dump as much cargo as possible before giving up, but feel forced to throw him overboard, at which point the sea calms. The inspired sailors then offer sacrifices to Yahweh. Jonah is miraculously saved by being swallowed by a large fish specially prepared by God where he spent three days and three nights. In chapter two, while in the great fish, Jonah prays to God in his affliction and commits to thanksgiving and to paying what he has vowed. God commands the fish to vomit Jonah out.

God again orders Jonah to visit Nineveh and to prophesy to its inhabitants. This time he goes and enters the city crying, "In forty days Nineveh shall be overthrown." The people of Nineveh believe his word and proclaim a fast. The king of Nineveh puts on sackcloth and sits in ashes, making a proclamation to decree fasting, sackcloth, prayer, and repentance. God sees their works and spares the city at that time.

Displeased by this, Jonah refers to his earlier flight to Tarshish while asserting that, since God is merciful, it was inevitable that God would turn from the threatened calamities. He then leaves the city and makes himself a shelter, waiting to see whether or not the city will be destroyed.

God causes a plant (in Hebrew a ''Kikayon'') to grow over Jonah's shelter to give him some shade from the sun. Later, God causes a worm to bite the plant's root and it withers. Jonah, now being exposed to the full force of the sun, becomes faint and desires that God take him out of the world.

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Jonah in Christianity

In the New Testament, Jonah is mentioned in Matthew and Luke. In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus makes a reference to Jonah when he was asked for a miraculous sign by the Pharisees and teachers of the Law. Jonah's restoration after three days inside the great whale is said to prefigure the Resurrection of Jesus Christ after three days.

Jonah is regarded as a saint by a number of Christian denominations. He is commemorated as a prophet in the Calendar of Saints of the Missouri Synod of the Lutheran Church on September 22. On the Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar his feast day is September 22 also (for those churches which follow the traditional Julian calendar, September 22 currently falls on October 5 of the modern Gregorian calendar). He is commemorated as one of the Twelve Minor Prophets in the Calendar of saints of the Armenian Apostolic Church on July 31.

The apocryphal Lives of the Prophets, which may be Jewish or Christian in origin, offers further biographical details about Jonah.

Jonah in Judaism

The book of Jonah (Yonah יונה) is one of the 12 minor prophets included in the Tanakh. According to tradition Jonah was the boy brought back to life by Elijah (Ilyas) the prophet, and hence shares many of his characteristics (particularly his desire for 'strict judgment'). The book of Jonah is read every year, in its original Hebrew and in its entirety, on Yom Kippur - the Day of Atonement, as the Haftarah at the afternoon mincha prayer.

Teshuva - the ability to repent and be forgiven by God - is a prominent idea in Jewish thought. This concept is developed in the book of Jonah: Jonah, the son of truth, (The name of his father "Amitai" in Hebrew means truth,) refuses to ask the people of Nineveh to repent. He seeks the truth only, and no forgiveness. When forced to go, his call is heard loud and clear. The people of Nineveh repent ecstatically, "fasting, including the sheep", and the Jewish scripts are critical of this.

When praying, Jonah repeats God's 13 traits failing to say the last one which is "...and Truthful", and changing it with "...and who is willing to forgive the bad". God responds by showing Jonah that he is "angry at doing good", and that he too would agree to spare an ephemeral plant if it has importance for him.

Jonah in Islam

Jonah is highly important in Islam as a prophet who was faithful to God and delivered His messages. In Islam, Jonah is also called Dhul-Nun (Arabic: ذو النون; meaning ''The One of the Whale''). Chapter 10 of the Qur'an is named ''Jonah'', although in this chapter only verse 98 refers to him directly. It is said in Muslim tradition that Jonah came from the tribe of Benjamin and that his father was Amittai. Jonah is the only one of the Twelve Minor Prophets}}

God forgave Jonah out of His mercy and kindness for the man, and because he knew that Jonah was, at heart, one of the best of men. Therefore, the fish cast Jonah out onto dry land, with Jonah in a state of sickness. Thus, God caused a plant to grow where Jonah was lying to provide shade and comfort for the man. After Jonah got up, fresh and well, God told him to go back and preach at his land. As the Qur'an says:

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Jonah at Muhammad's time

Jonah is also mentioned in a few incidents during the lifetime of Muhammad. In both instances, Jonah's name is spoken of with praise and reverence by Muhammad.

According to historical narrations about Muhammad's life, after ten years of receiving revelations, Muhammad went to the city of Ta’if to see if its leaders would allow him to preach his message from there rather than Mecca, but he was cast from the city by the people. He took shelter in the garden of Utbah and Shaybah, two members of the Quraysh tribe. They sent their servant, Addas, to serve him grapes for sustenance. Muhammad asked Addas where he was from and the servant replied Nineveh. "The town of Jonah the just, son of Amittai!" Muhammad exclaimed. Addas was shocked because he knew that the pagan Arabs had no knowledge of the prophet Jonah. He then asked how Muhammad knew of this man. "We are brothers" Muhammad replied. "Jonah was a Prophet of God and I, too, am a Prophet of God." Addas immediately accepted Islam and kissed the hands and feet of Muhammad.

In one of the sayings of Muhammad, in the collection of Imam Bukhari, it says that Muhammad said "One should not say that I am better than Jonah". This is understood by both mainstream Muslims and historians to have been stated by Muhammad to emphasize upon the notion of equality between all the prophets and the law of making no distinction between any of the messengers. The Arab tribes, of the time, may have begun to exalt Muhammad above Jonah because of the recent revelation Muhammad received, which recounted the story of Jonah's fleeing from his mission. Thus, Muhammad, by saying this, clearly made it a point to the Arabs to not make any distinction between the great apostles of God.

Shrine at Ninveh

At the present time, Nineveh's location is marked by two large mounds, Kouyunjik and ''Nabī Yūnus'' (Prophet Jonah). On the latter there is a Muslim shrine dedicated to that prophet.

Jonah in sailors' superstition

A long-established expression among sailors uses the term "a Jonah" as meaning a person (either a sailor or a passenger) whose presence on board brings bad luck and endangers the ship. Later on, this meaning was extended to "a Jonah" referring to "a person who carries a jinx, one who will bring bad luck to any enterprise." An example of a so-called "Jonah" would be that of the sailor in Samuel Taylor Coleridge's ''The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,'' who was supposedly cursed to be lost at sea after he killed an albatross.

The fish

Interpretations of the "fish" fall into these general categories: # A big fish or whale (of unspecified species) did indeed swallow Jonah. # A special creation (not any fish we know of) of God accomplished the act. # There was no fish: the story is an allegory, the fish is a literary device in the story, the story is a vision or a dream. etc. # The originators of the story did indeed intend for the story to be taken literally, and it was subsequently believed to be literally true by the pre-scientific culture in which the story originated and flourished.

Translation

Though it is often called a whale today, the Hebrew, as throughout scripture, refers to no species in particular, simply sufficing with "great fish" or "big fish" (whales are today classified as mammals and not fish, but no such distinction was made in antiquity). While some Bible scholars suggest the size and habits of the great white shark correspond better to the representations given of Jonah's being swallowed, normally an adult human is too large to be swallowed whole. Other scholars instead argue that the fish might instead be a reference to the basking shark.

In Jonah 2:1 (1:17 in English translation), the original Hebrew text reads ''dag gadol'' (דג גדול), which literally means "big fish." The Septuagint translates this phrase into Greek as ''ketos megas'' (κητος μεγας). The term ''ketos'' alone means "huge fish," and in Greek mythology the term was closely associated with sea monsters, including sea serpents. Jerome later translated this phrase as ''piscis granda'' in his Latin Vulgate. He translated ''ketos'', however, as ''cetus'' in Matthew 12:40.

At some point ''cetus'' became synonymous with "whale" (the study of whales is now called ''cetology''). In his 1534 translation, William Tyndale translated the phrase in Jonah 2:1 as "greate fyshe" and he translated the word ''ketos'' (Greek) or ''cetus'' (Latin) in Matthew 12:40 as "whale". Which states "For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Tyndale's translation was later incorporated into the Authorized Version of 1611. Since then, the "great fish" in Jonah 2 has been most often interpreted as a whale.

In Turkish, "Jonah fish" (in Turkish ''yunus baligi'') is the word used for dolphin, often shortened to just ''yunus''.

Suggested literal interpretations

For those who believe that this account in the Bible is literally true (or based on similar true events) the story presents challenges. First, almost no currently known sea creatures are capable of swallowing a grown man whole. Sperm whales have demonstrated the ability, and they do reside in the Mediterranean Sea, but they are not known to demonstrate the behavior. Some believers claim that God, being omnipotent, simply altered things as needed and sustained Jonah - the same as in other miraculous accounts in the Hebrew scriptures. Some believers claim that Jonah did die in the belly of the great fish, and was then resurrected by God since Jesus himself associated this event in Jonah's life with his own death and resurrection. See Matthew 12:40. Others have attempted more elaborate explanations.

However, doubts have been cast that any existing whale or fish would be either capable and/or inclined to repeat the feat described, either due to size of mouth, narrowness of throat, or because it diverges so wildly from these animals' normal eating habits. The largest whales - baleen whales, a group which includes the blue whale - eat plankton and "it is commonly said that this species would be choked if it attempted to swallow a herring." Sperm whales, on the other hand, while having demonstrated the ability and occasional behavior to swallow more than a grown man whole, As for the whale shark, Dr. E. W. Gudger, an Honorary Associate in Ichthyology at the American Museum of Natural History, noted that "while the mouth is cavernous, the throat itself is only four inches wide and has a sharp elbow or bend behind the opening. This gullet would not permit the passage of a man's arm". In another publication he also noted that "the whale shark is not the fish that swallowed Jonah."

Conversely, with over 100 species of fish being discovered per year, present day knowledge of the ocean is still incomplete at best. The creature cited in the Jonah account could be one of an unknown species, including one which could very well be extinct in the present day

Some have speculated that chapter 2 of Jonah was about Jonah's experience inside the stomach after being swallowed. Specifically that the seaweed mentioned in 2:5 was a protective seaweed. However, Chapter 2,of the Book of Jonah is not an account of what happened inside the belly of said speculated creature, but rather Jonah thanking God while in the stomach for saving him. Jonah 2 is Jonah speaking to God about his condition ''before'' he was technically saved from drowning by the whale. The seaweed mentioned in Jonah 2:5 was not a "protective" seaweed, but rather a trapping seaweed. Jonah, after being tossed overboard, found himself drowning and becoming tangled in the seaweed.

Various locations associated with Jonah

Place of birth: Mentioned in 2 Kings 14:25, the town of Gath Hepher has saved its name to this day, near the Gallilean Arab town of Mashhad, where a monument for Nebi Yunes still exists. The Israeli Gat Hepher industrial zone is erected on that mountain.

Location of landing: In the city of Ashdod the light-tower hill is called Givat-Yonah, on the holy Muslim site of Nebbi Yunes, according to traditions of the three monotheistic Abrahamic religions, the site where Jonah was thrown by the large fish. Aerial photos taken by German pilots during WWI clearly show the Nebbi Yunes sanctuary, near the British landing site at the beginning of the British 1918 Jerusalem offensive.

The city of Jaffa has a main street named after Jonah. The ancient port of Jaffa is still intact and functional. Archeological diggings find that the port has been functioning at this location as early as 300 BC.

Another sanctuary and mosque called Nebi Yunes, is in the Palestinian West Bank town of Halhul, north of Hebron. Muslim tradition has it that this is the burial site of Jonah the prophet. A sign erected by the Israeli ministry of religions says that this is Jonah's burial site, but according to Jewish traditions this is the location of the burial of the prophets Nathan and Gad Hahozeh.

The sanctuary of Jama Naballa Jonas is another place that tradition says is Jonah's grave, near the city of Mosul (today in Iraq), near the ancient remnants of Nineveh. On one of the two most prominent mounds of Nineveh ruins, rises the Mosque of the Prophet Yunus (previously a Nestorian-Assyrian Church). Jonah is believed to be buried here, where King Esarhaddon had once built a palace. It is one of the most important mosques in Mosul and one of the few historic mosques that are found on the east side of the city.

Jonah's grave is also said to be near the city of Sarafand (Sarepta) in Lebanon. This is in accordance with several ancient Jewish writings about Jonah being the son of the woman from "Zarephath" (Sarafand) mentioned in the stories of Elijah.

Connections to other legends

Joseph Campbell attempted to draw parallels between the story of Jonah and the epic of Gilgamesh, in which Gilgamesh obtains a plant from the bottom of the sea. In the Book of Jonah a worm (in Hebrew ''tola'ath'', "maggot") bites the shade-giving plant's root causing it to wither, while in the epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh plucks his plant from the floor of the sea which he reached by tying stones to his feet. Once he makes it back to the shore, the rejuvenating plant is eaten by a serpent.

Campbell also noted several similarities between the story of Jonah and that of Jason in Greek mythology. The Greek rendering of the name Jonah was ''Jonas'', which differs from ''Jason'' only in the order of sounds—both ''o''s are omegas suggesting that Jason was confused with Jonah. Gildas Hamel, drawing on the Book of Jonah and Greco-Roman sources — including Greek vases and the accounts of Apollonius of Rhodes, Gaius Valerius Flaccus and Orphic Argonautica— identifies a number of shared motifs, including the names of the heroes, the presence of a dove, the idea of "fleeing" like the wind and causing a storm, the attitude of the sailors, the presence of a sea-monster or dragon threatening the hero or swallowing him, and the form and the word used for the "gourd" (kikayon). Hamel takes the view that it was the Hebrew author who was reacting to and adapting this mythological material to communicate his own, quite different message. The Greek sources are however several centuries later than the Book of Jonah and the form ''Jonas'' which is similar to Jason is from the Septuagint translation of the book.

Biblical scholars have speculated that Jonah may have been in part the inspiration behind the figure of Oannes in late Babylonian mythology. The deity name "Oannes" first occurs in texts from the Library of Ashurbanipal (more than a century after the time of Jonah) as ''Uanna'' or ''Uan'' but is assimilated to Adapa, a deity first mentioned on fragments of tablets from the 15th or 14th century B.C. found in Amarna in Egypt. Oannes is described as dwelling in the Persian Gulf, and rising out of the waters in the daytime and furnishing mankind instruction in writing, the arts and the various sciences. Berossus describes Oannes as having the body of a fish but underneath the figure of a man—a detail that, some Biblical scholars suggest, is not derived from Adapa but is perhaps based on a misinterpretation of images of Jonah emerging from the fish. Scholars of Mesopotamian mythology, however, suggest that Adapa was likely associated with fishing and depicted in half-fish form many centuries before the story of Jonah appeared. Nineteenth-century Irish amateur scholar William Betham speculated that worship of Oannes is the origin of the cult of the Roman god Janus.

See also

Biblical narratives and the Qur'an

Legends and the Qur'an

Prophets of Islam

Stories of The Prophets

References

External links

The Book of Jonah (Hebrew and English)

The Book of Jonah (NIV)

Jewish Encyclopedia: Jonah

Catholic Encyclopedia: Jonah

Prophet Jonah Orthodox icon and synaxarion

Animated Retelling of the Jonah Story

Category:Old Testament saints Category:People celebrated in the Lutheran liturgical calendar Category:Fertile Crescent Category:Year of birth unknown Category:Year of death unknown * Jonah Jonah Category:Abrahamic mythology Category:Interactions between humans and fish

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name	Justin Bieber
background	solo_singer
birth name	Justin Drew Bieber
birth date	March 01, 1994
birth place	London, Ontario, Canada
origin	Stratford, Ontario, Canada
instrument	Vocals, guitar, piano, percussion, trumpet
genre	Pop, R&B;, teen pop
occupation	Singer, musician, actor
years active	2009–present
label	Island, RBMG
associated acts	Usher
website	justinbiebermusic.com }}

Justin Drew Bieber ( , born March 1, 1994) is a Canadian pop/R&B; singer, songwriter and actor. Bieber was discovered in 2008 by Scooter Braun, who came across Bieber's videos on YouTube and later became his manager. Braun arranged for him to meet with Usher in Atlanta, Georgia, and Bieber was soon signed to Raymond Braun Media Group (RBMG), a joint venture between Braun and Usher, and then to a recording contract with Island Records offered by L.A. Reid. Bieber's debut single, "One Time", was released in 2009 and peaked in the top ten in Canada and charted in the top thirty in several international markets. His debut album, the seven-track EP ''My World'', followed in November 2009, and was soon certified platinum in the United States. He became the first artist to have seven songs from a debut album chart on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Bieber's first full-length studio album, ''My World 2.0'', was released in March 2010. It debuted at number one or within the top ten in several countries and was certified platinum in the United States. It was preceded by the worldwide top-ten single, "Baby". The music video of "Baby" is currently ranked as the most viewed and most discussed YouTube video. Bieber followed-up the release of his debut album with his first headlining tour, the My World Tour, the remix albums ''My Worlds Acoustic'' and ''Never Say Never – The Remixes'', and the 3D biopic-concert film ''Justin Bieber: Never Say Never'' – which had an opening weekend gross that nearly matched the record for the biggest opening weekend for a concert-film. Bieber released his second studio album, ''Under the Mistletoe'' in November 2011, which debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200. Bieber has received numerous awards, including Artist of the Year at the 2010 American Music Awards — and has been nominated for numerous awards, including Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Album at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

Life and career

1994–2007: Childhood and youth

Bieber was born on March 1, 1994, in London, Ontario, and was raised in Stratford, Ontario. Bieber's mother, Patricia Lynn "Pattie" Mallette, was 18 years old when she became pregnant with her son. Mallette, originally from Stratford, raised her son with the help of her parents, Bruce and Diane. Mallette worked a series of low-paying office jobs, raising Bieber as a single mother in low-income housing. Bieber has maintained contact with his father, Jeremy Jack Bieber, who married another woman and had two children. Bieber's paternal great-grandfather was a German immigrant to Canada. His mother's ancestry is French Canadian. Bieber attended French immersion school at Stratford school Jean Sauve.

During his childhood, Bieber was interested in hockey, soccer, and chess; he often kept his musical aspirations to himself. As he grew up, Bieber taught himself to play the piano, drums, guitar, and trumpet. In early 2007, when he was twelve, Bieber sang Ne-Yo's "So Sick" for a local singing competition in Stratford and placed second. Mallette posted a video of the performance on YouTube for their family and friends to see. She continued to upload videos of Bieber singing covers of various R&B; songs, and Bieber's popularity on the site grew. Chris Hicks, Bieber's A&R; at Island/Def Jam, explained the young artist's huge online following to HitQuarters by saying:

"He was doing something different. He was an attractive white kid singing very soulful R&B; hits. That set him apart immediately from anyone in his range because no one was covering or singing these kind of records. But equally important was that you believed in these songs – it was real. And you wanted to hear more."

2008–09: Discovery and ''My World''

While searching for videos of a different singer, Scooter Braun, a former marketing executive of So So Def, clicked on one of Bieber's 2007 videos by accident. Impressed, Braun tracked down the theater Bieber was performing in, located Bieber's school, and finally contacted Mallette. Mallette was reluctant because of Braun's Jewish religion; she remembered praying, "God, I gave him to you. You could send me a Christian man, a Christian label! ... you don’t want this Jewish kid to be Justin’s man, do you?" However, after praying with her church elders and receiving their encouragement, she permitted Braun to fly Bieber, then 13, to Atlanta, Georgia, to record demo tapes. A week after arriving, Bieber sang for R&B; singer/songwriter Usher. Bieber was soon signed to Raymond Braun Media Group (RBMG), a joint venture between Braun and Usher. Justin Timberlake was also reportedly in the running to sign Bieber, but lost the bidding war to Usher. Usher then sought assistance in finding a label home for the artist from then manager Chris Hicks, who helped engineer an audition with his contact Antonio L.A. Reid of Island Def Jam Music Group. Reid signed Bieber to Island Records in October 2008 (resulting in a joint venture between RBMG and Island Records) and appointed Hicks as executive Vice-President of Def Jam where he would be able manage Bieber's career at the label. At that point, Bieber and his mother moved to Atlanta temporarily, also the home of Usher and Braun, to record and get counseling from Braun. Braun became Bieber's manager.

Bieber's first single, "One Time", was released to radio while Bieber was still recording his debut album. The song reached number 12 on the Canadian Hot 100 during its first week of release in July 2009, and later peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. During fall 2009 it had success in international markets. The song was certified Platinum in Canada and the US and Gold in Australia and New Zealand. Bieber's first release, an extended play entitled ''My World'', was released on November 17, 2009. The album's second single, "One Less Lonely Girl", and two promo singles, "Love Me", and "Favorite Girl", were released exclusively on the iTunes store and charted within the top forty of the Billboard Hot 100. "One Less Lonely Girl" was later also released to radio and peaked within the top fifteen in Canada and the US, being certified Gold in the latter. ''My World'' was eventually certified Platinum in the US and Double Platinum in both Canada and the UK. To promote the album, Bieber performed on several live shows such as mtvU's VMA 09 Tour, European program ''The Dome'', YTV's ''The Next Star'', ''The Today Show'', ''The Wendy Williams Show'', ''Lopez Tonight'', ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'', ''It's On with Alexa Chung'', ''Good Morning America'', ''Chelsea Lately'', and BET's ''106 & Park'' with Rihanna. Bieber also guest starred in an episode of ''True Jackson, VP'' in late 2009.

Bieber performed Stevie Wonder's "Someday at Christmas" for U.S. President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the White House for ''Christmas in Washington'', which was broadcast on December 20, 2009, on U.S. television broadcaster TNT. Bieber was also one of the performers at Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest on December 31, 2009. Bieber was a presenter at the 52nd Grammy Awards on January 31, 2010. He was invited to be a vocalist for the remake of We Are The World (a song written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie) for its 25th anniversary to benefit Haiti after the earthquake. Bieber sings the opening line, which was sung by Lionel Richie in the original version. On March 12, 2010, a version of K'naan's "Wavin' Flag" recorded by a collective of Canadian musicians known as Young Artists for Haiti was released. Bieber is featured in the song, performing the closing lines.

2010: ''My World 2.0'' and continued success

"Baby", the lead single from his debut album, ''My World 2.0'', which features Ludacris, was released in January 2010 and became his biggest hit thus far, charting at number five in the U.S. and reaching the top ten in seven other countries. Two promo singles "Never Let You Go", and "U Smile" were top thirty hits on the U.S. Hot 100, and top twenty hits in Canada. According to review aggregator Metacritic, the album has received "generally favorable reviews". It debuted at number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200, making Bieber the youngest solo male act to top the chart since Stevie Wonder in 1963. ''My World 2.0'' also debuted at number one on the Canadian Albums Chart, Irish Albums Chart, and Australian Albums Chart, and the New Zealand Albums Chart and reached the top ten of fifteen other countries. To promote the album, Bieber appeared on several live programs including ''The View'', the 2010 Kids Choice Awards, ''Nightline'', ''The Late Show with David Letterman'', ''The Dome'' and ''106 and Park''. Bieber collaborated with Sean Kingston on his single "Eenie Meenie" which also appeared on Bieber's debut album. The song reached the top ten in the United Kingdom and Australia, and the top-twenty of most other markets. thumb|left|Bieber performing at the Conseco Fieldhouse, in August 2010 On April 10, 2010, Bieber was the musical guest on ''Saturday Night Live''. On July 4, 2010, Bieber performed at the Macy's Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular in New York City. The second single from ''My World 2.0'', "Somebody to Love", was released in April 2010, and a remix was released featuring Bieber's mentor Usher. The single reached number ten in Canada, number fifteen in the United States, and the top twenty in multiple international countries.

On June 23, 2010, Bieber went on his first official headlining tour, the My World Tour, starting in Hartford, Connecticut, to promote ''My World'' and ''My World 2.0''. In July 2010, it was reported that Bieber was the most searched for celebrity on the Internet. That same month his music video, "Baby", surpassed Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" to become the most viewed, and most disliked YouTube video ever. In September 2010, it was reported that Bieber accounted for three percent of all traffic on Twitter, according to an employee of the social-networking site.

Bieber began recording his second album in July 2010 in New York City. At this point, because of puberty, his voice was deeper than it was when he recorded his first album. In April 2010, the singer discussing his vocals remarked, "It cracks. Like every teenage boy, I'm dealing with it and I have the best vocal coach in the world. [...] Some of the notes I hit on "Baby" I can't hit anymore. We have to lower the key when I sing live." British singer/songwriter Taio Cruz confirmed in July 2010 that he is writing songs for Bieber's next album. Hip hop producer Dr. Dre produced two songs with Bieber in July 2010 but it is unknown if they were made for the album, which is currently due for a 2011 release. Bieber guest-starred in the season premiere of the CBS crime drama ''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation'', aired on September 23, 2010. He played a "troubled teen who is faced with a difficult decision regarding his only brother". Bieber was also in a subsequent episode which aired on February 17, 2011, in which his character is killed. Bieber performed a medley of "U Smile", "Baby", and "Somebody to Love" and briefly played the drums at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards on September 12, 2010. Bieber announced in October 2010 that he would release an acoustic album, called ''My Worlds Acoustic''. It was released on Black Friday in the United States and featured acoustic versions of songs from his previous albums, and accompanied the release of a completely new song titled "Pray".

2011–present: ''Never Say Never'' film, ''Under the Mistletoe'' and ''Believe''

A 3-D part-biopic, part-concert film starring Bieber entitled ''Justin Bieber: Never Say Never'', was released on February 11, 2011, directed by ''Step Up 3D'' director Jon Chu. It topped the box office with an estimated grossing of $12.4 million on its opening day from 3,105 theaters. It grossed $30.3 million for the weekend and was narrowly beaten by the romantic comedy ''Just Go With It'', which grossed $31 million. ''Never Say Never'' is said to have exceeded industry expectations, nearly matching the $31.1 million grossed by Miley Cyrus's 2008 3-D concert film, Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert, which holds the record for the top debut for a music-documentary. The film is accompanied by his second remix album, ''Never Say Never – The Remixes'', released February 14, 2011, and features remixes of songs from his debut album, with guest appearances from Miley Cyrus, Chris Brown, and Kanye West, among others.

On February 27, 2011, Bieber attended the 2011 Vanity Fair Oscar Party with American actress and singer Selena Gomez, confirming several months of media speculation about a romantic relationship between the pair. The relationship has since continued to garner significant media attention.

In June 2011, Bieber was ranked number 2 on the Forbes list of Best-Paid Celebrities under 30. He is the youngest star and 1 of 7 musicians on the list raking in with $53 million earned in a 12 month period. On November 1, 2011, Bieber released ''Under the Mistletoe'', his second studio album. It debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 210,000 copies in its first week of release. Bieber is currently recording his third studio album entitled ''Believe''. Kanye West and Drake are confirmed to be featured on the album.

Image

''The Observer'' newspaper in the UK published a report indicating that Justin Bieber is more influential in the social networking sphere than Barack Obama or The Dalai Lama. According to Jan Hoffman of ''The New York Times'', part of Bieber's appeal stems from his YouTube channel. Long before he released his EP, ''My World'', in mid-November, the YouTube videos attracted millions of views. Braun recognized the appeal. Prior to flying him to Atlanta, Braun wanted to "build him up more on YouTube first" and had Bieber record more home videos for the channel. "I said: 'Justin, sing like there’s no one in the room. But let's not use expensive cameras.' We'll give it to kids, let them do the work, so that they feel like it's theirs", recalled Braun. Bieber continues to upload videos to the same channel and has opened a Twitter account, from which he interacts with fans regularly; his account was reported in November 2010 to have over 6 million followers. Since then he has been consistently gaining followers at an average of 24,000 per day. The accounts also serve marketing purposes; for example, Bieber's music video for "One Time" only began selling quickly after it was uploaded to YouTube. Usher comments that while he and Bieber were both signed at the same age, "I had the chance to ramp up my success, where this has happened to Bieber abruptly." As a result, Usher, Braun, Bieber's bodyguard Kenny, and other adults surrounding Bieber constantly coach him on handling fame and his public image. After signing Bieber, Usher appointed one of his former assistants, Ryan Good, to be Bieber's road manager and stylist. Good, once nicknamed Bieber's "swagger coach", created a "streetwise look" for the singer which consisted of baseball caps, hoodies, dog chains and flashy sneakers. Amy Kaufman of ''The Los Angeles Times'' comments, "Though a product of a middle-class suburban upbringing in Stratford, Ontario, Bieber's manner of dress and speech ("Wassup man, how you doin'?" or "It's like, you know, whateva' ") suggest he's mimicking his favorite rappers."

Bieber is often featured in teen magazines such as ''Tiger Beat'', and has been labeled as a "teen hearthrob". Bieber has released a collection of nail varnishes to raise awareness for charity. Wax statues of Bieber are on display at Madame Tussauds wax museums in New York, Amsterdam and London. His change of hairstyle in 2010, and the consequent alterations to Bieber products, led to it being called 'the most expensive musical haircut of all time; one company spent $100,000 to fix its dolls for the 2011 Christmas season.

Bieber has been criticized for looking and sounding younger than his age, his teen-pop music, image, and frequent media attention. He has been a frequent target of Internet bloggers and message board posters, notably by users of Internet message board 4chan and users of YouTube. Nick Collins of ''The Daily Telegraph'' speculated that "Bieber's character also appears to strike a particularly sour note with his Internet critics, with many remarks commenting on his youthful appearance, his teen-pop songs, his image as a heart-throb to young teenage girls and his manner of speech".

Personal views

Bieber is a Christian, and said he has a relationship with Jesus, talks to him and that "he's the reason I'm here".

Bieber's comments in a February 2011 profile in ''Rolling Stone'' sparked controversy. Asked whether a person should wait until marriage to have sex, Bieber responded, "I don't think you should have sex with anyone unless you love them." Asked about his opinion on abortion, Bieber said he does not "believe in abortion" and that it is "like killing a baby". When asked about abortion in cases of rape, he said, "Well, I think that's really sad, but everything happens for a reason. I don't know how that would be a reason. I guess I haven't been in that position, so I wouldn't be able to judge that." In the same interview, Bieber talked about homosexuality, stating that "It's everyone's own decision to do that. It doesn’t affect me and shouldn't affect anyone else", and ''Rolling Stone'' commented, "It is not clear whether he intended to label homosexuality as a lifestyle choice." However, Bieber has also contributed to the It Gets Better Project, a project started in response to the suicide of Billy Lucas, a teenager who was the target of anti-gay bullying.

Bieber has said he is not interested in obtaining United States citizenship, praising Canada as being "the best country in the world", citing its health care system as an example.

Discography

''My World 2.0'' (2010)

''Under the Mistletoe'' (2011)

''Believe'' (2012)

Tours

2009: Urban Behavior Tour

2010–2011: My World Tour

Filmography

rowspan="4" ''Extreme Makeover: Home Edition'' Himself

Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
rowspan="2"	2009	''True Jackson, VP''	>rowspan="3"| Guest star
''My Date With...''
	Silent Library (MTV series)>Silent Library''
''School Gyrls (film)	School Gyrls''	Cameo
''Saturday Night Live''
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''	Jason McCann
''Hubworld''	Guest star
''The X Factor (UK)''	Performer
rowspan="9"	2011	|	Guest star
''CSI: Crime Scene Investigation''	Jason McCann
''Khloé & Lamar''	|Episode:The Father In Law (uncredited) Himself playing the NBA Celebrity All Star Game
''Saturday Night Live''
''Justin Bieber: Never Say Never''	Himself
''Dancing With The Stars''	Guest star
''So Random!''	Himself
''Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade''	Guest star
''The X Factor (UK)''	Performer

Awards and nominations

References

Further reading

External links

Category:1994 births Category:Canadian child singers Category:Canadian Christians Category:Canadian dance musicians Category:Canadian expatriate musicians in the United States Category:Canadian Internet personalities Category:Canadian male singers Category:Canadian people of French descent Category:Canadian people of German descent Category:Canadian pop singers Category:Canadian rhythm and blues singers Category:Child pop musicians Category:Hip hop singers Category:Island Records artists Category:Musicians from Ontario Category:People from Stratford, Ontario Category:Living people

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name	T.I.
background	solo_singer
birth name	Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr.
alias	T.I.P., TIP Harris
birth date	September 25, 1980
Birth place	Atlanta, Georgia, United States
instrument	Keyboards, sampler
genre	Hip hop, Southern hip hop, Atlanta hip hop
occupation	Rapper, songwriter, record producer, actor
years active	2001–present
label	Grand Hustle, Atlantic
associated acts	P$C, Young Dro, B.o.B, Rick Ross
website	}}

Clifford Joseph Harris, Jr. (born September 25, 1980), better known by his stage name T.I. or T.I.P., is an American recording artist, film & music producer, actor and author. He is also the founder and co-chief executive officer (CEO) of Grand Hustle Records.

T.I. has released seven studio albums (''I'm Serious'', ''Trap Muzik'', ''Urban Legend'', ''King'', ''T.I. vs. T.I.P.'', ''Paper Trail'', and ''No Mercy'') with latter five being highly successful on the commercial market. He has released such successful singles as "Bring Em Out", "What You Know", "Big Shit Poppin' (Do It)", "Swagga Like Us" (featuring Kanye West, Jay-Z and Lil Wayne), "Whatever You Like", "Live Your Life" (featuring Rihanna), "Dead and Gone" (featuring Justin Timberlake), "Got Your Back" (featuring Keri Hilson) and "That's All She Wrote" (featuring Eminem). He has served two stints in county jail, twice for probation violations and a federal prison bid for a U.S. federal weapons charge. While currently serving 11 months in prison he released his seventh studio album, ''No Mercy''. T.I. has also had successful acting career, starring in the films ''Takers'' and ''ATL''.

Biography

1980–2000: Early life and career beginnings

T.I. was born Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. on September 25, 1980, in Riverdale, Georgia, the son of the late Clifford "Buddy" Harris Sr. and Violeta Morgan. He was raised by his grandparents in Bankhead, Atlanta, Georgia. His father lived in New York and he would often go up there to visit him. His father suffered from Alzheimer's and later died from the disease. T.I. began rapping at age nine. He attended Douglass High School, but later dropped out. As a teenager, he was a drug dealer. He was once known as Rubber Band Man, a reference to the custom of wearing rubber bands around the wrist to denote wealth in terms of drugs or money. By age 14, he had been arrested several times. He was nicknamed "Tip" after his paternal great-grandfather. Kawan "KP" Prather, a record executive, discovered and signed T.I. when he was a teenager. Upon signing with Arista Records subsidiary LaFace Records in 2001, he shortened his name to T.I. out of respect for label mate Q-Tip.

2001–02: ''I'm Serious''

T.I. released his debut album, ''I'm Serious'', in October 2001 through Arista Records. The album spawned the eponymous single, which featured Jamaican reggae entertainer Beenie Man. His debut single, "I'm Serious," was released on June 26, 2001. The single received little airplay and failed to chart. The album included guests appearances from Pharrell Williams of The Neptunes (who called him "the Jay-Z of the South"), Jazze Pha, Too Short, Bone Crusher, Lil Jon, Pastor Troy, P$C and YoungBloodZ. The album featured production from The Neptunes, DJ Toomp, Madvac, and The Grand Hustle Team. Despite the album's guests appearances and production team, the album peaked at number 98 and only sold 163,000 copies in the United States. Critics pointed to the fact that many of the tracks sounded the same and that a few were blatant rip-offs. Other critics commented saying, "T.I. claims to be the king of the South, but fails to show and prove. He does, however, have potential. If his talent ever matches his confidence, he may be headed for stardom."

Due to the poor commercial reception of the album, T.I. was dropped from Arista Records. He then formed Grand Hustle Entertainment and started releasing several mixtapes with the assistance of DJ Drama. He resurfaced in the summer of 2003 with fellow Atlanta rapper and former label-mate Bone Crusher's song "Never Scared." His mixtapes and mainstream exposure from "Never Scared" eventually recaptured major label attention and he signed a joint venture deal with Atlantic Records.

2003–05: ''Trap Muzik'' and ''Urban Legend''

T.I. released his second album ''Trap Muzik'' on August 19, 2003 through Grand Hustle Records; it debuted at number four and sold 109,000 copies in its first week. It spawned the singles "24s", "Be Easy", "Rubberband Man", and "Let's Get Away". The album featured guest appearances by 8Ball & MJG, Jazze Pha, Bun B and Macboney and was produced by Jazze Pha, Kanye West, David Banner, Madvac and DJ Toomp. In March 2004, a warrant was issued for T.I.'s arrest after he violated his probation of a 1997 drug conviction. He was sentenced to three years in prison. While imprisoned in Cobb County, Georgia, he filmed an unauthorized music video. One month later, he was allowed a work release program.

T.I. was on probation stemming from a 1998 conviction for violating a state controlled substances act and for giving false information. After being released on probation, he earned a litany of probation violations in several counties around Georgia for offenses ranging from possession of a firearm to possession of marijuana. In 2006, after appearing in an Atlanta court on (May 10) and having charges that he threatened a man outside a strip club last year dropped for lack of evidence, T.I. was arrested on an outstanding probation violation warrant from Florida. The warrant claimed that T.I. did not complete the required number of community service hours he was sentenced for a 2003 assault of a female sheriff deputy at University Mall in Tampa. T.I. was detained by several mall Security Guards at the time of the incident. According to WSB-TV Atlanta, the rapper’s attorney said that the problem was nothing more than a "technical matter" between Georgia and Florida. The confusion arose because T.I. was also sentenced to community service in Georgia for driving with a suspended license, for which he did complete 75 hours of community service in his home state. The rapper was released on bail shortly after being arrested, and was expected to surrender to Florida state authorities the following week to resolve the matter.

T.I. released his third studio album, ''Urban Legend'', in November 2004. It debuted at number seven on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 193,000 copies in its first week. The album's official lead single, "Bring Em Out", was released in January 2005 and became his first top ten hit, peaking at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, while the second single "U Don't Know Me" peaked at number twenty-three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. His third single "ASAP" reached number 75 on the U.S. charts, number 18 on the U.S. R&B;/Hip-Hop charts and number 14 on the Rap chart. T.I. created a video for "ASAP"/"Motivation". However, "Motivation" only made it to number 62 on the U.S. R&B;/Hip-Hop singles chart. He was featured in Destiny's Child's 2004 single "Soldier" along with Lil Wayne, peaking at number three on the U.S. Hot 100 and the U.S. R&B; Charts.

In 2006, T.I. received two Grammy Award nominations for Best Song Collaboration ("Soldier" w/ Destiny's Child & Lil Wayne) and Best Rap Solo Performance for "U Don't Know Me" at The 48th Grammy Awards. That same year he won Rap Artist of the Year, Rap Album Of The Year, Rap Album Artist Of The Year, Rap Song Artist of the Year and Video Clip Artist of the Year on the Billboard Music Award and Best Male Hip-Hop Artist on the BET Awards.

2006–07: ''King'', ''T.I. vs. T.I.P.'' and federal weapons charges

T.I.'s fourth album, ''King'', debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart in the first half of 2006, selling 522,000 copies in its first week. T.I. released "Front Back" and "Ride with Me" as a promotional singles prior to the release of the album. The singles garnered little attention, but helped to promote not only the album, but also ''ATL.'' The album also included the singles, "What You Know," "Why You Wanna," and "Live in the Sky," plus a remix of "Top Back." ''King'' earned numerous awards and nominations including a Grammy Award nomination for Best Rap Album. He was also featured in the single "Shoulder Lean" by Young Dro reaching the top ten on the U.S. Hot 100 and #1 on the U.S. Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Rap Tracks.

"What You Know" won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Solo Performance and was nominated for Best Rap Song at the 49th Grammy Awards. Also that year, T.I. collaborated with Justin Timberlake for "My Love," which proved to be a worldwide hit, and won a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration with Justin Timberlake at the 49th Annual Grammy Awards and also won Best Male Hip-Hop Artist at the BET Awards for the second straight time. He then served as a featured performer on "We Takin' Over" by DJ Khaled also featuring Akon, Fat Joe, Rick Ross, Birdman and Lil Wayne.

T.I. released his fifth album, ''T.I. vs. T.I.P.'', on July 3, 2007. The first single from the album was "Big Shit Poppin' (Do It)," which was produced by Mannie Fresh and was released to radio stations on April 17, 2007. The second single, "You Know What It Is" featuring Wyclef Jean, was released June 12, 2007. ''T.I. vs. T.I.P.'' sold 468,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 and the Top R&B;/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It was T.I.'s second chart-topper in a row: ''King'' opened at number one on the Billboard 200 with 522,000 copies in late March 2006. The album included guest performances by Jay-Z, Busta Rhymes, Wyclef Jean, Nelly, and Eminem, and production by Eminem, Jeff Bass, Mannie Fresh, Grand Hustle, The Runners, Just Blaze, Wyclef Jean and Danja. Absent from this album's production lineup were T.I.'s longtime producer DJ Toomp and The Neptunes. In October 2007, T.I. released his third single, "Hurt," featuring Busta Rhymes and Alfamega.

On October 13, 2007, federal authorities arrested T.I. four hours before the BET Hip-Hop Awards in Atlanta. He was charged with two felonies — possession of three unregistered machine guns and two silencers, and possession of firearms by a convicted felon. The arrest was made in the parking lot of a downtown shopping center, which a witness identified as the Walgreens drug store at the corner of North and Piedmont Avenues. T.I. was arrested after allegedly trying to purchase the guns from a "cooperating witness" with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. According to federal officials, the witness had been cooperating with authorities a few days prior to the T.I. arrest, when the cooperating witness was arrested on charges of trying to purchase guns from a federal agent. The witness had been working as T.I.'s bodyguard since July, authorities said. T.I. walked out of the Atlanta United States District Court after appearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Alan J. Baverman on October 26, 2007. Judge Alan J. Baverman required T.I. post a $3 million bond, $2 million in cash and $1 million in equity on property he owns. The rapper was required to remain at home except for medical appointments and court appearances. The only people allowed to live with him were his girlfriend and children. Visitors were required to be approved by the court.

2008–09: ''Paper Trail'' and prison sentence

T.I.'s suppression hearing was scheduled for February 19, 2008. The performer later pleaded guilty to U.S. federal weapons charges. He was sentenced to an undefined prison sentence, a year of house arrest and 1,500 hours of community service. In an interview with MTV about serving prison time, T.I. stated, "Presumably, while I'm there, I'll be able to strategize my comeback." He went on to say that he would not "just be sitting still doing nothing". At that time T.I. collaborated with Mariah Carey on the "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time" remix, peaking at number 58 on the U.S. Hot 100 and number 36 on the Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Songs.

While under house arrest, T.I. began writing lyrics down on paper for his following album. The first promotional single from the album, "No Matter What," was released in April 2008. The music video was released on June 2008 on MTV's FN Premieres. The second promotional single was "Swing Ya Rag" which was produced by and featured Swizz Beatz. The official lead single was "Whatever You Like," was released on July 2008, and became his most successful single of his career so far, breaking the record for the highest jump to number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, jumping from number 71 to number one. Also becoming T.I.'s first solo number one on the chart. While "Whatever You Like" was number one, "Weird Al" Yankovic did a parody of T.I.'s song called "Whatever You Like", the same title as the song by T.I. He released his sixth album, ''Paper Trail'', in September 2008. The title of the album refers to the lyrics he had written down on paper. Like many other rappers, T.I. abandoned this style of rapping after his debut album ''I'm Serious'' by just memorizing lyrics. His representative explain that T.I. wanted to "take more time to really put something down [this time]". The album debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200 selling 568,000 copies in the United States.

The second single from the album, "Swagga Like Us", featuring Kanye West, Jay-Z and Lil Wayne, debuted and peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. With the third single "Live Your Life" featuring Rihanna, T.I. broke his own record on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 when it jumped from number 80 to the number one. The fourth single "Dead and Gone", featuring Justin Timberlake, peaked at number two for five weeks on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, eventually going on to be nominated during the 52nd Grammy Awards for both "Best Rap/Sung Collaboration" and "Best Rap Song". During the 51st Grammy Awards, he was nominated for four Grammy Awards, eventually winning Best Rap Performance by a Duo Or a Group for "Swagga Like Us". "Remember Me", featuring Mary J. Blige, was released digitally on July 7, 2009. It was the planned first single off the re-release of T.I.'s sixth studio album, "Paper Trail", but the re-release was eventually shelved. The single peaked at number 29 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. On October 6, "Hell of a Life" was released digitally and went on to peak at number 54 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In 2009, T.I. appeared as himself on an episode of ''Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List''. On the episode, he took the comedienne to Roscoe's House of Chicken and Waffles in LA and gave her a lesson on how to "swagger."

On November 21, 2008, T.I. testified in the murder trial of a member of his entourage and a close friend, Philant Johnson (1980–2006), who was murdered in a shooting that occurred after a post-concert party at a club. T.I. has dedicated several songs to Johnson, from the single version of "Live in the Sky" to his more recent hit "Dead and Gone" where Johnson's grave can be seen in the video.

On March 27, 2009, U.S. District Judge Charles A. Pannell, Jr. sentenced T.I. to one year and one day in prison and ordered to pay $100,300 for federal weapons charges; T.I. had his sentence reduced from a maximum 10 years and a $250,000 fine with a plea bargain. On May 26, 2009, T.I. began serving his sentence in Forrest City, Arkansas. Two days prior to being imprisoned, T.I. performed a farewell concert at the Philips Arena in Atlanta, Georgia. T.I. was released from FCC Forrest City on December 22, 2009 and was moved into a halfway house in Atlanta. T.I. had the Federal Bureau of Prisons ID 59458-019 and was released from CCM Atlanta on March 26, 2010. After his release from prison, he was subjected to an audit of his finances, drug counseling, DNA testing, and random searches of his property.

2010–present: ''No Mercy'' and drug charges

On March 26, 2010, T.I. was released from the halfway house. He was in the studio working on his seventh studio album titled ''King Uncaged''. Jim Jonsin, the producer who previously worked with him on his single, "Whatever You Like" and R&B; singer Trey Songz, were scheduled to work on the project.

T.I. made his first public appearance since prison, stepping out with then fiancée Tameka "Tiny" Cottle in support of her Alzheimer's research fundraiser "For the Love of Our Fathers" at Atlanta's Opera venue. "I am very well, very happy to be seen," said T.I., who joined Cottle onstage at the end of the benefit. T.I. released a new street single titled "I'm Back" on March 8, 2010. The single peaked at #44 on Billboard's Hot 100 charts. Around this time, he made a featured guest appearance on Diddy-Dirty Money's single "Hello Good Morning" where the single peaked at #27 in US and charted internationally in eight other countries.

He also made a guest appearance on Larry King Live on May 13 to discuss with Larry King about his nine-month prison term on federal gun charges and other topics. T.I. released a promotional soundtrack single entitled, "Yeah Ya Know (Takers)" on May 24. It peaked at #44 on Billboard Hot 100 and #68 on Canadian Hot 100. T.I. released another promotional single entitled; "Got Your Back" which featured American R&B; singer Keri Hilson and it peaked at number 38 in the US. Later, T.I. made more featured single appearances such as Jamie Foxx's single "Winner" featuring Justin Timberlake and Drake's single "Fancy" which it featured Swizz Beatz. Both singles made an impact on the Billboard charts peaking at the top 50.

T.I. released a mixtape entitled "Fuck a Mixtape"; the move was somewhat controversial, due to its title with many feeling he was insulting the Mixtape format. T.I. has addressed the issue by stating that it was a response to all the people who told him to just focus on an album and not on a mixtape. T.I. further defended his decision to release a mixtape by saying:

{{bquote|"I already have 60, 70 songs. A lot of these songs are period pieces that speak volumes to what's going on right now. If I hold onto them next year or the year after, they'll be dated, because my life will be in another direction. If I'm not gonna put it on the album — and they all can't make the album — then they might as well have another platform to present it to the world".}}

On September 1, T.I. and his wife Tiny were arrested on drug charges in Los Angeles. The arrest for drug charges led to T.I. being sentenced on October 15, 2010 to 11 months in prison for violating the terms of his probation, specifically for possessing ecstasy, testing positive for opiates and associating with a convicted felon. On October 25, the drug charges against T.I. were dropped.

T.I. changed the title of his seventh studio album and renamed it ''No Mercy'' due to his new prison sentencing. He then released the first single from the newly titled album, "Get Back Up" featuring Chris Brown on the same day that he was sentenced back to prison for violating the terms of his probation. "Get Back Up" peaked at #70 in the US. On November 1, T.I. reported back to the Forrest City Federal Facility to serve his 11-month sentence. His date of release is September 29, 2011.

''No Mercy'' was released on December 7, 2010. The album peaked at #4 in the US and it sold over 159,000 copies in its first week. RIAA certified ''No Mercy'' Gold with over 500,000 copies sold. His second and last single off the album "That's All She Wrote" featuring Eminem was released on December 19 and it peaked at #18 in the US.

T.I. was nominated for two Grammy Awards for Best Rap Solo Performance for "I'm Back" and Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group (Fancy with Drake and Swizz Beatz) at the 53rd Grammy Awards. He was also nominated for a Soul Train Music Award for Best Hip Hop Song of the Year for "Got Your Back" and he earned three BET Hip Hop Awards nominations for Hustler of the Year, Made You Look Award, and Best Club Banger for "Hello Good Morning" w/Diddy-Dirty Money.

In early June 2011, T.I. said in a letter: "I’ll be releasing a record in the near future (couple of weeks tops) to hold y’all over til I get back in action." On June 30, 2011, a new song was released onto T.I.'s official website and on his official YouTube channel - titled "We Don't Get Down Like Y'all", which features fellow Grand Hustle rapper B.o.B on the hook. While commenting on the song, T.I. said in another letter; "It's a song that I did soon after my release last time. What inspired me to write this record was the differences in how we do us and how they do them suddenly became incredibly evident in just a very short period of time." Currently it is not available to buy except from Atlantic Records's online store.

Other ventures

Acting career

In 2006 T.I. starred in his first film, ''ATL''. The other cast members included Lauren London, Antwan Patton, Evan Ross, Mykelti Williamson, Jason Weaver, and Keith David. The movie was written by Tina Gordon Chism and Antwone Fisher, produced by Timothy M. Bourne, Tionne Watkins, and Will Smith, and directed by Christopher Robinson. T.I. played the character Rashad Swann, an orphaned 17-year-old senior in high school. In its opening weekend, the film grossed a total of $11.5 million, ranking third in the United States box office, and went on to gross $21.2 million.

He also appeared in ''American Gangster'' as Stevie Lucas, Drug Kingpin Frank Lucas' nephew.

T.I. starred in the crime heist film ''Takers'' (originally called Bone Deep) as Ghost. The film was directed by John Luessenhop and was produced by William Packer, Michael Ealy, Tom Lassally, Jason Geter, Gary Gilbert and T.I. himself. The film was released on August 27, 2010 through Grand Hustle Films and Rainforest Films distributed by Screen Gems. The film also includes Chris Brown, Idris Elba, Matt Dillon, Paul Walker, Hayden Christensen, and Zoe Saldana. ''Takers'' debuted at number one at the American box office at 20.5 million in its opening weekend.

Music and film producing

T.I. was co-executive producer of B.G.'s upcoming album and making beats for artists like Mariah Carey, Cassidy, Rick Ross, Maino, B.o.B, Yung Joc, Young Dro, and himself. He also executive produced the soundtrack to the film ''Hustle & Flow'' and released the collection through his record label.

T.I. also a songwriter. He has credits from Diddy, Dr. Dre, and Bow Wow.

T.I. launched his film company, Grand Hustle Films. Late 2007, T.I. linked up with Los Angeles-based production company 828 Entertainment to executive produce a new reality show titled ''Life on Mars'' which chronicles the life of young prodigy music producer LaMar "MARS" Edwards. T.I. partnered 828 Entertainment with his company Grand Hustle Records to produce a slate of both television and film projects. He also created a reality show on MTV called "T.I.'s Road to Redemption".

Community work

In addition to helping with Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, T.I. worked with troubled youths at Paulding Detention Center in Atlanta, provided scholarships for single parent families at Boys and Girls Clubs, and headlined the Boost Mobile Rockcorps concert at New York's Radio City Music Hall, which featured such performers as Fat Joe, Slim Thug, and Kanye West, and was held exclusively for community service volunteers. As part of his community service time, T.I. has come to a number of middle-grade and high schools in Georgia, where he speaks with the students in an assembly holding a positive message, while maintaining a philathropic view about morals and growing up in the same areas as himself. In June 2005, The Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes Foundation, named for the deceased member of multi-platinum female group TLC, and Atlanta's V-103 honored T.I. with the 2005 Lisa Lopes Award for groundbreaking achievements in music and community service which was court ordered. With this steady list of growing accomplishments T.I. is being recognized as the "Jay-Z of the South," according to Pharrell Williams of multi-platinum production team The Neptunes.

T.I.'s night club, Club Crucial, hosted a giveaway of 200 bicycles to neighborhood children in the Boys and Girls Club with V-103 announcer Greg Street.

Business ventures

Forbes Magazine announced its first ever Hip-Hop Cash Kings list early 2007 with list of the top 20 hip-hop earning artists for the previous business year. T.I. was listed on their list three times.

T.I. opened his own nightclub, ''Club Crucial'' in Bankhead, Atlanta. It is considered one of the most popular clubs in Atlanta and features full entertainment centers with large flat screen TVs, pool rooms, VIP rooms, food, etc. Celebrities such as Monica, Big Boi, Mike Epps, Shawty Lo make appearances there. The club also hosts weekly events such as Monday night ''Open Mic Night'', ''Free Fridays'', and ''Celebrity Saturdays'' where local hip-hop artists are known to come perform their songs at the club.

Chevrolet secured an endorsement deal with T.I. earlier in 2007 to promote their line of cars, with a focus on the new Impala. Due to his arrest for federal gun charges, he was on the verge of losing his deal with the company.

T.I. had an endorsement with a social networking website focusing on the hip-hop culture named ''StreetCred''. The website was founded in 2007 by investment banker Rocky Williform. Celebrities such as Diddy, Lil Kim, and Jeezy had accounts on the website. As of 2008, the website was temporarily shut down until further notice.

On June 29, T.I. was named Global Creative Consultant of Rémy Martin Cognac. ''XXL Magazine'' revealed that the partnership will include collaborative projects and a focus on continuing the philanthropic works of his K.I.N.G. Foundation. He also announced on Chelsea Lately that he will be releasing his own signature brand of the liquor.

T.I. lost his endorsement deal with Axe body spray after his arrest for drug possession.

Controversy

Ludacris

A dispute with Ludacris started when T.I. saw Disturbing tha Peace rapper I-20's video. In the video, a man wearing a shirt which said "Trap House" was being beaten. T.I. mistook the logo to refer to "Trap Muzik". Former G-Unit artist Young Buck asked fellow Southern rappers T.I. and Ludacris to appear on his new record on the track "Stomp". T.I. recorded a verse which contained a line that Young Buck considered to be an underhanded snub towards Ludacris: ''"Me gettin' beat down?/That's ludicrous/"''. Young Buck spoke to Ludacris about the verse, to maintain his neutrality in the controversy. Ludacris then recorded the verse that can be found on the album. T.I's record company wanted Ludacris to change his verse before they sanctioned it but Ludacris refused and T.I. was therefore replaced by Game on the album version.

On June 24, 2007 at the Sunset Tower Hotel in West Hollywood, California, T.I. was involved in a brawl. During a luncheon held by Kevin Liles of Warner Music Group (parent company of T.I.'s label, Atlantic Records), the MC got into a fight with Ludacris' manager Chaka Zulu. According to witnesses, T.I. punched Zulu in the face and choked him and a brief melee ensued.

T.I. brought home the award for Best Hip-Hop Artist at the BET Awards, and took the opportunity to apologize for his scuffle with Disturbing tha Peace executive Chaka Zulu earlier in the week. While accepting his award, he expressed regret over the situation. "They say it's a fine line between brilliance and insanity," he said, in an apparent reference to his troublesome alter ego, T.I.P. During the broadcast, cameras showed his onetime rival Ludacris smiling in the audience. The audience stood up and applauded T.I.

The two rappers have since resolved the dispute and have collaborated on two songs: "Wish You Would" on Ludacris's sixth studio album, ''Theater of the Mind'', and "On Top of the World" on T.I.'s sixth studio album, ''Paper Trail''. The original version of the latter had Kanye West.

Lil' Flip

According to AllHipHop, T.I. and Lil' Flip had an altercation in Lil' Flip's neighborhood, the Cloverland section of Houston. It has been said that T.I. went there to create a DVD exposing Lil' Flip to be a fraud. When T.I. went to Cloverland with his entourage, he was met by Flip and his people. Then it was said a fight broke out with one of the members of Lil Flip's entourage started swinging on T.I. until one of T.I.'s bodyguards started shooting. The same day T.I. went on a Houston, Texas radio station talking about the altercation. He revealed that he had the tape and he was going to release it with an upcoming mixtape, but that did not happen because James Prince stopped him from distributing the tape. It is unknown whether T.I. still has the tape or not. The feud was squashed by Rap-a-Lot's Prince after having them sit down and resolve their feud. The feud was documented by the Houston Press.

Shawty Lo

In 2008, T.I. was involved in a highly publicized feud with Shawty Lo. The feud was characterized by Shawty Lo's track Dunn Dunn, and T.I.'s reply in What Up, What's Haapnin. The song Dunn Dunn appears to question T.I.'s roots in Bankhead. The music video for What Up, What's Haapnin was shot in Shawty Lo's housing project Bowen Homes, an apparent insult towards Shawty Lo. In an interview, T.I. insisted that his song No Matter What was only partially aimed at Shawty Lo.

The feud reached its climax at the November 2008 ''Dirty Awards'' where the entourages of both artists clashed during the ceremony, forcing it to be shut down. Two incidents forced police to use pepper-spray and evacuate the audience.

The feud was publicly squashed on March 7, 2009, when Shawty Lo and T.I. appeared on-stage together at Club Crucial in Bankhead, for T.I.'s farewell concert. After this performance, T.I. gave an interview to MTV, in which he stated that the feud with Shawty Lo was exaggerated by the media, and was not a 'beef'.

Personal life

Family

T.I. has been in a relationship with former Xscape member Tameka "Tiny" Cottle since 2001. The couple married on July 30, 2010 in Miami Beach, Florida. Together, they have two sons: Clifford "King" Joseph Harris III, born August 25, 2004, and Major Philant Harris, born May 16, 2008. Their daughter Lelah Amore Harris was stillborn on March 22, 2007, six months into a complicated pregnancy.

In addition, T.I. has two sons with ex-girlfriend Lashon Dixon: Domani Uriah, born in 2000, and Messiah Ya'Majesty, born in 2001. T.I. also has a daughter named Deyjah Imani, born in 2001, from another relationship.

Through his marriage to Cottle, T.I. has one stepdaughter, Zonnique Pullins, born in 1996 to Cottle and Zonnie Zebo Pullins.

Rescue of suicidal man

T.I. has been praised for helping a twenty-four year old suicidal man in Atlanta named Joshua Starks, convincing the man not to go through with jumping from a 22-story building. On October 13, 2010, T.I. reportedly heard about the situation on the radio and drove to the scene at Atlanta's 400 Colony Square Building. He drove to the site, and asked the police if he could help Starks. T.I. then talked to the man, and convinced him not to jump. Afterwards, T.I. stated "For one, I'm not taking any credit. I didn't do it... I could've just as well came down there and it could have been resolved in another way. The fact of the matter is that God put me in a position to help, and I can't take any credit for that."

Discography

2001: ''I'm Serious''

2003: ''Trap Muzik''

2004: ''Urban Legend''

2006: ''King''

2007: ''T.I. vs. T.I.P.''

2008: ''Paper Trail''

2010: ''No Mercy''

Filmography

colspan="4" style="background: LightSteelBlue;"	Film
! Year	! Film	! Role	! Notes
2006		Rashad Swann	Main Role
2007		Stevie Lucas	Minor Role
2008	''For Sale''	Omar Burgess	Main Role
2010	''Takers''	Ghost	Main Role and Executive Producer. Debuted at #1 at the American box office.
Television
! Year	! Title	! Role	! Notes
	2005	''The O.C.''	Himself	"The Return of the Nana" (season 2, episode 21)
2008		Himself
	''T.I.'s Road to Redemption''	Himself	Starred in all episodes
''Behind the Music''	Himself	Aired on October 8, 2009.
	2010	''VH1 Storytellers''	Himself	Aired December 10, 2010

See also

List of artists who reached number one in the United States

List of awards and nominations received by T.I.

References

External links

T.I. at MTV

[ T.I.] at Allmusic

Category:1980 births Category:Living people Category:21st-century actors Category:21st-century American criminals Category:Actors from Georgia (U.S. state) Category:African American film actors Category:African American rappers Category:African American record producers Category:African American songwriters Category:American people convicted of assault Category:American prisoners and detainees Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Grammy Award winners Category:People convicted of drug offenses Category:Prisoners and detainees of the United States federal government Category:Pseudonymous rappers Category:Rappers from Atlanta, Georgia Category:Songwriters from Georgia (U.S. state)

cs:T.I. da:T.I. de:T.I. et:T.I. es:T.I. fa:تی.آی. fr:T.I. gl:T.I. ko:T.I. hr:T.I. id:T.I. it:T.I. he:T.I. sw:T.I. lv:T.I. lt:T.I. hu:T.I. nl:T.I. ja:T.I. no:T.I. pl:T.I. pt:T.I. ro:T.I. ru:T.I. simple:T.I. sl:T.I. fi:T.I. sv:T.I. ta:டி.ஐ. th:ที.ไอ. tr:T.I. vi:T.I. zh:T.I.

birthname	Jonah Hill Feldstein
birth date	December 20, 1983
birth place	Los Angeles, California
occupation	Actor, producer, screenwriter, comedian
yearsactive	2004–present
homepage	}}

Jonah Hill (born Jonah Hill Feldstein; December 20, 1983) is an American actor, producer, screenwriter, and comedian, best known for his roles in ''Superbad'', ''Knocked Up'', ''Funny People'', ''Get Him to the Greek'', and ''Moneyball''. He made his theatrical debut in ''I Heart Huckabees'', alongside Jason Schwartzman and Dustin Hoffman. Hill was first nominated for a Teen Choice Award for his role in ''Accepted'' as Sherman Schrader. He co-created and starred in the animated comedy ''Allen Gregory'' on FOX. His first dramatic role was in the critically acclaimed 2011 sports film ''Moneyball'', for which he was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Early life

Hill was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Sharon Lyn (née Chalkin), a costume designer and fashion stylist, and Richard Feldstein, a tour accountant for Guns N' Roses. Hill was raised Jewish. His parents were originally from Long Island, New York, and the family vacationed in the Catskills. He attended The Center for Early Education, Brentwood School and then Crossroads School, in Santa Monica. After graduating from high school, Hill left California to attend The New School, where he studied acting.

Career

While in college, Hill began writing his own plays and performing them in the ''Black and White'' bar in the East Village neighborhood of New York City. His plays developed a small following and helped him realize that his true desire was to act in films. Hill was befriended by Dustin Hoffman's children, Rebecca and Jake, who introduced Hill to their father. The elder Hoffman asked him to audition for a role in ''I Heart Huckabees'', in which Hill made his film debut.

Hill then made a brief appearance in Judd Apatow's directorial debut ''The 40-Year-Old Virgin'', which eventually led to him starring in a larger supporting role in the Apatow-directed ''Knocked Up'', an uncredited role of Dewey Cox's grown-up brother Nate Cox in ''Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story'', and leading roles in the Apatow-produced ''Superbad'' and ''Get Him to the Greek''.

On television, Hill played the "RA Guy" on the first season of the Oxygen Network sitcom ''Campus Ladies''. He also guest-starred in an episode of ''Clark and Michael''.

He was scheduled to host ''Saturday Night Live'' on November 17, 2007, which would have featured musical guest Kid Rock, but the episode was canceled due to the Writers Guild of America strike which lasted from November 5, 2007, to February 12, 2008. Instead, he hosted the March 15, 2008, show, which featured musical guest Mariah Carey (who was a replacement for the originally scheduled musical guest Janet Jackson).

He guest-starred in an episode of ''Reno 911'' which aired on April 1, 2009.

Hill was in negotiations for a part in ''Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'' as a sidekick to Shia LaBeouf's character. He next starred in Judd Apatow's third directorial feature, ''Funny People'', which also starred Adam Sandler, Eric Bana and Seth Rogen. He also was an associate producer of the 2009 Sacha Baron Cohen mockumentary ''Brüno''.

He guest starred on an episode of ''The Simpsons'' called "Pranks and Greens", portraying an immature man named Andy Hamilton who was hailed the best prankster in Springfield Elementary School history.

In July 2011, Jonah appeared at ESPN's ESPY awards sporting a much slimmer physique. He claimed to have lost 40 pounds. Hill will be appearing in the film ''21 Jump Street'' by 2012.

In November 2011, Hill, along with Sam Worthington and Dwight Howard, starred in commercials for the video game ''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3'', making his first appearance with his new look. Hill was scheduled to guest star on the November 21, 2011 edition of WWE Monday Night Raw, but he skipped the event and a reason for Hill's no-show was not made clear.

In August 2011 it was confirmed that Hill would star in Neighborhood Watch. In September 2011 it was announced that Jonah Hill was in talks to star in Quentin Tarantino's new movie ''Django Unchained''. Hill had to decline a role in Quentin Tarantino's ''Django Unchained'', due to his prior commitment to ''Neighborhood Watch'', lamenting that the former was "the perfect next step" in his career.

Hill received a Golden Globe nomination, his first nomination, for Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for his performance in the 2011 sports film ''Moneyball'', in which he portrayed his first dramatic role as Peter Brandt. In late January 2012, Hill received his first Oscar nomination for Best Actor in a Supporting Role for his role in Moneyball.

Writing

Hill has wanted to be a writer since he was young, dreaming of someday joining the writing teams of ''The Simpsons'', ''Saturday Night Live'' and ''The Larry Sanders Show''. At one point, Hill was writing a screenplay with close friend and ''I Heart Huckabees'' co-star Jason Schwartzman. At another, he was writing ''Pure Imagination'', a comedy for Sony about a man who develops an imaginary friend after a traumatic experience. Filming was expected to begin in 2008, but it has been in development since then. Hill co-created, co-writes, executive produces and lends his voice to the new Fox animated comedy Allen Gregory, which will air in between The Simpsons and Family Guy on Sunday nights. The show has been cancelled as of December 1st. Hill directed his first music video for singer Sara Bareilles's "Gonna Get Over You".

Filmography

Film '''' ''Grandma's Boy (2006 film) ''Knocked Up'' ''Strange Wilderness'' '''' ''How to Train Your Dragon (film) "Gonna Get Over You" ''The Apocalypse'' ''How to Train Your Dragon 2''

Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
2004	''I Heart Huckabees''	Bret
2005	|	eBay store Customer
rowspan="4"	2006	Grandma's Boy'' ||	Barry
''Click (2006 film)	Click''	Ben Newman – at age 17
''Accepted''	Sherman Schrader
''10 Items or Less (film)	10 Items or Less''	Packy
rowspan="5"	2007	|	Jonah
''Evan Almighty''	Eugene Tenanbaum
''Rocket Science (2007 film)	Rocket Science''	Lionel
''Superbad (film)	Superbad''	Seth
''Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story''	Nate Cox's Ghost
rowspan="8"	2008	|	Lynn Cooker
''Forgetting Sarah Marshall''	Matthew
''Just Add Water (film)	Just Add Water''	Eddie
''Emerson Park''	Dylan Machado
''Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian''	Brundon
''Funny People''	Leo
''''	Frank
''Brüno''	–
2009	|	Andy Hamilton	Television series, voice role
rowspan="4"	2010	How to Train Your Dragon'' ||	Snotlout	Voice role
''Get Him to the Greek''
''Cyrus (film)	Cyrus''	Cyrus
''Megamind''	Titan/Hal Stewart
rowspan="3"	2011	|	Director	Music video
''Moneyball (film)	Moneyball''	Peter Brand
''''	Noah Jaybird
rowspan="3"	2012	|	Himself	Pre-Production
''21 Jump Street (film)	21 Jump Street''	Schmidt
''Neighborhood Watch (film)	Neighborhood Watch''	Franklin
2014	|	Snotlout	Voice role

Television

''Campus Ladies'' ''Wainy Days'' ''Reno 911!'' ''Allen Gregory''

Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
2004	''NYPD Blue''	Clerk
2006	|	Guy	7 Episodes
rowspan="2"	2007	|	Neil	(TV series short), Two Episodes
''Clark and Michael''	Derek
''Human Giant''	Weenie King Customer
rowspan="3"	2009	|	Daniel	Episode "Training Day"
''Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job!''	Jeffrey Simmons
''The Simpsons''	Andy Hamilton
2011	|	Allen Gregory	Voice, Title Character

References

External links

The ''Superbad'' boys: exclusive video interview with stv.tv/movies

Photo spread of Jonah Hill with Riley Keough in Harper's Bazaar

Category:1983 births Category:Actors from California Category:American film actors Category:American Jews Category:American screenwriters Category:American television actors Category:American voice actors Category:Jewish actors Category:Living people Category:People from Marin County, California

ar:جونا هيل da:Jonah Hill de:Jonah Hill es:Jonah Hill fr:Jonah Hill id:Jonah Hill it:Jonah Hill he:ג'ונה היל nl:Jonah Hill ja:ジョナ・ヒル no:Jonah Hill pl:Jonah Hill pt:Jonah Hill ru:Хилл, Джона simple:Jonah Hill sv:Jonah Hill zh:喬納·希爾

name	Jonah Lomu
birth name	Jonah Tali Lomu
nickname	Big man, Burger
birth date	May 12, 1975
birth place	Auckland, New Zealand
height
weight
ru position	Wing
allblackid	506
allblackno	941
ru nationalteam	New Zealand
ru nationalyears	1994–2002
ru nationalcaps	63
ru nationalpoints	(185)
ru ntupdate	7 March 2008
ru clubyears	2009 –
ru proclubs	Marseille
ru clubcaps	3
ru clubpoints	(0)
super14	HurricanesChiefsBlues
super14years	2000–0319991996–98
super14caps	29822
super14points	(55)(10)(65)
super14update	9 September 2006
ru province	Wellington Cardiff
ru provinceyears	20062000–031994–99 2005–2006
ru provincecaps	3212810
ru provincepoints	(0)(65)(95) (5)
ru provinceupdate	9 September 2006
ru sevensnationalyears	1994–2001
ru sevensnationalteam	New Zealand
other	yes
relatives	Andrew Lomu, John Tamanika, Seti Kiole
university	}}

Jonah Tali Lomu, MNZM (born 12 May 1975) is a New Zealand rugby union player. He had sixty-three caps as an All Black after debuting in 1994. He is generally regarded as the first true global superstar of rugby union. One of the sport's most intimidating players on the field, he has had a huge impact on the game. He was inducted into the International Rugby Hall of Fame on 9 October 2007.

Lomu burst onto the international rugby scene during the 1994 Hong Kong Sevens tournament and was widely acknowledged to be the top player at the 1995 World Cup in South Africa even though New Zealand lost the championship game to the host Springboks. At one time Lomu was considered 'rugby union's biggest drawcard', swelling attendances at any match where he appeared. He has played for several provincial teams, in the Super Rugby and NPC competitions. These included the Blues, Chiefs and Hurricanes, and Counties Manukau, Wellington and later North Harbour. He made a comeback after undergoing a kidney transplant in 2004. In 1996 he married South African Tanya Rutter; they officially divorced in 2000. He married Fiona Taylor in 2003 and divorced her in 2008. He is officially the Rugby World Cup all-time top try scorer with 15 tries.

He is the cousin of National Rugby League players Andrew Lomu and John Tamanika.

Early career

Lomu represented New Zealand in the national under-19 side in 1993, as well as the under-21 side the following year. He first came to international attention at the 1994 Hong Kong Sevens tournament, as part of a fearsome team including Eric Rush and Christian Cullen.

At the age of 19 years and 45 days, Lomu became the youngest All Black test player as he debuted on the wing against France in 1994, breaking a record that had been held by Edgar Wrigley since 1905. The match was played at Lancaster Park in Christchurch, and the All Blacks lost 22–8. Lomu's performance was middling. However, he performed well enough to ensure his selection the following week. The match was the second against France and played at Eden Park in Auckland; France won again, 23–20.

1995 World Cup

Despite having just two All Black caps, Lomu was included in the squad for the 1995 World Cup in South Africa. Lomu stunned international rugby audiences (and unsuspecting players) at the 1995 World Cup, when he scored seven tries in five matches, including four in the semi-final against England. In his first ever World Cup match, against Ireland in Johannesburg, he scored two tries in the 43–19 win. In the following match—against Wales—Lomu was replaced during the game, and did not score any tries in the 34–9 victory. He was rested for the final pool match against Japan. In the All Blacks' quarter final, Lomu scored a try in the 48–30 win over Scotland at Loftus Versfeld. He shocked the 51,000 that packed into Newlands in Cape Town to see the semi-final against England, as he notched up four tries in the 45–29 defeat of the English, including a try in which he ran straight through England fullback Mike Catt.

His style of play at times defied description; one New Zealand commentator, Keith Quinn, was famously reduced to gasps as Lomu devastated England's backline. After the game, Will Carling said: "He is a freak and the sooner he goes away the better". Lomu's attacking prowess can be attributed in part to pure power; when near the tryline he often ran his 120 kg frame straight into or over any defenders who had the misfortune to get in his way (a move informally known as the 'Tongan sidestep'). However most of his famous tries were ignited by electric pace (as a schoolboy he ran the 100m in 10.8s) as he stepped "in-and-out" on his opposites and ran around them, then used his powerful fends on the cover defence.

Following the win over England, the All Blacks entered what would become an epic World Cup final match at Ellis Park against South Africa (the ''Springboks''), but despite his efforts, Lomu could not score a try against the South African side. During this game he was famously tackled near the try-line by Joost van der Westhuizen. The game went to the hosts, who scored a drop-goal in extra time to defeat the All Blacks 15–12. Lomu had scored tries against every major test playing nation in World Rugby except South Africa.

In interviews after 2003, Lomu revealed that he was already suffering from the effects of nephrotic syndrome during the 1995 World Cup. As a consequence of this serious and chronic kidney illness he was completely drained and often bedridden for entire days in between Cup games. It was agreed with the All Blacks doctor John Mayhew that his illness, at that time undiagnosed, would be kept secret and it stayed that way for most of his career.

In a Clint Eastwood movie Invictus (2009), which is about Nelson Mandela and South African rugby team in 1995 World Cup, Lomu is portrayed by Isaac Feau'nati and is referred to in reverent tones.

1996–1998

In the first match after the World Cup loss to South Africa, the All Blacks took on Australia at home at Eden Park. Lomu scored New Zealand's only try in the match, which they won 28–16. In the return match, held at the Sydney Football Stadium to decide the Bledisloe Cup, the All Blacks won 34–23 despite trailing at half-time, with Lomu scoring a try. Lomu's scoring for New Zealand continued later that year when he scored two tries in the All Blacks victory over Italy in Bologna. Lomu also played against the French Barbarians in November in Toulon, as well as two matches against French selections. Lomu played in the first Test against France in Toulouse, which was won through penalty goals. In a subsequent match against a French selection, Lomu scored two tries. He scored a try in the second and final test against France in Paris. }}

Prior to the start of the first Tri Nations Series, Lomu played for the All Blacks in matches against Samoa and Scotland, scoring in the Scottish match. The All Blacks also hosted Australia in Wellington; defeating the Wallabies 43–6, with Lomu getting three of the tries. The 1996 Tri Nations was the first of its kind, and launched with the advent of professionalism in rugby. A close victory over South Africa in Christchurch was followed by a 32–25 win over the Wallabies, in which Lomu scored. The wins ensured the All Blacks became the first ever Tri Nations champions. Lomu played three other matches for the All Blacks following the Tri Nations that year; against Currie Cup sides in South Africa: Eastern Province, Western Transvaal and Griqualand West.

At the end of 1996, he was diagnosed with a rare and serious kidney disorder, which saw him take time off from the sport. As such he did not play in the 1997 Tri Nations Series, but was included in the All Blacks tour of the northern hemisphere at the end of the year. Lomu played in the two warm up matches, scoring tries against Wales 'A' and Emerging England. He played the first test against England at Old Trafford, as well as the test against Wales at Wembley Stadium, and the second match against England— he did not score in any of the three games.

At the 1998 Commonwealth Games in Kuala Lumpur, he won a gold medal representing New Zealand in the Sevens Rugby event. The English rugby team came to New Zealand the following year for a two test series. Lomu played in both of the matches, scoring in the first, which was a 64–22 win in Dunedin, but not in the second test won 40–10 by the All Blacks. The 1998 Tri Nations Series contributed to one of the All Blacks worst ever seasons, as they lost all four games and finished at the bottom of the table.

1999 and the World Cup

Lomu's 1999 international season kicked off with a warm-up match against New Zealand A, which was followed by a game against Samoa in which Lomu scored one of the All Blacks' nine tries. Lomu came on late in the first game of the 1999 Tri Nations Series, which was a 28–0 win over South Africa, and at one point took eight men to bring him down. He again started from the bench in the subsequent game against Australia which the All Blacks also won. Lomu started from the bench in the following match against the Springboks in Pretoria, though he came in early in the 34–18 win. He was introduced at near half-time in the final Tri Nations game against Australia in Sydney, though the game was characterised by New Zealand errors, and Australia won the rainy affair, in front of 107,042 supporters. Despite the loss, the All Blacks were crowned Tri Nations champions.

He scored eight tries at the 1999 World Cup. In New Zealand's first pool match of the tournament against Tonga he scored two tries, scoring again in one of his finest matches in pool play against England. Lomu scored his second double of the tournament in the third and final pool match against Italy. The All Blacks, finishing at the top of their pool, proceeded to the quarter-finals, where they defeated Scotland, where Lomu scored one of New Zealand's four tries. Lomu scored twice in the semi-final match against France, though it was not enough to see them through to the final, as France went on to win 43–31. Through his career, Lomu has scored eight tries against England — more than any other All Black. Lomu also holds an unbeaten record of 15 tries in World Cup tournaments. Following the World Cup, there was speculation that Lomu would be moving to play American Football in the National Football League, or continue to play rugby in the English Premiership. None of the speculation materialised and Lomu stayed in New Zealand.

2000–2003

After playing the 100+ victory over Tonga, Lomu and Tana Umaga scored five tries between them in the subsequent match against Scotland. One of Lomu's tries was a characteristic bulldozing effort down the wing, leaving Scottish defenders in his wake. In the opening match of the 2000 Tri Nations Series, the All Blacks raced out to a 21 to nil lead, which had the potential to be 28, had George Gregan not stopped Lomu from scoring one of his own. Australia amazingly fought back, and with minutes remaining, both sides had scored five tries each. The world record rugby crowd of 109,874 was treated to the highest scoring match ever between the two sides. With just minutes remaining, the Wallabies led 35 to 34; until Lomu "brushed past a desperate Stephen Larkham to tip-toe down the line and score the winning try".

The match was followed by a victory over South Africa, and then a re-match of the thrilling Bledisloe Cup game, which Australia won by just a single point, 24 to 23. A barn-storming Lomu was stopped short of the line early in the second half in the final match against South Africa. The Springboks eventually won, 46 to 40. The All Blacks finished second on the table, with Australia winning the Tri Nations. Lomu played in one other test that year; against France at Stade de France in November, which the All Blacks won 39 to 26.

Lomu also led the New Zealand Sevens team to victory at the 2001 Sevens World Cup, filling in for Rush, who suffered a broken leg during the competition. In the lead up to the 2001 Tri Nations Series, the All Blacks played Argentina and France at home, Lomu scoring a try in the French match. Despite causing havoc for the Springboks, no tries were scored in the opening match of the Tri Nations, which was won on penalty goals by the All Blacks. Lomu played his 50th test for the All Blacks at the Carisbrook 'House of Pain', scoring a try in the second minute of play. The Wallabies spoiled the party however, winning 23 to 15. This was followed by a win over South Africa, and loss to the Wallabies at Stadium Australia.

At the end of the year, the All Blacks played Ireland at Lansdowne Road in Dublin. Lomu was a central figure in the 40 to 29 win, setting up Aaron Mauger for his debut try, and taking an inside pass to blast through for one of his own. The All Blacks end of season tour continued at Murrayfield in Edinburgh, where they defeated Scotland 37 to six, with Lomu contributing one try. In the final match of the tour, the All Blacks played Argentina at the River Plate Stadium. Lomu put the All Blacks in front after Argentina took an early lead, brushing off four defenders to score. In the end, New Zealand won the match by a score of 24 to 20.

In his first test of 2002, he came off the bench in the second half to score a try in a match against Italy. He was again injected into play from the bench in the first of a two test series against Ireland in New Zealand; setting up the All Blacks second try coming on in the last fifteen minutes of play. Lomu was back at his usual starting position for the second test against the Irish, which New Zealand won 40 points to eight. Lomu did not score in the subsequent match against Fiji; though he did however make a trademark run down the wing, setting up Christian Cullen's third try in the match. Lomu came off the bench in the All Blacks first game of the 2002 Tri Nations Series against South Africa, though he did not play in the rest of the tournament.

He was, however, back in his starting position on the wing for a game against England in November. Lomu ended up scoring a double, though it was not enough to secure a New Zealand victory, with England winning 31 to 28. The subsequent match against France resulted in a draw, the first between the two nations in 96 years. The last match of the end of season tour was against Wales, which the All Blacks won 43 to 17.

Statistics

International Tries

International Analysis by Opposition

Personal life

Lomu is of Tongan descent, and has had a turbulent personal life. He has been married and divorced twice and is now living with his third partner, who was herself married when she met Lomu.

In 1996, shortly after the 1995 Rugby World Cup in which he made such a big impact, Lomu married South African Tanya Rutter and she moved to live in New Zealand. Four years later in 2000, they were divorced. Then in August 2003, Lomu married his second wife Fiona (who also became his personal manager with a firm hand on all his finances) in a secret ceremony on Waiheke Island. A week later they held a party on the island for approximately 160 guests

In December 2007, it was reported that Lomu and his second wife Fiona were taking timeout from one another.

Then in February 2008, it was reported Lomu and his wife Fiona were divorcing. The reason for the divorce was another woman. Nadene Quirk was married to fringe Auckland Blues rugby player Jarek Goebel when she met Lomu in late 2007. Goebel was devastated by what happened. In early 2008, Lomu moved out of his Auckland property and down to Wellington to live with Quirk.

Commitment

Jonah Lomu is today a member of the ‘Champions for Peace’ club, a group of 54 famous elite athletes committed to serving peace in the world through sport, created by Peace and Sport, a Monaco-based international organization.

Health issues

At the end of 1995 Lomu was diagnosed with nephrotic syndrome, a serious kidney disorder. His rugby union career went on hold whilst the disorder was treated. In May 2003, the NZRFU announced that Lomu had been put on dialysis three times a week due to deterioration in his kidney function. Side effects of Lomu's dialysis treatment led to severe nerve damage in his feet and legs; his doctors warned him that he faced life in a wheelchair if a kidney transplant was not performed soon.

Late in March 2004, Lomu was quoted by a Hong Kong newspaper to the effect that a suitable live kidney donor had been found, and that he would have transplant surgery sometime during 2004. However, the former All Blacks team physician who was overseeing Lomu's treatment quickly denied the report. Nonetheless, at the end of July 2004 it was reported that Lomu had indeed undergone a kidney transplant on Tuesday, 28 July, in Auckland, New Zealand. The kidney was in fact donated by Wellington radio presenter Grant Kereama. Lomu soon announced his intention to train for his rugby union renaissance in June 2005.

Comeback quest

In January 2005, Lomu announced his intention to lead a team against Martin Johnson's invitational XV on 4 June 2005, at Twickenham. He scored a try in the first half of the Johnson testimonial, but injured his shoulder in the process and did not return for the second half, dampening an otherwise encouraging first appearance. As it turned out, his injury was more serious than originally thought; he underwent surgery on the shoulder, causing him to miss the 2005 NPC season.

Before returning to professional rugby, he needed special clearance from the World Anti-Doping Agency, as one of the anti-rejection drugs he was required to take is on the WADA list of banned substances. On 8 April 2005, he signed a two-year contract to play for the New Zealand first division provincial team North Harbour in the NPC.

On 9 August 2005, he joined North Harbour, but the shoulder injury he had picked up in the Martin Johnson testimonial game ruled him out for the season, so he worked with the team in a coaching capacity. North Harbour agreed to allow him to play overseas during the NPC offseason, so Lomu signed with the Cardiff Blues of the Celtic League and began playing in Wales in December that year, though he would then return to North Harbour for the 2006 NPC season. Lomu made his first appearance in a competitive match since his transplant on 10 December, in Cardiff's away Heineken Cup fixture against Italian club Calvisano. He started the match and played 60 minutes, although he did not score, making a key line break leading to Cardiff's first try in their 25–10 win.

One week later, he made his home debut for Cardiff at Cardiff Arms Park and played for the whole match. Again, he did not get onto the scoresheet but his presence was enough to create space for other players to score in a 43–16 win over Calvisano. In front of a record home crowd, Lomu scored his first try for Cardiff on 27 December 2005, with a man-of-the-match performance during a Celtic League 41–23 win against the Newport Gwent Dragons. In early 2006, he was sidelined while he concentrated on gaining speed and strength, stating that "I have now lost between 10 and 11 kilos". He got his first start since January against Border Reivers on Saturday, 15 April, but broke his ankle as a result of a cover tackle on him four minutes from time. He was denied a try, but managed to get the ball away for Mark Lewis to score the Blues sixth try in their 46–11 win. He was estimated to be out for six weeks, as reported by his manager and wife, Fiona Lomu, meaning the end of his Celtic League season.

After three seasons of absence from rugby in New Zealand, Lomu played for Massey against Marist in the North Harbour club competition. Lomu was on for 30 minutes, making a blocking run before he twisted his right ankle and was subsequently replaced. Lomu said that it was "a small step" in his comeback. Lomu's aim was to return to the National Provincial Championship and reclaim his All Blacks jersey for the 2007 World Cup. Lomu ended up playing for North Harbour in round four of the National Provincial Championship, in a match against Wellington, playing in the last 26 minutes of the game. Harbour won the match 31–16. Lomu said after the match "For me it's a dream come true...I've always said this is my goal – to come back and play in New Zealand."

It became apparent in early 2007 that Lomu was not going to make the Rugby World Cup after not signing with a New Zealand Super 14 franchise, therefore ruling him out for the 2007 Rugby World Cup in France. Previous to not gaining a Super 14 contract, Lomu had been demoted to the North Harbour 2nd XV. Lomu stated that he was disappointed by his failure to gain a Super 14 contract, but that he had not failed himself. It was subsequently speculated that Lomu may have played in Australia in 2007 for one of the then new national competition clubs.

On 16 October 2006, it was reported that Lomu was close to switching codes and signing for the Gold Coast Titans, a new Queensland franchise in the National Rugby League competition. He was offered a relatively small contract of one hundred thousand dollars. However, the deal did not materialise as Lomu had numerous important sponsorship contracts with companies associated with rugby union and it would have proved difficult to reconcile these if he was to play in the NRL.

On 5 November 2006, the BBC reported that Lomu was considering a return to Welsh rugby. He last played rugby in Hong Kong to take part in the Tens competition.

On 9 April 2007, Lomu appeared on New Zealand's version of ''This Is Your Life'', in which he was united with his brother John Lomu.

Lomu was appointed as a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the Queen's Birthday Honours list on 4 June 2007.

Retirement

Lomu retired from rugby in 2007, but was persuaded to play in the Help For Heroes charity match at Twickenham a year later, although had to withdraw after injuring his ankle in training.

However, in June 2009, the BBC claimed he was close to joining French third division club Marseille Vitrolles and was expected to start in the first match of the new season.

In September 2009, Lomu took part in a amateur bodybuilding contest in Wellington. He revealed that he has lost weight since preparing in March and now weighs 115 kg. His weight loss was due to intensive gym work and a diet without carbohydrates. He claims he has not weighed this little since he left school at 19. He finished second in two categories, including the men’s open over-90 kg, and the mixed pairs. That meant he's done enough to qualify for next month’s competition. His partner Tracy suffered from breast cancer but also recovered like Lomu did. He also prepared for his comeback to rugby. He joined French Fédérale 1 team Marseille Vitrolles in November. Lomu made his debut against Montmelian, they won 64–13 at home. Lomu started the match at centre and was nervous but enjoyed the occasion very much. Lomu has now moved to number 8 successfully with Marseille Vitrolles Rugby, the position he played as a youngster in New Zealand.

Further reading

Phil Shirley "Blood & Thunder The unofficial biography of Jonah Lomu" Harper Collins Publishers London ISBN 0-00-274028-1

Lomu, Jonah, (2004). ''Jonah Lomu Autobiography'', Headline Book Pub Ltd, (ISBN 0-7553-1263-5)

References

External links

Official website

Murray Webb caricatures: Lomu at RWC 1995     Lomu in Counties kit

Jonah Lomu Rugby (video game)

Category:Article Feedback Pilot Category:1975 births Category:Living people Category:New Zealand international rugby union players Category:Members of the New Zealand Order of Merit Category:New Zealand rugby union players Category:Chiefs rugby union players Category:Blues rugby union players Category:Hurricanes rugby union players Category:Barbarian F.C. players Category:Rugby union wings Category:New Zealand people of Tongan descent Category:Organ transplant recipients Category:International Rugby Hall of Fame inductees Category:Cardiff Blues players Category:North Harbour rugby union players Category:Commonwealth Games gold medallists for New Zealand Category:Former students of Wesley College, Auckland Category:Rugby sevens players at the 1998 Commonwealth Games Category:Wellington rugby union players

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