T.I., Tiny and several Grand Hustle artists attended the funeral of Doe B (Glenn Thomas). T.I. spoke to a crowd of family, friends and fans who paid tribute to the deceased rapper at True Divine Baptist Church in Montgomery, Ala.
T.I. revealed how he met Doe B and why he decided to take the young rapper under his wing:
“I’m here to celebrate the life of a young man I met one year ago. I got a call and I met Doe B and Frank White [Doe B’s manager] at Phipps Plaza [in Atlanta]. Frank said to me, ‘What do we need to do to get out of Montgomery, Al.?’ I said, ‘If you look around, you’ve made it out of Alabama, you’re in Buckhead. You’ve done a good job already.’
“Doe B played me some music. From that day on, I admired Doe B because he presented himself to be more mature for his age. It’s rare to find someone at the age of 21 who is composed while talking to someone who they aspire to be like and look them in the eye. He felt that he had the talent and same potential. It’s rare that you can find a 21-year-old who you can walk in the room with Puff Daddy, Nelly, Timbaland and Jay Z and they don’t lose their cool. It was a composure that Doe B had that was instilled in him by his family.
“He carried himself as if he had people to answer to so he couldn’t present himself as anything less than. I saw that day one. At Hustle Gang, I tell every artist that talent will only take them so far. It’s what you can do outside of the music that will separate you from the rest. Doe B never left the studio. He said he would rather be in the studio than the club because he knew it would pay off. One thing I will never do is let this man’s hard work go to waste. We will make sure his dream lives on.”
