The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, New York

Although TI owns both the No. 1 album and single in the country, the platinum-selling rapper says he still feels like the underdog.

"Nobody has ever given me a win and nobody has ever said, 'TI, you know he's going to do this thing.' They always (say), 'He's not going to do this much, he's not going to do that good, I don't believe he'll do that well.' So its always been an uphill battle for me no matter how big I get I'm always the underdog," he said in an interview.

But the 28-year-old may not be able to claim that underdog title for long. His latest CD, 'Paper Trail,' sold more than 560,000 copies in its first week to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 album charts, and his newest single, 'Live Your Life' featuring Rihanna, supplanted the album's first single, 'Whatever You Like,' at No 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.

The 28-year-old rapper made the comments before taking the stage at Diesel's 30th birthday celebration in Brooklyn, NY, on Saturday night. The circus-themed event for the apparel company featured mash-up performances; other artists performing included NERD, Hot Chip, Franz Ferdinand, Joel and Benji Madden of Good Charlotte, Chaka Khan and MIA, who performed her breakthrough Top 10 hit, 'Paper Planes."

Other celebrities in attendance included Lindsay Lohan, 'Gossip Girl' co-stars Chace Crawford and Taylor Momsen, actresses Emma Roberts and Zoe Kravitz, and former Destiny's Child member Michelle Williams.

TI also performed a song with the pregnant MIA, and called the lyricist "the hottest rap chick in the game right now, period." TI recently sampled 'Paper Planes' for collaboration with Jay-Z, Kanye West and Lil Wayne. The song, 'Swagga Like Us,' appears on 'Paper Trail.'

TI said the collaboration between the top rappers is a reflection of the respect they have for one another. The rapper, whose real name is Clifford Harris, was sentenced to one year in prison on federal weapons charges after he was arrested last October before the BET Hip-Hop Awards in Atlanta for allegedly trying to buy automatic weapons. He is scheduled to start his prison sentence in March 2009 after completing 1,000 hours of community service.