Rapper T.I. grieves over slain best friend

ATLANTA, May 7 (UPI) -- Atlanta rap star T.I. is set to speak Monday at the funeral of his assistant and best friend, and is trying to understand his life now after the violence.

Early Wednesday morning, a brief spat at a Cincinnati club where T.I. performed earlier, turned into a drive-by shooting in which Philant Johnson died.

In an interview with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, T.I. -- born Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. -- said the killing of his lifelong friend has shaken him.

"I'm kind of like watching my life change right before my eyes," said T.I.

Both T.I. and Johnson got in trouble as kids, family said, with T.I. doing a short bid in jail for drugs.

But both were trying to turn their lives around -- T.I. becoming a multimillion-album hip-hop star with a budding film career and Johnson helping him every step of the way.

Johnson and his girlfriend just bought a house. His 6-year-old daughter was student of the month at her school in February.

But their lives and career success was no match for people who felt insulted when someone at T.I.'s Cincinnati club performance tossed money into the crowd, the newspaper said. The offended parties retaliated with guns.

"And I'm not ever going to be the same," said T.I.