Originally, No Mercy was going to be called King Uncaged. Its cover was going to feature T.I., in front of a stark white background, sunk deep into a wicker throne, a lion standing by his side. , an album we'll now presumably never hear, was to be Tip's first after he completed almost a year in prison, finishing up a gun sentence that could've sent him away for a whole lot longer. This was supposed to be the final triumphant chapter in Tip's redemption story, and everybody loves shit like that. Instead, life intervened. A Los Angeles traffic stop led to a drug arrest and a parole violation, and now T.I. is headed right back to prison for another 11 months. So is a confused muddle, some of the material presumably recorded before the arrest and some of it after. It's called presumably because wasn't catchy enough, and the album cover seems to be T.I. either wiping away a tear or punching himself in the face. Given how the album turned out, the face-punch is exactly the right gesture.