Rapper T.I.
Tip "T.I." Harris has just released his first novel, "Power and Beauty." Reuters

Rapper T.I. can add novelist to his list of accomplishments with the release of his first book Power and Beauty.

Power and Beauty is about Paul Clay. Power, as he is called, has just lost his mother and has to figure out how to survive and win the affections of Tanya Beauty Long.

The rapper is thrilled to call himself an author, and cited the Sister Souljah novel The Coldest Winter Ever as a source of inspiration in a Reuters interview.

I'm proud, ecstatic, he told Reuters of his own book. I'm always eager to diversify my artistry. It's a great moment.

The book was published by the HarperCollins imprint William Morrow and co-written with David Ritz. Ritz has written and co-written several celebrity biographies, including Marvin Gaye.

A love story, a crime story, a survival story, Power & Beauty bristles with an electrifying authenticity born of Tip 'T.I.' Harris's hard life on the streets, HarperCollins said in the book's description on its Web site. This is exhilarating, brutally honest, page-turning urban African-American fiction at its very best.

The clothing company AKOO, which T.I. cofounded, had a dinner to celebrate the launch of the rapper's novel.

We're happy and extremely proud of T.I.'s newest achievement adding novelist to his repertoire and seeing him grow into this multi-talented and inspiring individual, AKOO cofounder and CEO of Grand Hustle Records Jason Geter said on the rapper's Web site.