Clifford “T.I.” Harris is featured on the latest edition of BET’s Food For Thought, where he was grilled by Stephen A. Smith, Angie Martinez, Harry Allen and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed.

The interviews were conducted prior to Tip’s recent battles with the law, but he still manages to give you a bit of insight during the interview as to why he feels the prison system just isn’t for him.

“To be candid with you, I learned, man, prison ain’t for gangsters, prison is for losers,” he told Smith. “Gangsters find ways to avoid prison. Gangsters find ways to exit the game and legitimize their businesses and learn how to turn their strengths into enterprises.”

“If you look around in a prison, at least myself, I saw thieves, I saw burglars, I saw crackheads, I saw, you know, the same people that I would walk around on the street, and you would never associate with these people out of respect for yourself,” he added. “Ok, so if you’re on the street and you’re looking at these people and you are above their standards, how do you and them end up in the same place, one bed next to each other? I got to be better than that.”

In case you missed it, check out BET’s Food For Thought: Conversations with T.I. below:

VIDEO: FOOD FOR THOUGHT: T.I.