Back in January we ran a story asking “Can Hip-Hop Save Bankhead Seafood?” Well, the answer is a resounding YES! T.I. & Killer Mike came together to buy the business and the building to keep the historic Atlanta restaurant alive.
Back in January it was reported that after 50 years of business the historic Bankhead Seafood was closing it’s doors because owner Helen Harden simply didn’t have the man power to run the business properly anymore.
T.I. has now focusing his efforts on transforming Bankhead and the Center Hill area. In 2017, T.I. founded Buy Back the Block, a venture to revive his childhood community. To date, he has invested more than $2 million in the area.
Along with rapper Killer Mike, T.I. has plans to bring Bankhead Seafood, 1651 Donald Lee Hollowell Pkwy, back to life. Once a staple in the community, T.I. said he recalls getting a container of fish, hush puppies and coleslaw many of times from the restaurant. T.I. expresses the importance of someone of the community purchasing the business as oppose to someone from the outside that may just turn the historic restaurant into a Starbucks.
Emmy-award winning journalist and “Closer Look” host Rose Scott took a journey with T.I. through the streets of Bankhead as he explained his plans to rebuild the neighborhood. Checkout this TL PBA documentary, “This Is Where I’m From: The Transformation of Tip Harris.”
