T.I. News

The rapper, who's been under house arrest for the better part of five months, got some great news Thursday as a federal judge approved his request to leave his locked-down premises and attend Easter services this weekend.

The 27-year-old emcee, whose real name is Clifford Harris, has court clearance to attend mass and realated religious revelry at an event sponsored by his local house of worship, the New Birth Missionary Baptist Church, between the hours of 8:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. Sunday.

T.I. won't be able to make the holy excursion on his own, however, as the judge approved the request on the grounds that the chart-topper be escorted to the services, to be held at the Georgia Dome, by at least one of his attorneys and an as yet unspecified court monitor.

A similar get-out-of-jail request was made by T.I., and promptly rejected by the judge at the behest of prosecutors, last November, when the rapper sought permission to host a family Thanksgiving dinner at his Atlanta-area home.

The rapper was arrested back on Oct. 13, just a few blocks away and hours before he was set to headline the BET Hip-Hop Awards in his hometown. He was busted in a parking lot after allegedly getting caught trying to buy a slew of unregistered machine guns and silencers.

A bad enough offense on its own, T.I.'s indiscretion was made even worse because he was already a convicted felon and therefore not allowed to be in possession of any firearms, let alone unregistered ones.

He was subsequently released on $3 million bond, but remains under house arrest. If convicted on the two felony charges, to which he has pleaded not guilty, he faces up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each count.

The next hearing is scheduled to take place April 4.