T.I. was sentenced to 11 months behind bars after his drug possession arrest on the Sunset Strip back in September 2010 -- an arrest that caused law enforcement officials to revoke his probation stemming from a federal gun conviction back in 2009.
Chris Burke, spokesman for the Federal Bureau of Prisons, tells us T.I. was released at 7:29 AM local time ... and is "in transit" to begin the next leg of his sentence.
T.I. checked into prison on November 1, 2010 -- and he was originally scheduled to be released on September 29.
9:09 AM: T.I.”s attorney, Jonathan Leonard, tells TMZ ... the rapper will serve the remainder of his sentence in a halfway house in Atlanta.
6:50 AM: T.I. is already back on Twitter -- and just fired off a message saying, "The storm is over & da sun back out. IT'S OUR TIME TO SHINE SHAWTY!!!!! Welcome to the beginning of our Happy Ending!!!!"
He also wrote, "Feels great to be back where I belong...Back in the arms of those who need me the most."
