Young Jeezy

No matter what is being supplied, a hustler is only as good as his word. With Atlanta serving up some of the hottest product in the rap game, native son Young Jeezy stands as one of the most exciting merchants of cool to emerge in years. Thanks to underground testimonials like “Airforces,” “So Icey,” and “Trap or Die,” Jeezy’s confidence and authentic style has quickly made believers out of some the biggest players in the game. Now the world will get to find out what insiders have been buzzing about when his Def Jam debut, Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101 drops July 26th.

“Before music I was just trying to survive out this motherfucker. I had other artists, some local cats off the street, but it didn’t work out,” explains the twenty-five year old Georgia native. “So I just decided to do it myself. Ain’t nobody gonna go as hard as you gonna go. I saw the bigger picture at the time. I have a way with words and I know how to hustle.”

Songs like the revealing “Let Me Talk To ‘Em” show Jeezy apologizing for many of the wrongs in his life and attempting to set the next generation straight about the dark side of life in the traps. “A lot of the cats I looked up to that bought me school clothes and things I lost them,” he says. “That’s why I’m here now.” Setting the backdrop for his reality are producers Mannie Fresh, Jazze Pha and Shorty Red to name a few. The guest line up is a who’s who of southern rap, but there will be plenty of Young Jeezy to bump from the coups to the corners.

Atlanta-based Young Jeezy originally planned on having a background role in the music industry -- as a businessman, not as a rapper. Years before making his first Def Jam album -- Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101, released in July 2005 -- he set up Corporate Thugz Entertainment and promoted Cash Money releases. From there, he branched out as a label boss and artist in his own right, releasing albums and mixtapes. Come Shop wit' Me, his independently distributed debut from 2003, allegedly sold more than 50,000 copies. As a member of Boyz N da Hood, he was behind a self-titled album (released just weeks before Let's Get It) that debuted in the Top Ten of the Billboard album chart. Driven by the hit "Soul Survivor," Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101 eventually did even better, nestling at the number two spot in the Top 200. The Inspiration: Thug Motivation 102 followed in late 2006, and by that point, Jeezy had become one of the most prominent MCs. In 2007 he introduced his U.S.D.A. crew with the album Cold Summer, and then returned to his solo career a year later with the politically minded The Recession. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide