Jeezy

Raised in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Jenkin’s early taste of musical success came when he released his first independent album titled “Thuggin’ Under the Influence (T.U.I.)” in 2001 under the moniker Lil J. The album featured Lil Jon who produced a few of the tracks as well as Freddy J and Fidank. Two years later in 2004 Jenkins released the double CD “Come Shop wit Me” made up of new and existing songs from T.U.I, and the year marked Jeezy’s singing with Bad Boy Records. At the same time Jenkins joined the rap group Boyz n da Hood, who in June 2005 released a self-titled album which peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200.

On July 26, 2005, after signing a record deal with Def Jam Records, Jenkins made his major label debut with “Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101”. The album performed remarkably well debuting at No. 2 on the album chart, and singles “And Then What” and “Sole Survivor” also performed well, the latter, featuring Akon peaked at No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Jenkins featured in the Christiana Milians’s 2006 single “Say I” and the year also marked the release of Jeezy’s sophomore major label album named “The Inspiration”. It was the first album of Jeezy’s to top the the Billboard 200 and sold over 352,000 copies in the first week.

Jenkins has repeatedly denounced the commercialism of the music industry, has led charity drives for underprivileged children and opened his home in Atlanta for victims of hurricane Katrina.

Jenkins’ follow-up album would also see the top of the charts, 2008’s “The Recession” cemented Jeezy’s position in mainstream hip-hop culture. The album’s lead single “Put On” featuring Kanye West earned the duo a Grammy Nomination for Best Rap Performance and was followed by the other singles “Vacation”, “Crazy World” and “My President”

Jeezy’s subsequent album “Thug Motivation 103” despite a handful of set-backs was released on December 20, 2011 and featured the tracks “Illin” featuring Pusha T and “F.A.M.E.” featuring T.I.. In 2012 Jenkins let drop a new single “Get Right” which was the lead single on a new mixtape entitled “It’s Tha World” and in 2013 a compilation mixtape named “Boss Yo Life Up Gang”.

Jeezy’s seventh studio album “Seen It All: The Autobiography” was released September 2, 2014 and features collaborations with Jay-Z, Rick Ross and Game.