Young Jeezy

Six years since the release of his RIAA platinum seminal classic debut album, TM 101 (aka Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101, on July 26, 2005), rap superstar, trap hero and CTE/Def Jam recording artist Jeezy today announces the scheduled September 20, 2011 release of his long-awaited fourth album, TM 103.

The most anticipated street album of the year, TM 103 contains the street smashes “Lose My Mind” (#2 on the Urban radio chart, #16 at Rhythm) and the still-current “Ballin’” (#10 Urban, with over 15 million radio audience this week). The newest single pick, “Shake Life” will impact urban radio on August 1st and rhythm on August 22nd.

In support of TM 103’s release, Jeezy will commence a major 5-week, 31-city headlining U.S. tour, beginning July 29th at the Palladium in Dallas, and wrapping up September 2nd at the Showbox at the Market in Seattle. Opening most dates will be newcomer Freddie Gibbs, signed by Jeezy to his Atlanta-based CTE (Corporate Thugz Entertainment) label.

In advance of the tour, Jeezy has set two celebratory anniversary shows, in which he will perform the TM 101 album live in its entirety. The first show took place Monday night (July 25th) at the prestigious Highline Ballroom in New York’s Chelsea district. The second TM 101 show took place in Jeezy’s home base, Atlanta, last night at the Buckhead Theatre.

In addition to “Lose My Mind,” “Ballin’,” and “Shake Life,” other TM 103 highlights include two versions of “I Do,” one featuring Jay-Z and Drake, and the other featuring André 3000 of OutKast. (Rolling Stone called the track “a splashy, classic-soul-inspired jam.”) GQ magazine’s Punch List raved: “The album [TM 103] is full of the kind of music that Jeezy – a mythological gladiator of a rapper – was built to record. [Producer] Redd’s beats are the ideal palette for him: gritty, grandiose, and sinister.”

TM 103 is the long-awaited follow-up to The Recession (September 2008), Jeezy’s second consecutive #1 Sound¬scan debut (after 2006’s The Inspiration). The Recession went straight to #1 at iTunes, and spun off a string of hit singles starting with “Put On” featuring Kanye West, #1 Rap and #1 R&B, and a #12 pop hit as well. The Grammy-nominated song was the second-highest charting Hot 100 hit of Jeezy’s career, and was also nominated for the People’s Champ Award at the BET Awards in October 2008.

The Recession continued the saga of Jeezy, one of the most successful rappers and entrepreneurs on the street today. It was the massive popularity and major-label sales of mixtapes like 2004’s Trap Or Die that brought Jeezy national attention. His “million dollar dreams” turned into reality with the RIAA platinum #1 Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101, one of 2005’s biggest debut albums. A phenomenal seven tracks from Let’s Get It found their way onto radio and the charts: “And Then What,” “Soul Survivor,” “Trap Or Die,” “Go Crazy,” “Tear It Up,” “Trap Star,” and “My Hood.” The album topped many critics’ year-end lists, was named the New York Times’ Pop Album of the Year, and Jeezy was named Best New R&B/Hip-Hop Artist at the Billboard Music Awards. Jeezy was named in Rolling Stone’s “New Faces: Artists To Watch” and MTV News’ “You Hear It First.”

2006’s The Inspiration: Thug Motivation 102 quickly pushed past RIAA platinum, out-selling nearly every rap album on the charts. In support, Jeezy hit the road with Jim Jones, Baby, Lil’ Wayne, and Fat Joe for the seven-week, 23-city “Street Dream Tour” of March-April 2007.