Young Jeezy may be from South Carolina, but his lyrics and heart are clearly reppin’ Atlanta. As one of the biggest names in the trap sub-genre of hip-hop, Jeezy sports a hard-hitting, raspy voice that gives the impression of someone who has gone through a multitude of rough experiences on the streets. This is, indeed, a consistent theme in his music.
For someone who has been in the game for over a decade, Jeezy never seems to come up with fresh ways to portray his struggles (and successes) in the streets, but growth is still apparent in his work. #ItsThaWorld2 is just another example of how the business-savvy rapper is still building a brand around himself and the label he co-founded, Corporate Thugz Entertainment.
#ItsThaWorld2 is a follow up to Jeezy’s It’s Tha World mixtape, which came out almost one year ago. The constantly-motivated artist always seems to be giving his fans a little taste of the projects he has in the works. This feature-laden work might, at first glance, seem like a cop-out (as most hip-hop aficionados claim that for an artist to truly expose themselves, they should release solo tracks).
Looking at the structure of #ItsThaWorld2, however, there seems to be a clear structure that shows the ulterior motives of Jeezy’s mixtape release. The first and last tracks are solo tracks by Jeezy, acting as an introduction and conclusion that give the album a feeling of completeness while allowing the middle of the eight-track work to host a more diverse set of songs.
The middle section of the album contains three types of tracks. Two tracks feature Jeezy alongside other big-name rappers. These songs seemingly act as singles, and they easily could be, with hard-hitting beats and the lyrical flow of rappers such as Pusha T, Big K.R.I.T. and 2 Chainz, just to name a few.
The second type of songs are those that feature Jeezy’s younger CTE signees Doughboyz Cashout and YG. These tracks allow listeners to see how these young, emerging artists stack up to the veteran status of Jeezy. No track shows dominance of one artist over another.
The third type of track within #ItsThaWorld2 are simply solo tracks from YG and Doughboyz Cashout respectively. These songs allow the younger, up-and-coming artists to shine on a bigger stage as a part of a mainstream artist’s mixtape. This is also a testament to the character and celebrity of Jeezy, as he has the credibility and success to vouch for his lesser-known labelmates.
While the mixtape does not contain any type of lyrical content that pushes Jeezy forward as an artist, it delivers what fans come to expect from him: vivid, picturesque rhymes of working the corners in the hood, romanticizing the drug game and bragging about his riches. If you come in knowing that this is what you’ll get, then this is exactly what the doctor ordered. And it is great.
This also marks an evolution for Jeezy as a businessman. To put the success of his fellow CTE members with that of his own grind, Jeezy illustrates his level of fame and how he’ll use it to bring up those he feels are worthy of such an honor. At the very least, #ItsThaWorld will give listeners a respect for the never-ending hustle of Jeezy and his CTE family.
