Young Jeezy - The Inspiration: Thug Motivation 102 (CD)

All Music Guide

Young Jeezy's first album for Def Jam, Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101, was such a breakout success that it immediately left his Bad Boy album with Boyz N da Hood released just weeks prior as an afterthought. What is his appeal, exactly? His persona revolves around being a crack dealer, but he spins it as a motivational speaker who encourages people to do what they need to do to get paid. School kids proudly donned Jeezy's snowman tshirts, even if the closest they'll ever come to hustling is selling chocolates for a class trip. Jeezy's not an exceptional rapper; he has a peculiar way of getting his support, though it's not without a discernible amount of charisma. On The Inspiration: Thug Motivation 102, this is best exemplified in the opening verse to the Timbalandproduced "3 A.M.": "It's Young Jizzo and I'm back with Timbo/With another hit, you're still stuck in a limbo/A adlib here and a adlib there/Fuck it, ad libs everywhere." Few other MCs could get away with something so pur...posefully lazy. In Jeezy's halfdetermined/halfcareless voice, it's a quotable (and a pretty damn funny one at that), more energizing and memorable than an average MC's complex, tonguetwisting metaphor. To that kind of extent, Jeezy does little to make this disc different from Let's Get It. Its first several tracks limp and flail around, which isn't a good sign, but once "I Luv It" kicks in, everything tightens and sharpens, placing the album a very slight shade beneath Let's Get It. Some of the highlights: "I Luv It," the closest staturewise to "Go Crazy," a DJ Toomp production that's as anthemic as his work on T.I.'s "What You Know"; "Mr. 17.5," a fine "Go Crazy" retread. There's also "Streets on Lock," a "Trapstar" retread, where Jeezy maps out some of the reasons for his success: "When I speak, these nggs believe me/'Cause btch I'm Jeezy." "Dreamin'," in which Jeezy recalls the guilt of being a crack dealer while his mother's an addict, takes the cake as the best reflecting pool track of 2006. - Andy Kellman, All Music Guide Read more Less