Jay Wayne Jenkins, better known by his stage name Young Jeezy, celebrates his 39th birthday today.
Jeezy released his first album, Thuggin' Under The Influence, in 2001 under the name Lil J. Since then, the Atlanta rapper has been nominated for multiple Grammy awards, has taken home two BET awards for "Hard" and "Put On," and has scored multiple chart topping hits, including "Soul Survivor," a single off of his major label solo debut, Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101.
While Jeezy doesn't consider himself a musician, going as far to tell XXL in 2005 that “I don’t even want to be no rapper...The only time I’m rapping is when I’m in that booth. I don’t walk around with no pad or no pen. I know I got love for this music ’cause it’s a hustle," he's earned a reputation for taking his credibility as an artist and entertainer seriously. "I’d rather be in the hearts and minds instead of on the shelves,” Jeezy said.
Jeezy also has a reputation for charity: the rapper opened up his own home to shelter those displaced by Hurricane Katrina in 2005, and in 2007 he hosted a charity toy drive that gave away a thousand toys to a thousand needy kids in the Atlanta area.
By Michael Lacerna for RAPstation.com
