Jeezy reflected on the desperation he felt to make it as a rapper in an interview with Yahoo News. The multi-platinum selling artist discussed the dire circumstances he faced if he did not make it in the music industry.
“I just knew that there wasn’t no other way if I didn’t figure it out,” Jeezy said. “I was going to end up in prison or probably dead like the rest of my friends.”
He added, “I was writing my music as if I wasn’t gonna be there anymore. So, I was like, ‘This better be the best I ever said.’ And so that’s what Trap or Die and Thug Motivation was. Because I was preparing myself for the worst and when it popped, I understood. And now I was like, ‘OK, I gotta sustain this.’ So, I just carried that same energy into all my next projects.”
Jeezy revisited stories from his childhood and music career in the new memoir Adversity for Sale: Ya Gotta Believe. He wrote about growing up as a military brat, surviving life in the trap game and finding his lane in Hip-Hop.
Adversity for Sale is scheduled to drop on August 8. Jeezy narrated the audiobook version of the memoir, which is available for pre-order.