Young Jeezy is ready to go. After numerous delays and setbacks, the Snowman tells MTV News that the release date for his next solo album, TM 103, is set in stone. "It's locked, it's dead-locked. It's time to go! September 20, how y'all want it," he said.
The album — Jeezy's fourth and the third in his Thug Motivation series — first started creating a buzz in 2009, when it was expected to be given a 2010 release. Singles like "Lose My Mind," "All White Everything," "Jizzle" and the Lil Wayne-assisted "Ballin' " came and went, while the album remained in limbo. But on Monday night at his New York City concert celebrating the six-year anniversary of his debut album, Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101, Jeezy announced the rock-solid September 20 date.
Backstage at a second TM 101 show in Atlanta on Tuesday, Jeezy explained that he wasn't about to tarnish his reputation as an artist just to make that 2010 release date. "One thing you gotta know about Young is I'm three for three," he said, speaking of the quality of his previous albums. "I'm on my own time. I'm the boss — I'm not rushing myself for nothing.
"At the end of the day, I'm not about to give nobody no music to make a deadline, I'm gonna give them something to live and die by. If it ain't classic, it ain't monumental, I don't want to be a part of it. I make hits, man. I make classics. I can't just give somebody something just 'cause it's time. It's better late than never baby, trust."
Jeezy is particularly excited about his new single "Shake Life." The track, which was produced by Lil Lody, samples from Toto's 1978 song "Georgy Porgy" and on it, Jeezy raps about how he was counted out of the game, the war in Iraq and the ills of his former Atlanta neighborhood. "I just put out 'Shake Life,' it's crazy. It's a special record to me," he said. "It's just one of those records to uplift. But if you're worried about club bangers, I got an album full of those sh--s, too easy."
Are you looking forward to Jeezy's TM 103 Tell us in the comments!