Jeezy

Background

Jay Wayne Jenkins, popularly known as Jenkins, was born on September 28, 1977, in Columbia, South Carolina, and did not have much growing up. His father left when he was a baby, and his mother struggled to make ends meet. Like many others on the cusp of poverty, he turned to crime to help support his family. It was in 1994 when he spent nine months in Youth Challenge Academy that he decided that this is not what he wanted for his life. Only four years later, in 1998, the star’s career would begin with starting the Corporate Thugz Entertainment music company. It was within this company that he would release his first album in 2001, which was called “Thuggin’ Under the Influence.” As his popularity grew, so did his ambition for his company and his career. He continued to create music, and in 2003, he released his second independent album called “Come Shop with Me.” This album would feature new songs as well as a few from his previous album.

It was in 2004 that he stepped away from independent albums and he signed with Bad Boy Records. He joined the group Boyz n da Hood, which then released an album in 2005 that reached number five on the Billboard 200 charts. In 2005, he started to focus again on his solo career, signing with Def Jam Records, and releasing numerous different songs and albums that would rock the charts for years to come. In 2006 he created his clothing label called 8732, showing just how talented and multi-focused this artist is.

In 2007 and 2008, he was the winner of two Ozone awards. He was also nominated for and won the BET Hip Hop Award in 2008! From here on out, the rapper released several different successful albums and singles, some of which are still incredibly popular today! He started dating Jeannie Mai in 2018, and in 2021, they were married. Their daughter was born in early 2022 — we could not be happier for the couple!