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Jeezy speaks on putting his music on hold for YG, compares signing Detroit’s Doughboyz Cashout to signing an Atlanta artist.

Although Atlanta rapper Jeezy has remained relatively quiet as far as his own music is concerned, his last studio album was released in 2011, the former Boyz N Da Hood member has become heavily immersed in his new role as senior vice president of A&R at Atlantic Records.

During a recent appearance on MTV’s “RapFix Live,” Jeezy, who recently dropped the “Young” in his name due to a more mature “state of mind,” commented on his newfound role and putting his music career on hold to ensure that CTE’s latest signee, YG, put forth a worthy major label debut.

“I’ve been off the scene a little bit…Everything’s about YG,” he said. “I really want his project to be successful ’cause he work hard. So, I just took that time out myself as executive producer to make sure that all those things that—his visits and the things that he wanted can actually happen. Me being in the building being a powerhouse, but like I said, when I do what it is I do, it’s like I do that Jeezy thing, man. So, I wanted to step back and focus on YG and we got him ready now.”

On top of his work executive producing YG’s project, Jeezy also recently signed another batch of artists to Atlantic Records. This time, the Atlanta emcee looked to his “second home” of Detroit to sign the Motor City-based rap group known as Doughboyz Cashout.

“Shouts out to Doughboyz Cashout,” Jeezy said. “Straight outta Detroit. Just signed ‘em to Atlantic Records. You know I got my thing at Atlantic Records going over there right now, executive VP. Executive VP over there. On my executive tip right now, you know…Detroit like my second home…So, Detroit has always been love. And for me to be in a position of power to put some people on and actually have a chance to get with some cats from Detroit, it almost feel like me signing somebody from Atlanta. It feels real. It feels like home. When I go there, it’s real.”

Jeezy may be currently executive producing and scouting artists for Atlantic Records, but it was just years ago when the rapper was hard at work making a name for his self in the rap game. And during that time, noted Texas emcee Bun B was one of the first artists he reached out to.

“Bun was one of the first people I reached out to to get a feature with,” the Thug Motivation 103 rapper revealed. “One of my homies I knew in the hood knew Bun and I couldn’t believe it. So, he put me on the phone with him. I was popping like ‘Yo, I got my money in a brown paper bag right now. Come pick it up.’ But in the course of doing the verse, we got a chance to chop it up and he gave me a lot of wisdom about the game. It’s about working hard, staying focused…and just doing you. I take that with me everywhere I go.”

Most recently, Young Jeezy partnered with both YG and Doughboyz Cashout to release their Boss Yo Life Up Gang mixtape, a project that also includes appearances from Nipsey Hussle and Rich Homie Quan.