''Boss Yo Life Up Gang'' is a compilation mixtape by American rapper

Young Jeezy Jay Wayne Jenkins (born September 28, 1977), known by his stage name Jeezy (or Young Jeezy), is an American rapper. Signing to Def Jam Recordings in 2004, his major label debut, '' Let's Get It: Thug Motivation 101'', was released the followin ...

's record label

CTE World CTE World (or Corporate Thugz Entertainment also relaunched on October 14, 2022 as CTE New World) is an American record label founded by American rapper Jeezy & his former manager Demetrius “Kinky B” Ellerbee. In December 2012, Young Jeezy s ...

. The mixtape was released for free on August 13, 2013, by CTE World. The mixtape featured

guest appearance In show business, a guest appearance is the participation of an outsider performer (such as a musician or actor) in an event such as a music record or concert, show, etc., when the performer does not belong to the regular band, cast, or other ...

s by

Nipsey Hussle Airmiess Joseph Asghedom (August 15, 1985 – March 31, 2019), known professionally as Nipsey Hussle (often stylized as Nipsey Hu$$le), was an American rapper, entrepreneur, and activist. Emerging from the West Coast hip hop scene in the mid- ...

and

Rich Homie Quan Dequantes Lamar (born October 4, 1989), known professionally as Rich Homie Quan, is an American rapper. He was previously signed to labels T.I.G. Entertainment and Motown, and is an independent artist as of 2021. Quan experienced commercial succ ...

. The mixtape was supported by two singles; "

My Nigga "My Nigga" (edited version titled as "My Hitta" or "My N*gga") is a song by American rapper YG, released on September 17, 2013, as the lead single from his debut studio album '' My Krazy Life'' (2014). The song, produced by frequent collaborator ...

" by YG featuring Young Jeezy and Rich Homie Quan, and "Mob Life" by Doughboyz Cashout also featuring Jeezy.

Background

In early 2013 Young Jeezy signed

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

hip hop group Doughboyz Cashout to CTE World. Also after frequently collaborating with West Coast rapper YG, he was officially signed to the label in June 2013. On August 6, 2013, Young Jeezy announced that the label would release a compilation mixtape featuring Jeezy, Doughboyz Cashout, and YG titled ''Boss Yo Life Up Gang''. It was then set for an August 13, 2013 release date. On August 9, 2013, a "making of" video was released in promotion of the project. The mixtape featured YG, Doughboyz Cashout and Young Jeezy prominently throughout the project, with additional

s by

and

. The mixtape was also hosted by

DJ Drama Tyree Cinque Simmons (born April 22, 1978), professionally known as DJ Drama, is an American DJ, record executive and music promoter. He is the co-founder (with Don Cannon) of Generation Now, an Atlantic Records imprint with artists including ...

and

Don Cannon Donald Cannon (born August 2, 1979) is an American DJ, record producer, songwriter, and record executive. Cannon is a co-founder of the Atlantic Records imprint, Generation Now. He was also a member of the prominent Atlanta mixtape collective, ...

. Following its release, Young Jeezy spoke to Revolt TV explaining the mixtape is meant to be "motivational", "Music is all built on motivation. Music was always motivation to hustle, get money nddo whatever you do and be the best at it. When you get on that court, you want to hear something that motivates you. But when I get in the booth, that’s what I’m thinking, whether it’s for the streets, whether it’s for somebody in the corporate world, whatever it is, it’s all motivation."

Singles

", was originally released as a track on the CTE World EP, ''#It'sThaWorld''. It was then chosen to also appear on, their first official full length mixtape ''Boss Yo Life Up Gang''. On September 4, 2013, YG and Young Jeezy appeared on MTV's RapFix and premiered the music video for "My Nigga", which had been shot a month prior in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

. Following the music video's release, the song was released by Def Jam as the mixtape's

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

on September 17, 2013. It has since peaked at number 5 on the ''Billboard''

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

chart and at #19 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, making it YG and Quan's first top 40 hit and their most successful single to date. The song also achieved worldwide success, peaking at #53 in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and #50 in Sweden. Also on September 17, 2013, "Mob Life" by Doughboyz Cashout featuring Jeezy was released, as the mixtape's second single by Atlantic Records.

Critical reception

''Boss Yo Life Up Gang'' was met with generally mixed reviews from music critics. Jesse Fairfax of

HipHopDX ''HipHopDX'' is an online magazine of hip hop music criticism and news. The website's current president and publisher is Sharath Cherian and the Head Of Content is Jerry L. Barrow. ''HipHopDX'' is the flagship publication of Cheri Media Group. ...

gave the mixtape a mixed review saying, "The monolithic tape seems to be one long song about lavish flossing, crass promiscuity, and getting wasted—normally passable topics from emcees capable of some diversity, if not the ability to be both crude and interesting...Constantly shouting out their present miraculous affiliation in likely efforts of stirring up envy, these additions and their utter lack of complexity should only wind up pleasing the easily impressed." Luis Mercado of TheDrop.FM gave a more positive review saying, "Overall, ''Boss Yo Life Up Gang'' is a good reintroduction to not only Jeezy, but allows his artists to shine by themselves. Plus, there are solid beats. This project is a perfect way to round out a summer jammed with good music and is worth a listen for any fan of Jeezy and his CTE crew."

Track listing

References

{{Authority control 2013 mixtape albums Jeezy albums Albums produced by DJ Mustard Albums produced by Mannie Fresh YG (rapper) albums