September 15, 2025
Jeezy was intentional about the evening being an elegant black-tie affair, and it wasn’t lost on his Motor City fans.
Twenty years ago, Jeezy’s major-label debut, Let’s Get It: Thug Motivation 101, blazed a new trail for hip-hop. On Sept. 13, at Detroit’s Fox Theatre, the “Snowman” proved that legacy isn’t just about looking back, but about leveling up.
Jeezy closed out his groundbreaking 20th anniversary tour with a performance that fused the gritty, raw energy of trap with the charismatic, lush classical sounds of a 25-piece orchestra. And they went in.
A Return to the Motor City
Jeezy was intentional about the evening being an elegant black-tie affair, and it wasn’t lost on his Motor City fans. The Color of Noize Orchestra, conducted by the masterful Derrick Hodge, was tasked with taking the musical direction of the raw, street-certified anthems to an elevated, gritty–yet still refined edge for the Snowman’s tracks.
The addition of strings made the title song, “Thug Motivation 101,” feel even more menacing, while the guitar and drum licks that peppered Jeezy’s other tracks gave the swag of Lenny Kravitz’s rock God status and the soul of a G, who’s been through some things and lived to tell the tale.
Jeezy delivered an almost hour-and-a-half performance with the commanding presence of a man who knows how far he’s come to stand on that famous Fox stage in Detroit. The show, livestreamed globally on his YouTube channel, saw him blaze through 12 tracks from the original album, followed by a final set of crowd favorites.
His choice to end the tour in Detroit was a deliberate one, a tribute to a city that has always felt like a second home to the rapper.
“I wanted to finish this tour in Detroit, Michigan, for a lot of reasons,” Jeezy warmly told the audience. “It’s very personable.”
The connection between Jeezy and the city was electrifying. The evening was about more than just a performance; it was a reunion. He gave a special shout-out to Detroit mayoral candidate Mary Sheffield, offering an early congratulations and endorsement. He also visited Detroit’s Cass Tech High School, which further proved his personal investment in the community.
This sentiment was echoed in a moment of pure catharsis during the song “Put On,” where fans in the Fox Theatre filled in every word of Kanye West’s verse, a beautiful, collective moment that seemed to capture the bond between Jeezy and the city perfectly. It was this authentic connection that he wanted to share with the world, which is why the entire performance was live-streamed.
“I wanted people to see the connection that I have with this great city and the connection that they have with me,” he said. The Detroit show marked the end of a triumphant run of 23 sold-out shows, a for sure testament to the longevity of his music and the dedication of Jeezy’s fanbase.
Emerging from his dressing room after a quick change from a mint-green tuxedo into a classic “Snowman” T-shirt, Jeezy’s throwback energy seemed to ignite the theater even more. He dove into snippets of favorites like “Dey Know” and “I Luv It” before hitting the crowd with a series of bombshell announcements.
He confirmed a new project with DJ Drama, titled “Still Snowin’,” dropping on his birthday, Sept. 28.
“It’s one of my favorite projects ever,” he said, signaling that his creative passion remains undiminished. “I feel like I got my second wind.”
Then, he dropped the biggest news of the night. After fielding calls about not hitting the West Coast, he announced a monumental residency at Planet Hollywood in Las Vegas, an undertaking so grand it will feature a staggering 101-piece orchestra.
“I don’t even think Frank Sinatra took a 101-piece orchestra out there,” Jeezy expressed, referencing the famous Rat Pack entertainer who kept Sin City on lock, highlighting the unprecedented nature of the move.
The residency will be split into two themed runs: a “Masquerade” for the October dates and a “Nutcracker” theme for December.
“If you don’t call that excellence and leveling up, I don’t know what it is,” he said, signaling that his career is entering a new, stratospheric phase, one that combines his street-certified anthems with a scale of performance rarely seen in the genre.
In his spectacular finale at Detroit’s Fox Theatre, Jeezy didn’t just celebrate two decades of Thug Motivation 101; he cemented his legacy as a forward-thinking artist.
The blend of trap anthems with a live orchestra highlighted his music’s depth. At the same time, his series of major announcements—a new project and an ambitious Las Vegas residency—signaled an enlightening, exciting creative rebirth.
He is moving with a newfound energy, proving that for a true artist, every ending is merely the beginning of something bigger and better.
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