The Recession

Singles

The album's lead single, called "Put On" was released on June 3, 2008. The song features a guest verse from American hip hop recording artist Kanye West, with the production that was provided by Drumma Boy.

The album's second single, called "Vacation" was released on August 12, 2008. The song was produced by the duo The Inkredibles.

The album's third single, "Crazy World" was released on October 25, 2008. The track was produced by Midnight Black.

The album's fourth single, "My President" was released on November 15, 2008. The song features a guest verse from a fellow American rapper Nas, with the production that was provided by the duo Tha Bizness.

The album's fifth and final single, "Who Dat" was released on January 6, 2009. The song was produced by Shawty Redd, with the co-production by D. Rich.

Commercial performance

In the United States, the album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, with first week sales of 260,000 copies. To date, the album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). In 2009, the album sold 886,000 copies in the United States.

Critical reception

The album so far has a score of 72 out of 100 from Metacritic based on "generally favorable reviews". The Phoenix gave it all four stars and said that "Elsewhere we get lots of the usual earthquake bass and keening synth arpeggios and staccato horns, and, of course, Jeezy’s hypnotically commanding flow, all of it amounting to one of the hardest mainstream rap albums in years." The Guardian gave it four stars out of five and said that "The album touches upon economic issues without dwelling on them, and it captures the spirit of the times with an unerring precision." Slant Magazine also gave it four stars out of five and said, "There's a unique pleasure in hearing a once one-dimensional rapper discover complexity, and for that Recession is nearly indispensable." Billboard gave it a favorable review and stated, "Young Jeezy balances commercial/ pop aspirations with core hip-hop sounds on The Recession, getting a lift from DJ Toomp, Drumma Boy, Midnight Black and longtime collaborator Shawty Redd on this sonically enjoyable follow-up to 2006's 'The Inspiration'." The Village Voice also gave it a favorable review and said that Jeezy's previous two albums "were well-crafted, uncompromising in their focus, and exceptionally entertaining. The Recession makes it three."

AllHipHop gave it a score of seven-and-a-half stars out of ten and said, "Overcoming shaky moments in the album’s early half, Jeezy again sets himself apart from his Trap music peers. But this time he combines a serious social theme with his usual content to make that distinction. And while there’s no doubt that America is currently in an economic decline, in 2008 that same claim cannot be made about Young Jeezy." The A.V. Club gave it a B and called it "silly, repetitive, and wildly unoriginal. Yet thanks to Jeezy's razor-blade rasp and goofy charisma, it's also strangely infectious." Blender gave it three-and-a-half stars out of five and said that "If Recession-era Jeezy sounds a lot like boom-time Jeezy--describing coke cooking and the cars one gets in reward—that’s because he has always fancied himself an educator, a Learning Annex lecturer, an inspirational-desktop-calendar hustler."

Other reviews are average, mixed or negative: Hartford Courant gave the album an average review and said it was "largely a faithful rehash of his first two platters, which transformed him from unrepentant hustler to unlikely inspirational figure." Paste gave it a 5.8 out of ten and said that the singles "are exceptional, but the filler suffers from a detached and dispirited sound." Prefix Magazine gave it a 4.5 out of ten and said of Jeezy, "Putting out an album called The Recession right now, and draping the American flag over your head on its cover, comes with expectations of politically conscious ruminations. Instead, we get more of the same."