The dope-boy flows and warm 808s set the unbeatable standard for all other trap joints. Sure, Shawty Redd produced a proto-trap hit (Atlanta rapper Drama’s 1999 missive, “Left, Right, Left”).

In the early aughts, Jeezy subsisted on a primary diet of Waffle House and Cristal champagne. It was the start of the Atlanta-based rapper’s career, and he began captivating the streets with ...