Todd Anthony Shaw (born April 28, 1966 in Los Angeles, California), better known by his stage name Too $hort, is an American rapper who started his career at the age of fourteen in Oakland, California. ^[1] is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... Oakland redirects here. ... Atlanta redirects here. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... In the 1980s, hip hop music began to break into the mainstream of the United States. ... Hyphy (pronounced HI-fee; IPA: ) is a style of music and dance primarily associated with the Bay Area hip hop culture. ... For other uses of the term Dirty South, see The Dirty South Dirty South is a style of rap music that popped up in the latter half of the 1990s and is based in southern cities and states such as Memphis, Nashville, New Orleans, Atlanta, Miami or South Florida, Mississippi... For other uses, see Crunk (disambiguation). ... Rapping is one of the elements of hip hop and the distinguishing feature of hip hop music; it is a form of rhyming lyrics spoken rhythmically over musical instruments, with a musical backdrop of sampling, scratching and mixing by DJs. ... A musical instrument is a device constructed or modified with the purpose of making music. ... In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. ... Jive Records is an American record label, owned by Sony BMG, and operates as a quarter of the Zomba Label Group. ... Jonathan Smith (born January 27, 1971), better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, hype man, and producer. ... 01. ... Jazze Pha (pronounced Jazzie Fay) is the stage name of Phantom Anton Alexander (born 1970 in Memphis, Tennessee, USA). ... is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1966 (MCMLXVI) was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar) of the 1966 Gregorian calendar. ... Los Angeles and L.A. redirect here. ... A stage name, also called a screen name, is a pseudonym used by performers and entertainers such as actors, comedians, musicians, djs, clowns, and professional wrestlers. ... Rapping is one of the elements of hip hop and the distinguishing feature of hip hop music; it is a form of rhyming lyrics spoken rhythmically over musical instruments, with a musical backdrop of sampling, scratching and mixing by DJs. ... Oakland redirects here. ... This article is about the U.S. state. ...

Biography

Born in South Los Angeles and moved to Oakland, California in his teenage years. In the early 1980s, $hort produced custom raps (called "special requests") for people with his high school friend, Freddy B. In 1983, Too Short released his first album, Don't Stop Rappin', on the local label 75 Girls.^[1] This and his next three releases had raw and simple drum beats using a LinnDrum drum machine in the early 1980s, switching to mostly the TR-808 and TR-909 by the mid-to-late 1980s. With his 1989 release, Life Is...Too $hort, he began infusing replayed established funk riffs (rather than samples) with his beats. In 1986, Too $hort and Freddie B. founded the Dangerous Music record label to distribute his music regionally.^[1] Dangerous Music has since changed names to $hort Records, and now Up All Nite. He first developed a noticeable fan base with the album "Life is Too Short" in 1989, which started a string of platinum albums. HE was short. Too Shorts songs are principly recognizable for their emphasis on Pimpin' and related sexually charged topics. With the rise of gansta rap in the late 1980's/early 1990's, his style found a natural place in mainsteam rap. Not surprisingly, Too Short's popularity peaked in the 1990's with Short Dog's in the House in 1990 and Shorty the Pimp in 1992. The latter included classics such as "No Love From Oakland" "Hoes," and "Step Daddy," all of which deal with his exploits as a pimp, and playing hoes. While macking hoes was a common topic in other gangsta type rap of the time, including the popular rap put out by Death Row records, it should be noted that Too Short was never really a gangsta rapper. His work chronologically straddled the rise and decline of gangsta rap, and never really dealt with guns, killing, drugs, or gangs, and very rarely used the word "Nigga," but rather focused on the life of a pimp, and getting laid. South Los Angeles South Los Angeles is the official name for a large geographic and cultural area lying to the southwest and southeast of downtown Los Angeles, California. ... Oakland redirects here. ... Dont Stop Rappin is the debut album by rapper Too $hort released in 1983. ... The LinnDrum is a drum machine manufactured by Linn Electronics. ... Roland TR-808 Introduced in late 1980, the Roland TR-808 was one of the first programmable drum machines. ... Roland TR-909 The TR-909 was a partially analog, partially sample-based drum machine built by Roland Corporation in 1984. ... Life Is. ... For other uses, including related musical genres, see Funk (disambiguation). ... Too $horts third album Short Dogs In The House Tracklist Short Dogs In The House Its Your Life The Ghetto Short But Funky In The Oaktown Dead Or Alive Punk Bitch Aint Nothin But A Word To Me Hard On The Boulevard Pimpology Paula and Janet Rap... This seventh release by Too $hort Shorty The Pimp was released in 1992. ...

Subsequent work including Get in Where You Fit in 1993, and Cocktails 1995, dealt with similar issues. He retired from full time solo rap with the 1996 release of Gettin' It, ref name="amg"/> Get In Where You Fit In is the 5th Jive Records album by Oakland based rapper Too $hort. ... Cocktails is a 1995 album from Oakland rapper Too $hort. ... Gettin It is the 10th album from rapper Too $hort. ...

Subsequent work was primarily collaborative including work with Diddy, The Notorious B.I.G., Scarface, UGK, Jay-Z, and Snoop Dogg just to name a few. He appeared TWDY's hit single "Player's Holiday" from their 1999 debut album Derty Werk^[2] as well as the Priority Records compilation Nuthin But a Gangsta Party.^[3] After the appearances, he began working on his eleventh album, Can't Stay Away. The album included guest appearances by 8Ball & MJG, Jay-Z, Jermaine Dupri, Sean Combs, E-40, Daz Dillinger, Lil' Jon, Soopafly, Scarface and B-Legit as well as recognized verses by $hort himself.^[4] When he relocated to Atlanta in 2003, he began working with a more diverse variety of artists including Lil Jon. In 2004,The Ghetto appeared on popular videogame Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, playing on West Coast hip hop radio station Radio Los Santos. He is also one of the only rappers in the industry to collaborate with The Notorious B.I.G, 2Pac, Mac Dre, Ol' Dirty Bastard, and Eazy-E before they died. Diddy can refer to one of the following: Diddy Kong, a fictional Nintendo character Sean Combs, a rap mogul, previously known as Puff Daddy, , Sean John, Puff, and Puffy Diddy (dance act), 1990s dance act responsible for the hit single Give Me Love Diddy Men, the fictitious dwarves created and... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Scarface can refer to: people Al Capone, an American gangster whose nickname was Scarface. Scarface (rapper), a rapper who is a member of the Geto Boys. ... UGK (short for Underground Kingz) is a hip-hop duo from Port Arthur, Texas. ... Jay-Z (aka the Jigga, HOV and Hova, born Shawn Carter on December 4, 1970 in Brooklyn, New York) is an African American rapper/hip hop artist and record label executive; one of the most popular and successful rappers of the late 1990s and early 2000s. ... Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. ... Priority Records is an American based record label, owned and operated by EMI, and has made a name for itself dealing primarily in hip hop music. ... Cant Stay Away is an album from Too $hort. ... 8-Ball and MJG is an American hip hop duo from Memphis, Tennessee. ... Jay-Z (aka the Jigga, HOV and Hova, born Shawn Carter on December 4, 1970 in Brooklyn, New York) is an African American rapper/hip hop artist and record label executive; one of the most popular and successful rappers of the late 1990s and early 2000s. ... Jermaine Dupri also known simply as JD (born Jermaine Dupri Mauldin on September 23, 1972) is an American record producer and rapper. ... Sean John Combs (born November 4, 1969)[1] is an American record producer, CEO, clothing designer, actor and rapper. ... For other uses, see E40. ... Daz Dillinger (born Delmar Arnaud on May 25, 1973 in Long Beach, California), is an American hip hop producer and rapper mostly known for his work with Death Row Records at the height of West Coast raps popularity. ... Lil Jon This article is about the American rap producer. ... Soopafly is a producer/rapper from Long Beach, California. ... Brad Terrence Jordan[1] (born on November 9, 1970 in New Jersey), better known by his stage name Scarface (and formerly Akshen) is an American rapper originally known for his work as a member of The Geto Boys. ... B-Legit, also known as The Savage (born Brandt Jones in Vallejo, California) is an American rapper. ... This article is about the state capital of Georgia. ... Jonathan Smith (born January 27, 1971), better known by his stage name Lil Jon, is an American rapper, hype man, and producer. ... A computer game is a game composed of a computer-controlled virtual universe that players interact with in order to achieve a defined goal or set of goals. ... Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas is the fifth video game in the Grand Theft Auto series. ... West Coast hip hop, also known as West Coast rap or California hip hop, is a style of hip hop music that originated in California in the early 1980s. ... Radio Los Santos is a rap and hip-hop network. ... Christopher Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), also known as Biggie Smalls (the moniker of a deceased producer who was a friend of his, Stretchs and 2Pacs, and the subject of 2Pac and Stretchs song God Bless the Dead) and Frank White (from the film King... Years after his death, Tupac Shakur is still considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of all time. ... Andre Hicks (July 5, 1970 – November 1, 2004), better known by his stage name, Mac Dre, was a San Francisco Bay Area-based gangsta rapper from Vallejo, California. ... Ol Dirty Bastard (November 15, 1968 - November 13, 2004) was an American rapper and one of the founding members of the hip hop group Wu-Tang Clan. ... Eazy-E (Eric Wright) (September 7, 1963 - March 26, 1995) was an African-American rapper, record producer, and record executive who initially rose to fame as a member of the group N.W.A.. Born in Compton, California, Eazy-E dropped out of Compton High School while in tenth grade...

Up All Nite Records

Too $hort runs his own record label, Up All Nite Records. Artists on the label include The Pack^[5], best known for their singles, "I'm Shinin", "Vans" and "Gimme the Mango", as well as Keak Da Sneak. The Pack is a rap group from Berkeley, California. ... Vans is the first hit single from rap group The Packs debut album Skateboards 2 Scrapers. ... Charles Toby Bowens[1] (born May 9, 1979), commonly known by his stage name Keak Da Sneak, is a rapper from Oakland, California . ...

Too $hort in film

Too $hort played the role of Lew-Loc in the critically acclaimed hood classic "Menace II Society." Menace II Society is a 1993 American film and the directorial debut of twin brothers Allen and Albert Hughes. ...

Too $hort has also moonlighted in the adult film industry, with the 2003 film Get In Where You Fit In.^[6]

Finally, Short appeared in the 1999 Hughes Brothers' documentary about Pimps titled "American Pimp." It is notable that he was the only person interviewed about pimping who was not a current or previous full time pimp, a testament to his contribution to the Pimp culture.

Discography

Main article: Too $hort discography

• 1983: Don't Stop Rappin'
• 1985: Players
• 1987: Raw, Uncut, and X-Rated
• 1988: Born to Mack
• 1988: Life Is...Too $hort
• 1990: Short Dog's In The House
• 1992: Shorty The Pimp
• 1993: Get In Where You Fit In
• 1993: Greatest Hits, Vol. 1: The Player Years, 1983-1988
• 1995: Cocktails
• 1996: Gettin' It (Album Number Ten)
• 1999: Can't Stay Away
• 2000: You Nasty
• 2001: Chase the Cat
• 2002: What's My Favorite Word?
• 2003: Married to the Game
• 2006: Pimpin' Incorporated
• 2006: Gangsters & Strippers
• 2006: Blow the Whistle
• 2007: Bible of a Pimp
• 2007: I Love the Bay
• 2007: Get off the Stage

The following is a discography of production by West Coast hip hop rapper Too $hort. ... Dont Stop Rappin is the debut album by rapper Too $hort released in 1983. ... Players is an album by Too $hort recorded and released in 1985. ... Raw, Uncut, and X-Rated was both, recorded and released, in 1986 after Too $horts quite successful, yet not too mainstream, Players album. ... Born to Mack is a 1987 album by Too $hort. ... Life Is. ... Too $horts third album Short Dogs In The House Tracklist Short Dogs In The House Its Your Life The Ghetto Short But Funky In The Oaktown Dead Or Alive Punk Bitch Aint Nothin But A Word To Me Hard On The Boulevard Pimpology Paula and Janet Rap... This seventh release by Too $hort Shorty The Pimp was released in 1992. ... Get In Where You Fit In is the 5th album by Oakland based rapper Too $hort. ... Cocktails is a 1995 album from Oakland rapper Too $hort. ... Gettin It is the 10th album from rapper Too $hort. ... Cant Stay Away is an album from Too $hort. ... An editor has expressed a concern that the subject of the article does not satisfy the notability guideline or one of the following guidelines for inclusion on Wikipedia: Biographies, Books, Companies, Fiction, Music, Neologisms, Numbers, Web content, or several proposals for new guidelines. ... Chase the Cat is a 2000 album from Too $hort. ... Whats My Favorite Word? is an album from Too $hort. ... Married to the Game is an album by rapper Too $hort. ... Blow the Whistle is the 16th studio album by Oakland rapper Too $hort. ...

References

The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ... The All Music Guide (AMG) is a metadata database about music, owned by All Media Guide. ... This article is about the original U.S. music television channel. ... This article is about the original U.S. music television channel. ...

External links

• Too $hort site by record label Jive Records (requires Flash)
• Too $hort official MySpace page