Now on Too Short, I aint a Oakland nigga, but to me that makes my view just as valuable because I think Short is the nigga who really paved the way to git money off this rap shit with out a major deal or major distribution in the Bay and beyond. Even before Short did the 75 Girls shit he was puttin his shit on tapes and jookin them on the same dope spots that niggas pushed weight on. I remember hearin Invasion of the Flat booty Bitches and Blow Job Betty back in 82 way before I ever heard of Eazy E cause there was no Eazy E the rapper til 85-86. Short and 75 Girls were making big moves and at the time, was probably the only real street label pushin the type of units that made real impact. Yeah there were other labels, but Too Short was so prolific, he was droppin album after album. the Don't Stop rappin album blew the doors on music in the Bay. Girl, That's your life was when Short said, "I Come From The City of Dope, It couldn't be saved by John the Pope", and every city like East Palo Alto, Oakland, San Francisco, Richmond, Vallejo automatically related and becasue of this, Too Short became way bigger than just a Oakland Rapper. Too SHort was the first rapper in the bay to transcend his own borders which was Oakland. he was the first rapper to be respected in every urban city in the Bay at the same time. no bay rapper can say that but him. Shit, because of Too Short yellin Oakland on damn near every song (Even though he was born in L.A.), he actually made it Ok to rep your city and put your area on the map. Niggas wasn't doin that before him period.
When Too Short started Dangerous Music with Freaky Tales, he created the original sound that later became known as mobb music, with the deep bass and bass lines on slow moving tracks. Niggas want to say 40 started the mob sound (He later became the champion for it), but you would be foolish to forget about Dope Fiend Beat, shit actually the whole Born To Mack and Life Is Too Short albums because they changed the way bay niggas made beats and rapped. Especially Life Is Too Short, he spit not gangsta rap, but reality rap speakin on the money, but also the consequences to sellin dope. He never glorified the shit like say how NWA did gang life. Short spoke on the game from the stand point of any real nigga caught up in the trap of living in the ghetto having to make the ultimate choice to feed your family and survive in hard times (The Reagan Era). Shit Eazy was smart to click up wit Short and make the first real bay to L.A. connection. Short influenced niggas wit money as well as niggas wit none at all and made niggas feel like I can put my experience on wax and if i put my drive and hustle into, I can be successful. the rap game owes Todd Shaw everything, because before him, there was no game to play. He opened a lane for real niggas to choose. you didn't have to sell dope, you could package up your music and git money. Niggas think the only real nigga was a nigga wit a sack in his hand. he proved real niggas could be more than that if they chose to think outside the box.
Almost 30 year in the game and still relevant, and how can you argue that Short aint sittin at the pennacle of what the bay is. bay niggas aint gangstas (in the sense of claimin a gang affilitiation), we real niggas wit Heart, Hustle and G.A.M.E.
The Last Thing: I heard some one say you only an old school rapper if you are no longer relevant so short can't be an old school rapper cause he still outselling almost 80-90% of most niggas in the game period
