Too $hort, also known as Short Dog (real name Todd Anthony Shaw, born April 28, 1966) is a rap artist from Oakland, California. Born in 1966, Shaw started rapping in the early eighties, turning up in clubs and selling personalized rap tapes to his classmates. Too $hort is best known for making explicit rap songs about sex, but he does a bit of political rapping as well.
Albums:
- Don't Stop Rappin (1985)
- Players (1985)
- Raw, Uncut & X-Rated (1986)
- Born To Mack (1987)
- Life Is... Too $hort (1989)
- Short Dog In The House (1990)
- Shorty The Pimp (1992)
- Get In Where You Fit In (1993)
- Cocktales (1995)
- Gettin' It: Album Number Ten (1996)
- Can't Stay Away (1999)
- You Nasty (2000)
- Chase The Cat (2001)
- What's My Favorite Word? (2002)note
- Married To The Game (2003)
- Blow The Whistle (2006)
- Get Off The Stage (2007)
- Still Blowin (2010)
- No Trespassing (2012)
- History: Function Music & History: Mob Music, in collaboration with E-40 (2012)
- ''The Pimp Tape (2018)
- The Vault (2019)
- Aint Gon Do It/Terms And Conditions in collaboration with E-40 (2020)
Too $hort Tropes:
- Cluster F-Bomb: Especially on "Cuss Words".Cusswords, just let 'em roll / Motherfucker shit goddamn asshole / Cusswords, they don't quit / Motherfuck you damn shithead bitch
- Counterpoint Duet: "Don't Fight The Feeling". On the left: Too $hort and Rappin' 4-Tay. On the right: the female rap duo Danger Zone. It basically goes like this... Guys: Let's fuck. Girls: No way, you're too scummy for us. Guys: Whatever, you know you want it.
- G-Funk: Short Dog is a pioneer of "mobb music", a regional variant of G-funk from the Bay Area that de-emphasizes the P-Funk and Midwestern funk influences Southern Cali G-funk usually has. Too $hort's sound actually predated G-funk, and was a massive influence on the genre and its artists.
- Gangsta Rap: Generally Commercial, though a lot of his tracks are surprisingly Blue Collar in nature, too; such as "The Ghetto" and "So You Wanna Be a Gangster".
- Just a Kid: "Little girl, you wanna have some fun, you better go to Magic Mountain cuz you're way too young" - from "Don't Fight The Feeling"
- List Song: "Freaky Tales", and its Sequel Song "Cocktales". In each one, he lists the names of his booty calls and their sexual specialties.
- Murder Ballad: "Blow Job Betty" may count, since she dies... um, choking while performing oral.
- Pun-Based Title: Cocktales
- Reports of My Death Were Greatly Exaggerated: Sometime after the release of Life Is... Too $hort, a rumor that Too $hort had died began spreading, and on his following album, he specifically addressed these rumors on "Dead or Alive"
- Sleazy Politician: Or more accurately, a Sleazy First Lady... On "Cusswords", Short fantasizes that Nancy Reagan "licked my dick up and down like it was corn on the cob".
- 10-Minute Retirement: In 1996, Too $hort announced that Gettin' It would be his last album, and would retire soon afterwards. That retirement only lasted a few years, and it was in fact lampshaded with the title of his next album, Can't Stay Away.
- This Is for Emphasis, Bitch!: Suffice it to say Short loves this word. "Bitch bitch bitch bitch make me rich!"
- Tradesnark™: At the start of "Paula & Janet": "BIIIIITCH! Trademark."
- Trope Codifier: For "mobb music", a Bay Area-based take on G-funk that distinguishes itself with a rawer and grittier production style, sparser arrangements with little to no P-funk influence, more prominent bass, and an increased synth presence, all of which is traditionally tracked live. While not the only artist to emerge from that time period to popularize the style (E-40, Spice 1, and Celly Cel also achieved national fame), Too $hort is still easily the most famous and influential of its proponents.
