By The Hip Hop Writer
Hip Hop Vibe Staff Writer
During the peak years of his career, Too $hort was signed to Jive Records. Before he signed with Jive Records, Too $hort already had a cult following in the Bay Area, as he released several albums. But, his career took off upon signing with Jive Records and areas outside of the Bay discovered who he was.
Things were not always good for Too $hort at Jive Records, as he revealed during his interview with HipHopDX.com. Following the release of his 2007 album, Get Off the Stage, Too $hort left Jive and found a distributor for his Up All Nite label. While the label changed, Too $hort’s raunchy style has remained the same.
During the promotional run for his No Trespassing album, Too $hort made his media rounds. One video released for Valentine’s Day got him into trouble with the public. In the video, Too $hort gave advice to young men on how to “be a pimp.” After the negative reaction from the public, Too $hort went to his Twitter to offer an apology to those who were offended. However, the Too $hort known for these lyrics did not exist until the 1990s.
In actuality, Too $hort began his career as a socially-conscious rapper, with such songs as “The Ghetto.” Too $hort also had sexually-explicit records, but his foundation was his conscious. However, by the 1990s, all Too $hort’s music contained were lyrics about sex, leaving some fans to wonder what happened. Speaking to HipHopDX.com, Too $hort revealed Jive Records forced him to focus on the sexual lyrics and leave social issues alone. He also revealed he feels as if major labels were trying to rid socially-conscious rap.
