Too $hort for the better part of 35 years is a staple for Bay Area Hip Hop and a shining example of serving your fan base. Numerous rappers across various eras of Hip Hop have credited $hort as an inspiration and he’s shown the love right back. But in line with the adage of HIp Hop being a “young man’s game,” there’s also a firm practice among older rappers and fans of immediately being turned off by what’s new and next.
In a recent sit down with the Big Facts Podcast featuring DJ Scream, Big Bank and Baby Jade, the Oakland legend expounded upon why he feels the older generation looks down upon those coming up.
“If you a OG and you lookin’ at these youngsters slide in the game, they got hit records … you see it and you goin’, ‘That shit is trash.’ How is it trash if this n-gga makin’ all this money, and all these people like what he’s doin’? How is that trash?” Short asked. “Cause when I was a young n-gga, they said it was trash and I knew what the value of it was and I knew people loved it.”
He added, “You just hatin’ on em cause it’s different than what you did. You hatin’ cause you saying he ain’t spitting bars. I talk to the young homies and they say he spittin’ bars!”
$hort used Young Thug as an example of the generational divide, highlighting how at first, he couldn’t hear Thug’s lyrics but immediately understood if the new generation could, then it had value.
Too $hort Says Turning Down Kanye West Beats Is One Of The 'Dumbest' Things He's Ever Done
Although his foresight for Hip Hop (and one certain word) has paid dividends for his career, there is one thing $hort says he regrets not doing. In a conversation with VladTV in April, he explained how Scarface was attempting to pitch him production from an on the rise Kanye West in 2002. $hort brushed it off, saying he didn’t need anyone new as he was working out of Atlanta.
“I’ve done some dumb shit in my life, but that’s up there at the top of the list of dumb shit,” he admitted. “Turning down young Kanye beats before the price went up … But damn, if I would’ve knew! I don’t got no damn psychic around me or a crystal ball. I didn’t know!”
Opinions are now “hating.” I guess we should all be in lockstep and say everything is great! They making money that’s a good thing but even a deaf fool can tell you the quality of hip hop has been trashed
But its ok for the young rappers to hate the OG’s ?
It’s not really hate, it’s misunderstanding. But it comes off as hate, so I agree, we have to find out different ways of being a positive influence on the younger generation. Being combative with them doesn’t help the relationships
I’m sorry Too $hort but you acting like a beaaatttcchhhhh!!!!!! Stand up for your art. C’mon, there has to be a standard otherwise hip hop will lose it’s identity completely. How would you feel it somebody came copied your flow, style, and instead of rapping about the streets or being a conceptional or lyrical MC, they just started rapping about going fishing, cheating on their girlfriends and wives, buying Tommy Hilfiger clothes, riding around in Benz’s, Beamers,and Bentleys, talking about their corporate life and struggles. You’d be pissed off then that someone disrespected your craft then… the way this new generation of rappers actually attempt to call music is an insult. They can’t even write, structure, or spit a proper 16 bars or even stay on beat. They don’t even bother to understand how the music industry works and don’t care to learn because all they can see is the money that the executives are throwing at them to continue to act like an idiot as long as their product is getting attention. They don’t tell you that when you don’t sell, that advance you got…you gotta pay that shit back. They can’t think outside of popping pills and sipping lean. They’re a mess. If not for touring and live show, they never make a dime. If they took more time,effort to understand the rules of the game and learn how their predecessors did it before them, they could ensure that they’d learn from their mistakes and also show them respect which in turn would also broaden their audience.
These new rappers don’t spit bars, they spit loogies.
cant no one younger than me spit game to me, ive been their age they never been mine, its just a handful from 2000+ but other than that i graduated streets n clubs so its not gonna move me, short still gotta do shows n clubs cuz nothing else gonna generate a similar bag the young cats gonna break him off for features, he not really bumping it, he actually a musician and no how to P the game
You can’t just run on stage at the Bolshoi and do whatever freestyle pop locking breakdancing routine and call it ballet. It’s in their interest to destroy our culture with garbage. I’m not hating on anyone with talent no matter the age
Those trash new “Rappers” don’t even know who you are or give AF about you so why you defending these clowns?
They offer NOTHING to Hip-Hop!!!
Diarrhea
It’s just a different era. Eventually you reach a point in life where being brand new all the time with music just stops making sense. Everybody grows up to a certain wave of rappers some 80s 90s or whatever but if you don’t like what’s out now just hit the next song button all that hate doesn’t go far and there’s no $ made off it so just accept it and move on
Well said, it’s not like we live in a country that forces us to listen to anyone.
I get it — he is too short that he can’t see the point.
Are ya’ll not tired of this conversation yet? Lmao…like what do we want, a kumbaya moment?
Coming from a old ass rapper that never had bars in his life.young rappers suck cuz they all sound the same and rap at fucking 5th grade reading levels that’s why ppl who grew up on real mcs like nas biggie Jay-Z Eminem wutang can’t stand young rappers.2 short just like young rappers cuz he never had bars just said bitch all the time so ofcourse he would say this
No surprise here. Too Short is garbage himself. He and his generic corny party beats helped pave the way for the current generation of no talent mumble crap.
The problem is the blatent disrespect that the new generation has for the old generation hence defilling all that they ever worked for. That is the issue…not so much what their music sounds like. OK so a young dude say ”F— Too Short” and that’s OK? C’mon Short Dog, you know you would get at them like you did Pooh Man.
Too short music is trash 2!
Yep, Too Short is trash! Go back and listen to his lyrics off those garbage albums…or would you say for one record? Nobody listen to Too Short! Dude is still ugly after he fixed his teeth! Damn!!!!