The Breakfast Club - INTERVIEW: Too Short Talks 'His Favorite Word, 'Sir Too $hort Vol. 2,' Tupac, Biggie, Hov, Pimping, Finding Love + More

Episode Date: July 23, 2026

Today on The Breakfast Club, Too Short Talks 'His Favorite Word, 'Sir Too $hort Vol. 2,' Tupac, Biggie, Hov, Pimping, Finding Love. Listen For More!YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@BreakfastClubPower1051FMSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed human. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave, Netflix, and Disney Plus from $94 a month. Price guaranteed for two years on internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything. On Raiders of the Lost podcast, we explore cinema like no one else, including huge interviews with stars like Ryan Gosling on Project Hail Mary.

It was like The Jawsling. shark. Didn't always work, came with its own problems. That's what made it great. The cast of obsession. On set, there was so much magic happening with each scene we were putting together. Deep dives into classics like 2001 of Space Odyssey or Fight Club, plus weekly episodes on all industry news. Listen to Raiders of the Lost podcast on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And for more, follow at Raiders of the Lost podcast and at TikTok network on TikTok. My first guest is Karas Hilton,

Shakira, Luke and Yerrin. Have surprises? Many surprises. Welcome to the Sweet 305 podcast where the group check comes to life. What on? You're the only person I know that loves a yellow starburst. It's lemonade. This is Sweet 305.

Here, oversharing is encouraged. Listen to Sweet 305 with Lele Pons on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, Portlandia fans. Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen here. The Dream of the 90s is alive in podcast form. We're launching Podlandia, AEO rewatch,

our brand new podcast where we revisit every episode of Portlandia together, breaking down sketches, going deep on our iconic characters, and pulling back the curtain on how it all got made. And we'll also be joined by the people who helped bring it all to life. Guest stars, collaborators, and friends, including director Jonathan Chrysler,

the mayor himself, Kyle McLaughlin, legendary musician Amy Mann and many more. Kyle is going for it here. You fully improvised, not just words, but a song. Well, I thought you were all going to write a song. I remember you thinking that. Listen to Podlandia. A.A.O. Rewatch on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

Every day I wake up. You're all finished or y'all's done? Yeah, it's the world most dangerous morning show to Breakfast Club. DJ Envy, J. Envy's not in, but Lauren LaRosa is, and we got to special guest man, the legend, the icon. Mr. Too Short is here. What's up, man? How you doing, my brother?

What's up, all y'all? How y'all doing? Hey. All right. I think you're the only man who can make women be happy about getting caught a bitch. Period. I wouldn't say happy. I can't tell.

It's celebrated. It's accepted because of the adjectives you use before you say it. Oh. You know. What's my favorite word? No, it's just like beautiful bitch, bad bitch. Got you. Got you.

Got you. Got you. You know, the best. Beautiful bitch is hilarious. Hey, you smile, see? Oh, my God. That is true, though. It is about the adjective you use before word.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. The tone, the delivery, the face you make it when you say it. The beat beat. Call your bitch with a smile in my face. You're like, look at this. He loved me. He loved me. When did you realize that was your favorite word?

Well, you know, man, I am a child who grew up watching Blacksboy Chasing Movies, and, you know, Just in particular, like Dolomite's character. It's just, you know, you watch these movies, man, it's very impressionable. And it's like, bitch roll my joint. Yeah. It's just the shit is like, I'm like, that's how I want to be.

You know, the old Superfly, the Mac. You know, they shot the Mac. They filmed the Mac in Oakland. And people in Oakland, after they shot the Mac, it's like, we're all the Mac. I'm the Mac. So, you know, it's just a thing, man. So to this day, you tell the bitch, you say,

bitch, do something. I actually don't talk like that when I'm not working. Got you. Definitely my career persona, too short as my character. Got you. I'm very polite when I'm not working. But, I mean, it works though. I know.

I think that it was all the shock value. I was a young rapper in the early 80s. I had a song. It was called freaky tales. Not the freaky tales, we all know. No, but it's not that one. This is when I was like 11th grade. And I had the song called Freaky Tales and it said,

in the song it said, I had 16 holes sucking 10 toes. And I would play this. back, this before I had any mixtape anything, I'll play it back and people would laugh every time I got to that line. So I was like, oh shit, I'm about to, can I say oh shit? Yeah. Oh shit. I'm about to

write a song about these 16 hoes. So I wrote a song called 16 hose, which is one of my, it's one of my reoccurring things that I do. 16 hoes, it just goes with the thing. And when I started telling the story about how I met each hoe, that turned into the longer version of freak details.

And I would just notice early on if I said certain things, people would either laugh or they would be like, oh, you know what I'm saying? And that just started the whole element of the shock value in my songwriting. And I just kept going with it. So me and my rap partner at the time,

Freddie B, we incorporated that Dolein'My bitch, that screen, and we put our low twang on it and it was a part of our shows. As youngsters, we would be rocking the crowd. Like, everybody say, bitch, and then people just loved it. So it just kept going, man. Wow.

And I had to say, what's my favorite word? Because people started using it. And it started being like, Def Row was real popular with it. I mean, the likes of comedians, everybody started saying it. I was in a room one day, not part of a conversation

where they were talking about the origin of it. And it was like, somebody said, Too Short came up with that. And they was like, hell, no, you didn't have Snoop Dog. Shit, blah, blah, blah. They was arguing about it. And I'm like, damn, I got to go take my word back. You had to let people know.

I'm the reason they all call you this. So I named the album, what's my favorite word? Yeah, exactly. I named the album, what's my favorite word? And it wasn't one of the better albums, so I didn't get credit for that. And I was like, damn, I got to get this out there. And then when I did the blow the whistle, I took ownership of it and then like, oh, that's his thing. So I'm comfortable now.

You know, Carisha Reid did Freaky Tell. I've heard it clear it. Yep, came across my desk. I'm like, yes, clear that, please. By the way. It hasn't come out yet, Dore. I heard it, but I don't think it's come out. A lot of people heard it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah. People know about it. Yeah, so that's a big part of my career right now, too, is clearing samples. A lot of, a lot of sample clearance is coming across the desk with it. You've been rapping since the 80s. That's a long time. And you've got a new album. What is your secret to staying relevant?

Loving it. I'm a music guy. Like, a lot of artists are not music guys. You know, they're not music people. They write, they deliver, they do vote. but they don't really do music. And me, my love for music, I was a little kid in the band, seventh grade, eighth grade, ninth grade.

I'm in the band, and I'm playing instruments and stuff. And I just, I really, when I got into hip-hop, a part of my fascination with it is the drum machines and the turntables and just making the making of the music. And I'm one of those artists who, everything, from the start to finish, I'm hands-on. If I'm not doing it, I'm in the room when they do it, I'm approving it.

I'm a part of all of it. So I love doing it. And it's not even like you can tell me, hey man, we got to catch a hit short. I'm like, I don't get a hit. I'm just going to make a song. So I love making music. You've never chased trends, though,

but it feels like the culture always circles back to Too Short or the Bay in some way, shape, before. Yeah, I don't do what they do. So whatever they do, I'm like, don't do that. I ain't got a tattoo. I ain't got a piercing. I ain't got five baby mamas. I don't got none of the what they do.

And I really try hard to not do that. I come from that era in hip hop where if he did that walk or that step or that look and you do it next, you're out of there if you copy somebody. So I still subscribe to that and just kind of try to be original, man. I don't want to be wearing my 1990s cut jeans in 2026. But then I'm also not going, I'm not going to go all the way, what you call them, the old Y-Ns? I'm not going all the way Yeah, you don't want to be a old Y-N. But I'm

an old Y-N, but I'm just not going all the way. What's all the way? I just had this conversation with Fabulous and Jim Jones. I said, we need all get together and make a song called Old Young Niggas. And let's take this shit head on and tackle it. But at the same time, you know, I just, you're not

going to catch me with like a bunch of accessories and just, you know, I love my old young nicks, but I'm just, I just, I'm, I'm, draw the line at a certain space where I'm like, I definitely want to be, I want to be called unc, you know? You know, so I'm not, I'm not running from it.

What up OG? And they be like, nigga, I ain't OG, nigga, I'm still young, nigga, I'm OG. Yeah. Triple OG actually. Is authenticity the greatest marketing strategy? I think for me, the greatest has always been accessibility and just actually like not fearing the approach

of hey man i love you man like getting in my space and saying what's up in a respectful way is a good thing to me and i'm not avoiding contact with the actual fan base ignorant people disrespectful people yeah we're gonna keep you at arms length and deal with it but if you're coming with it with love it's like man i i think that that has been the best marketing for me example i'm on tour in the early days even to this day i'm on tour like my first tour i went on was straight out of Compton. Wow. I'm going on

the act right before NWA on most of the shows. And as soon as I get out of stage, I'm grab my guy. I'm like, bro, let's hit the crowd. And let's just go out.

We in, I don't care what city we're in. I'm like, let's literally go out into the crowd and walk around and say what's up to people. And it's just, that has always been the number one thing for me. We'll get to whatever town it is. Hey, man, where's the mall on the black side of town? where the barbershop

where all the gangsters get cut at and we just go to them and they're like hey man where your security at I'm like nigga you're my security you're in this one let's get it's kick

what's up with y'all smoke some of that California weed with them and we all homies and that's always been my thing and in the midst of that yes you better be yourself you can't be

you can't go around a bunch of real niggas and be a fake niggins so it's just it's a winning formula with TK Kirkland on his great out of the shoulders you TK Kirkland he was done the guy who told jokes

before the show and in between X. And I've known TK. Every since 1989, I haven't seen him tell a lot of lies. But a lot of people think T.K. Be lie, man. The motherfucker is just there. It's a picture

like me, Dr. Dre, E., back in the day. Like, who did they go to end? TK. In the picture. He was there. He tried to tell Charlie me. He was, No, I was, listen. T.K. B.O.G. I believe T. but sometimes just don't be sounding all the way, right? He is that guy, man.

He was riding somewhere. You saw him today? Yeah, he's right. I swear. I thought I was joking. No, he peaked in the room. But we were in the break so I couldn't say what's up.

He literally peaked his head and he's up. I'm about to call him and see where he at. But it makes sense, though. I feel like when I even looking at, like, Friday and like all the movies, like hip hop and comedy, like, it went so synonymous. So, like, when he's telling those stories, I can, I see it.

But I don't know why it's hard for. for the good believe. Ricky Smiley just told me a story, just reminded me of the time. I was on tour with Ice Cube. This is a year after straight out of Compton, Ice Cube, quit the group. He put out the America's Most Wanted solo album, and we went on tour together. And Ricky Smiley said, we got to Birmingham. They sent him out there to tell some jokes, and he came out there in the suit and tie. Oh, man. And got booed.

Before we even started telling jokes. He said, you know, I don't know, he just said he got booed in the worst booed way, the worst way, the worst way. Get your old bitch ass up. Like, he said, they went crazy on him. But if he had a do-over, he, you know, dressed a little different. Instead of telling jokes, he probably would just, like, work the crowd or something. I was like, what would you do if you had a do-over, bro? Wouldn't do that.

But, yeah, I'm the comedians that's always been with us. What year was that, you said? When that? 1990. Your lawyer, reality is. Yeah. Do you ever sit back and think about? like your longevity like I know you're celebrating in 20 years right a blow the whistle

blow the whistle was good out for 20 years yeah and it's still so relevant was the song of the super bowl at one point like your longevity is insane I don't know you know it's what I was just telling them about just touching the people and being there but I also think it's the activity because when you get a certain age like say you're an NBA player you get a certain age you kind of end up down at the end of the bench never get put in the game but you're giving all the players you know knowledge and stuff and pointers and stuff and you kind of you kind of a player coach kind of vibe. I stayed in the game.

I just stayed in the game. I stayed on the court. I stayed active. I never stopped doing shows. I notice if you're a rapper and you do the stay home thing for about five, ten years and you get back on stage,

we can see the rush. There you go. He heard you. He heard you too sure. Hey, man, I'm in here vouching for you. Right. He's sure. He said, man.

He was going to stay out of the conference, too. Was T.K. there's right. That's right. That's right. He said, Hey, that's only to be much of a lie at T.

You know, he was going to see his kids. The nigga was there. He's known him to see his kids. Don't talk about we was kids.

Hey, King. Just we was kids. We was youngsters, man. Yep. Well, it's only one we never got to the bottom of.

Which one? Whose apartment was it? Yours or L.A. Drake? It was L.A. But you don't talk about that on the air. He didn't hear

to defend himself. I don't want to hurt. That was the funniest shit in my life. Somebody was somebody was taking a vacation. Yes. If you know what I mean. Yes. And then I think Drake was on vacation.

Drake was on vacation. And he came home and T.K. had his feet up on the table. Yeah, but I was staying there. Well, just a couple of days because we was doing the whatever award show down. I don't know the truth story. That's why he's not here so we can't defend it. Yeah, rest of a piece of L-A-Dra. People don't know he's a comedian, this guy.

He's like one of those sneaky comedians. Yeah, that's all. Hey, what's up, bro? You know what's so funny, T-Shaw said. T-K. TK is just always there. I don't even know why you here this morning. What you got it right now?

I was doing Angela. Okay, okay, okay. Okay, okay. Yeah, I was doing Angela. Okay. Yeah, so. You was doing Angela's show. Yeah, yeah, he's doing Angela show.

Yeah, yeah. See how he did it. You did with this for years with him. But he wrote a song with my stuff with on this album. So he always show love him and his people always coming. I'm in Oakland. They always come to my show. they took me into the bar,

and that's when I realized that black people had got on meth up in the Bay Area, and that had confused me because I used to live up there, and that used to always be like a white man's drug. And I saw all those people outside, and y'all was explaining to me like, TK on meth. I was like, when did that happen? It's a drug world.

We don't talk about that. Yeah, yeah, it's crazy. Yeah, that's how far we go back. Right. Yeah. Well, I just want you to say with something, Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, multiple cities, Atlanta, LA, Bay Area.

Love your family. I'll be up there in September. Where are you really from East Coast? Yeah, we're just from across the bridge. Jersey. You're a Jersey. You're a Jersey guy. Love you, too, D.K.

You got to press the button. Yes, sir. Love you guys. Yes, sir. That is hilarious, man. See? Yeah. Craved you.

He was just here. Now, we had, oh, I thought that was Taylor right there. We had a producer. Her producer name is Taylor. She was walking right here. She was so mad at you. And you named your album Too Short

Drinking Smoke Yeah Sir Too Short Volume 2 2 Drinking Smoke She feels like you're too old To still be drinking and smoking And she said She don't believe you care about your health

Actually I'm a very health conscious And I do everything in moderation All these years And I wasn't like a young, wild Over the top Hangover having A party type person Man I stay focused

I stay on point So over the years of moderation Has afforded me the ability to continue And I still smoke weed, man I got... But I never was eight blunts a day Never smoked blunts, never smoked blunts, never smoked backwards or fillies and none of that stuff

I always smoke little-ass joints Of a modest size, no, not even big-ass joints And I take a joint Like right now I probably have a half a joint on me And it's half a joint I've been smoking his joint for like three tries now. Take it out. Three, four puffs, catch a buzz, put it out.

I do it like that. I go out and drink. You do it the OG way. Yeah, I go out and drink. I'm not drinking eight shots of tequila. Give me a drink. Maybe get a little shout on the side, catch a buzz. I'm cool.

So to picture drinking and smoking as hell of high and hell of drunk is not the reality that I'm living. And I've made a statement. I'm like, I didn't even write the hook. My man, decades from Bakersfield wrote the hook, but I endorse it, and everybody want to drink and smoke. I'm at the club, there's a bottle on the table, and some weed going around.

Everybody's like, let me pour me one and let me fucking hit the weed. So everybody wants to drink and smoke. And I do think that it's not for everybody. And I do understand how it could look wrong on an OG. because I heard some OGs on the radio the other day saying, and I ain't had a drink in seven years because of age.

And I'm like, but I know a lot of old drunk motherfuckers. So it's like, it ain't good. That ain't all the way across the board. Yeah. And also they might be recovering alcoholics or something. They might have went too hard. They went too hard, exactly. So I've always been in moderation.

You don't have the receipts on me being the drunk uncle to drunk somewhere. I know the truth, but I'm not going to, reveal at any family reunion that your uncle is really your daddy. I'm not that dude. Damn. God. I'm not that uncle.

I'm the cool uncle. One of the songs on the album features Snoop Dog Ice Cube and E-40. It's called Good Coochie. Yeah, you just announced to them. I didn't tell them I was using that song. Oh, I know. She was all the group. God damn.

I was like, yesterday I said somebody should probably call Cube and tell him. But I think I could get Snoop and 40 on board, But Cube is like he's not, he does what he wants to do. And if he doesn't approve of it, I'm like, if he, if Cube don't say it's cool, we got to take that one off the album. But he recorded it. It's a Mount Westmore song. Gotcha.

And Mount Westmore has a plethora of songs that we haven't given to the world. And they're sitting there. A lot of them are really great songs. And I'm in a group. I'm in a group with four rich, three rich guys. They're all married, too. They're all rich. And they don't really care, man.

They like, they got so, it's like, bro, let's go get this for the hustling like, bro, I'm hustled out, I got all the money in the world. And I'm like, I'm like, let's just give the people the music. And it's just, you got four bosses and four opinions and four geniuses and four different ways of thinking of thinking of how to get this out there. So I just picked the song out to litter and just was like, I'm going to just ease this on my album. The one that fits two shorts persona. I brought that song to the table.

so I should be able to steal it from the unused pool of songs. And like you said, there are three married guys rapping about Good Coochie. Even if we did the album number two, that song probably wouldn't even make it anyway. Subject-wise. Well, I was going to ask you what makes good Coochie. You know, that's a question that women like to ask. I think that on both sides of that spectrum, I don't think that everybody is for everybody. So let's just say I come out of a relationship

And I'm like, ooh boy, she had the best And you're like, he talked about it so much I'm going there and try it. You're like, it's all mediocre. Like, it don't work for you. And you tell your home girl, he put that thing on me, then she's double back and tried to sneak and get it

And she's like, it wasn't all that. But some people's greatness together is just that those two. It's that chemistry. It's not everything. So you got a song called Good Cucci. I think there's an essence of Good Coochie. It's a walk, the way you kind of sit still,

and the way you kind of carry yourself. You're like, well, I bet that shit is good. You just think it. And then there's the actual reality of Good Coochie, which it's not something you can explain. It's something you've got to feel. You've got to be like, that shit was good. And you just got to really like wake you up in the middle of night,

think about it. Or early in the morning you wake up and you're like, you live in that moment again in your imagination. It's just, that's great. Or you bumping to somebody you ain't seen in a while. You're like, ooh, I forgot about that one, man. Like that reminiscent. So, yeah.

That happened to be recently. Really? Well, you ran into somebody you start reminiscing? Yeah, we just started, remember that time? Remember that time? Oh, y'all were doing it together? Yeah. We just said, remember that time?

The story started coming back. Yeah. Where were y'all? We aren't running to each other? Ooh, you're trying to pinpoint the details. She's a journalist. I can't say. Was it a birthday party you recently?

If I gave you three facts about this, you and other people could put it together, and it's not to be put together. Oh, man. We're older now, and we don't really want, you know, it happened. You never found one that you wanted to settle down with for the rest of your life, though? Clearly not,

because you never got married, right? You answered the question and asked it. Bro, I had at least five that I felt. feel stupid. Like, bro, you should have kept one of them because you know how later in life you're like, damn, she did good, she still looked good. I'm like, I lost

some good ones, man. I walked away from some good ones and I do have regrets about that, but I didn't have the vision to see in the future. Because for them five, I could tell you 25, that was, I'm so glad I didn't stay there with my life. So. You think it's your

persona? Like the persona that you have wouldn't allow you to? Nope. I think it's my, um, some of those women would be like you're an ego maniac selfish person I think it's the exact opposite of being selfish I'm like you know I knew for a fact that I was going to continue doing what I was doing the way I was doing it I was going to continue jumping on planes going to shows and and you know hit the after after hours after party the tip through the strip club I just think I wasn't going to be I wasn't willing to be at that time in my life a good man to my woman. And I'm like, why should I do this to you when I know what's going to happen?

So I don't think I would have been a good young father. I wouldn't have been very present. I don't think I would have been a good husband at a 20, 30, 40 year old. Too short. I wasn't going to do it. So I would get really close to that part

where it just feels so good. And it's like, I'm like, walking to the bathroom. So I'm like, girl, you know, I love you. I'm like, oh shit. I said it. fuck out of here. And I take off running, man.

So I ran from love not because of anything that would need me to need to go to therapy, which is what they say when they break up with you. I hope you get some help. You're like really, you know, the one out of the door. Well, I wish you the best. I hope you get some help and get some therapy. They might be right, though.

You ran away from love. You still running away from love right now? Like currently? Like. I don't know. I don't know if I'm still running. but I'm still a rock star. So you're still choosing to not be in like

a permanent long-term situation right now? I know I'm like, I got to find somebody to push this wheelchair around pretty soon. Hey, yo, God. No, it's a real thing because you just turned 60, right? No. I just turned 60. Yeah, he had a huge birthday party.

I'm in the 60 club. Congratulations. And, um, you look amazing for 60. Thank you, thank you. I could grow a gray beard and look like a pop of Smurf. I could do it, but I'm just, it's nice. It's my thing.

I you know you know something told me it's going to end up being therapy up here because you guys talk about mental health and stuff and all the time I was I was happy with my youthful playboy lifestyle but right now it is like you know the clock is ticking

and it's like I no longer want to have like five girlfriends in rotation I don't wish to go out tonight and be like damn let me see who I can fuck All that's out the window, but I haven't yet found, like, who? Because that's a, that's a big deal. Like, who's going to grow old with me? That's a.

And you're too short. You're already old too short. Well, he's older. Who's going to grow old with me. I don't say who's. You're proving all the women records. Women always say, yeah, of course you want to hang it up, you know, once you get to a certain days.

Wait, so you get all old and shit. You can't get it up like that. I think that some of us should do that because we go through these miserable ass in and out of relationships and divorces and you're on your third wife and you still ain't got it right. I'm still looking for my first. So it's like a lot of people should live a life like I live, do your 20s, 30s, 40s, you get to your 50s or 60s, find a companion. You know what I mean? Because it is fun. But if you find it early too is good.

Other people could have a partner they walk through life with and it works. and it works and y'all ride and die to the wheels fallout. That's for you. I was too young and dumb to realize when that person came, who I should have kept. I just kept on pushing. But now, you know, you go to the retirement home. You find you somebody to ride with you.

They got the little blue pill, y'all ride it out. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? Who the last time you told somebody that you love them? Today. I mean, somebody that's like a potential. I've been in love in the 2020s, yes. Okay.

You've been in love in 2020. I've been in real love. I've been through some real situations where we really have to figure it out, work it out, get through it. I've been there. I live a life outside of the stage in the studio. There was a life.

There's real emotions. There's ups and downs. There's, you know, tears and fears and all this stuff. It's real. I just, for those first 50 years, I was stuck in this in between the reality of Todd Shaw

and the reality of Too Short kept intersecting and crossing. And I kept running from it. When it get too real, I run from it. But now I'm like, I'm facing it. Now I'm like, okay, this is a different chapter and you can't have that mentality anymore. It doesn't really work.

It doesn't work at all. There's nothing about what I used to do that fits now. You don't want to do that anymore. Like what's something 25-year-old too short believed about women, that 60-year-old too short would challenge? What did I believe about women? I gotta think this through, man, because this is a... It's very deep, huh?

Yeah, it's like I wasn't there, man. I was literally hanging with a bunch of pimps and players and street cats. And I'm watching my homeboys in high school make babies. And coming out of high school, we're in our young 20s, he got three baby mamas. And, you know, he in court with his baby mama. Every other Tuesday, they're going with the... with the garnishings, garnish, whatever. And all the little, you know, the baby daddy,

when he come back from court, mad as hell with the little paperwork. It's about five terms that they'll be arguing about. And I just like, bro, I don't want that life. On top of these, you know, these kind of situations with certain people, you got a job, you're in the street, whatever. But I'm a rapper. When they hit their rapper bank account, they hit it hard. ballplayers and they hit it hard.

A ball player with eight baby mommas is fly until he ain't playing no more. And then it's like you still got to pay like you got a contract after you ain't got a contract no more. And I just didn't know if that would affect my career. And I'm telling you, I have so many times just stepped away from the situation.

So I wasn't really blaming it on the female. There's nothing that the female was doing wrong and inch of my situations that I that I didn't keep I was the guy that fucked up I was the one that messed up in the relationship I never blamed none of them and like I left you I would have an excuse right I was like you throw the towels on the floor I don't like that I just make up anything so watching other people other people growing up like I was scared straight yeah love was very toxic from what and I still feel to this day that that is for some people and it's not for other

if you just look at the divorce rate is look at that and I'm like I'm half right like it ain't working for But it might not That's not just story Yeah you ain't been married to beat divorce Hey

I can tell you this much On behalf of what you're trying to get at Now that I'm a parent And A lot of times I'll say I'm not I'm not fucking child tonight Because I'm about to kick with my kid I used to laugh at niggas that said that

I thought that was the most hilarious thing in the world. Like, nigger, do you know what's going down tonight? Like, you're going to stay in the house with some little-ass kids. But I didn't know. I did not know that that unconditional love was better than the club. Yes. I didn't know that. And, you know, also, if you've been in a long-term relationship

and you know the rewards of that, I don't know that. Right. So you can't even sit here right now and convince me how amazing that is because I've never done it. Yeah. And I think that on my side of the fence, you was on the porch at the house with that little bitty dog

and everybody was like Daddy, Dad, don't know this? You was out there looking at me like Dang, I wish I could hang out with your dog. Where did this trauma begin, Todd? Where did this trauma? Fourth grade. Not, Todd.

Good way. No, because it does sound like you trying to escape from something. You waited until 53 to have your baby girl, right? Probably a couple of like you know, boyfriend, girlfriend, aspirations and it didn't go my way. And then one day, a couple of those, I'm like, man, I ain't doing this no more.

And I really, like, I read a lot of books as a youngster. I was in those books, Man Child in the Promised Land, and all the Donald Goines books and the movies. And then, and definitely the story of my life, pimp, the story of my life was very influential, which he later denounced in another book called, what was his last book? The neck and soul, Iceberg, Slim.

But you know what's so ill about Pimp, and when people go back and read it, he was traumatized by his mother. Everything. I mean, he was traumatized, period. Yeah, yeah. And in the last book, he goes, this Pimp shit fucked my life.

That's right. I would have a way better life. I was intelligent. I could have all kinds of things in life. I pimp, and it left me in a penitentiary had my life and on drugs, have my life. He denounced it. That's right.

But at the same time, I took a part of that, and I was so fascinated at every movie, not by what the Pimp did in his lifestyle, but just the way he pulled up, the way he looked and the way he commanded treat me like this. One of my favorite movies is Willie Dynamite. When the movie comes on,

a lot of these movies are about the rise and the fall or whatever. But when Willie Dynamite comes on, he has seven hosts of all different ethnicities and he is on top of the world. And his level of pimp mentality is way different than most of these pimp characters in a movie. And I'm like,

That's, they had a little pimp council. You talk about separating the territories and shit. You get that side of town. Willie's like, man, my bitch is the savages. Can't put my bitch on one corner? And I'm just like, I'm a little nigga fascinated by this. I'm like, I want to be that guy. I want to be the guy who's sitting around his living room and seven girlfriends.

They are my girlfriends. And I manifested that reality. I've lived that life. I've been on a date. I'm like, we're going out tonight. I've got like seven girls with me. I'm really in a relationship with all seven. They all know about it.

I'm not a pimp. They're not my hose, but we are in. We are in syncing with, like, I'm going to go sleep in this bed. You sleep with her. I did that shit, but that's just a headache. Yeah.

It is a headache. Because I'm just saying, like, how much can one dick do? You open a business project with better pimp, though, right? But it's a, it is a image that I'm a persona I'm selling. I'm not really being it.

in real life. Any more. No, back in the day, you were. Even back then, I was just, I was just something. I wanted, I wanted y'all to see me walk in the club with, I say, walk single file and follow me in. And I just want you all to see the look. I was, I was marketing.

Not a lawyer leader. So, okay, at what point does the image stop in? And let's talk about this. So you said this first song is better pimped. But are we, do we have to really be age appropriate in hip hop? Can we not continue to be like a movie and keep selling our character? And it is what it is. Like, do the Coke rappers have to stop saying,

I sell Coke just because they stopped doing it 20 years ago? Can you still weave together a dope-ass Coke rap and be like, I whip it, I do it, and I'm like, it's music. You can, but I think the difference is, by the way, I enjoy all of it, right? But I enjoy it because I'm 48 years old, and I understand that it's just entertainment. Yeah, can hip-hop have characters? Do we have to, like, well, I'm 40 now, this to thrill me. I'm never going to give you.

I'm never going to give you Todd Shaw in a rap song. It doesn't exist. Todd Shaw, I'm not a rapper. The problem with hip hop is hip hop always claims to be real. And they actually punish you if you're not real, if you're not living your rap. If we knew it was just entertainment, y'all could do this shit until y'all 70 of your won. From day one, you can go check my track record. I've always rapped in a song and said, I'm a pimp.

And every interview I did, I said, I don't pimp hos. I'm a rapper. Like, I've never. You've never tried to play both sides of it. And I think that that's a dangerous thing to be a gangster in a song and then walk around every city of America. I'm really a gangster. I got it on me.

That's a problem waiting to happen. I agree with you. But the music is more influential because the music got that beat. It slaps. The interview ain't slapping. All right, let's turn the pancake over. And now I'm a pro activist, everything, uplifting rapper. But then that night, I'm just buying a pussy from holes and hanging in the shadiest place.

What's the difference? I don't think you would do it that way, though. I wouldn't do it that way. Just another example. The difference in the whole hypocrite thing of a rapper's career. The art is still more influential. And you know who proved that? Bill Coddy.

What about movies? Bill Coddy. What about movies? What do you mean? Actors play a role like you're a typecast as a role, and you play that role over and over again. But that's nothing like your life. You get to live your life without saying,

I'm the guy who kicks ass in every movie or the guy who's a gangster in every movie. But the art still has more impact. Like, I think about all them gangster movies. We know that out. Why don't they get a pass and we don't? Because it's hip-hop? Because hip hop claims to be real. Hip hop don't say it's fiction.

If hip hop was to say this is fiction, this is just entertainment, it would be a whole different conversation. You said, if y'all didn't know that back in the day. Right. Y'all didn't believe it. Right. I don't know. But think about when you talk about pimping the book, right?

You said when the second book came out, you was like, whoa, hold on, wait. Like, because there were certain things you bought into in that first book that inspired a lot of who your character is. That's what's happening when people are watching or listening to you. Young and impressionable. And I get what you saying a bit because I do think that there should be some like art creativity that hip hop artists should be able to have. But then I think that's when a responsibility conversation comes in.

It's like, do you get the pick and choose when your platform grows to where yours has to say, no, I don't want responsibility? It ain't responsibility. It's entertainment. And you got to take it that way. If you fucking listen to this rap music and you sit there and want to go crash out as a gangster rapper trying to be like so-and-so, I mean, that's just like, that's just naive to the umpteenth power. The female rap. How much influence is this having on our young girls right now?

There's all kind of rap out there, man. Hip-hop, the fucking lack of sub-genres is a problem. The fact that we can't categorize this music properly and send it to the right places and you as a parent filter what you think your child should listen to, that's a problem that we just call it all, it's all hip-hop. It's all rap. It's not rap. We got dance music.

We got emotional music. We got a stripper rap. We got sisters that's holding it down, you know, uplifting the females and empowering, you know, positive messages and all this stuff. It's all out there. But we just throw it in a big pile called hip hop and go, you expect us to be a monolith. Like, man, I'm not ever going to wake up at 444 in the morning and evaluate my life in a rap. song. Not going to do it. That's not where I'm at or where I'm even going. I could give you so much Todd isms. If I wrote a Todd album, y'all would be like, this is so prolific. But I'm not

that. But you said 444. That was angel. I was referring to Jay Z. Yeah. I thought you did that on purpose. I immediately thought of Jay Z. I just feel like I know people can learn a lot. I'm saying we are telling our older rappers now, hey, man, when you get to a certain names pass down the knowledge big homie like you know yeah and we do that on foot we do that in person we do that in certain things that we say in the song my songs have always been educational but it's not it's not my space to where I'm going to I'm making real life moves on trying to save the youth not not writing a song that's going to preach to you I want to I want to say I want to be too short of character I'm not going to write it if I do

the things that I'm supposed to do as a mature man I'm not going to do it in the name of too short on a song. I'm going to do it as Todd. Get Bell Pure Fiber Internet with Crave, Netflix, and Disney Plus. From $94 a month, price guaranteed for two years on Internet with a two-year term and auto pay credit. Visit bell.ca for details and to check availability. Bell, connection is everything.

This is Chelsea Handler from Dear Chelsea. Every week, the news gets worse. The world gets crazier, and Yamanika is here to tell whoever's responsible, you're the problem. If you come over here to play games, I'm a check you. Okay? If you do some in the news that don't sound good, I'm going to play you. Join Yomeneka Saunders as she breaks down the week's most problematic stories on her new podcast.

You're the problem with Yamanika. Do you know I just found out who Sidney Sweeney was? New episodes weekly every Wednesday is part of my new network, the Dear Chelsea Network. If he got a bunch of women, then I should have a bunch of men. Do better or do less, so I don't have to do so much. So join Yamanika each episode as she answers one question. Who's the problem? I'm Yamanika, and I'm out.

Listen to you're the problem with Yamanika on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Nick Terturo. You probably know me from NYPD Blue, the longest yard, or Spike Least Black Landsman. But I'm also from Queens, which means I know pizza. And on my new podcast, delivering happiness with Nick Totoro, I deliver pizza from Prince Street pizza to a new guest. Are you delivering pizza now?

Then we sit down for a real conversation. I've shared a slice with everyone from Seth Rollins. What are you doing, my belt? To Alex Rodriguez. Just to let you people know, we're talking to one of the goats here. To Bill Burr. I don't think I've ever met somebody so exactly out of their mind as I am. And now, we even have more great guests coming up,

including the great John Tutu. This gold happiness. Delivering happiness. Mariano Rivera. Oh, my God. And many, many more. Open your free High Heart Radio app. Search Delivering Happiness with Nick Tutro.

And listen now. What's up, fam? I'm sports journalist Ari Chambers. Hey, what's up, y'all? It's your girl, Sam J. And we're the host of everyone watches women's sports, a new podcast from Together and I Heart Women's Sports. Because let's be real.

Women's sports is giving us way too much to talk about these days. So Kelsey Finler, she became the first female solo roer to go from California to Hawaii. My first thought is, like, what's up with the snacks? Like, what are we eating? The highlights, the rivalries, the breakout stars, the moments that take over your entire timeline. And the conversations that start during the game

and somehow keep going all week. Every week, we're breaking down the biggest stories across women's sports. Naomi Osaka showing out, she beat. Sabalinka. Shout out to you, Naomi. You get the palm, Naomi. You get the palm for that.

Because we're not just interested in what happened. We're interested in why everyone's talking about it because everyone watches women's sports. Listen to everyone watches women's sports on the Iheart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. The person who's in the community trying to uplift the community, you know what I mean? We just had David Porter in his legendary songwriter and he said that they used to have to put their hidden messaging in the music.

The music was upbeat and you could dance to it, but they were putting messages in the music. We grew up on stuff like that too, public. and you know and right now it's a battle the the things that I'm doing and the things that we complain about the the spend that and all that that's being given to the masses it's a whole slew of gospel rappers and and rappers who like super lyrical with nothing but positive messages we won't even as a whole the music industry will not put that on the pedestal anymore it's so many public enemies out there that don't want to talk about degrading things that will bring the community down we don't even want to put that out there and then we want to get mad at the people who who talk

about uh check that ass get your money bitch like we mad why you mad at that yeah what conversation did you and puck used to have um i feel like this would have a good debate between y'all too oh two puck was multiple people though he had multiple approaches to the life and then i think on any given day he might be one of those pucks and i was the first time I saw Tupac on B, E.T, I think he was talking and might have been Donnie Simpson and he got into his Black Panther mode.

I had known him, you know, the fun guy and all this stuff. I'm like, what the hell is he talking about? And then you come to find out that's his background. And he really had an activist gene in him that cared about the community. You know what I mean? Like he really was a Black Panther.

Right. And, you know, when he wrote songs and stuff, he was really fast at writing songs, really fast. And the kind of people that we are, I don't think we ever would have just stopped and debated. Like, you know, we would be listening to music, smoking weed, talking about girls, just talking about life, this and that. We never stopped long enough to go deep.

And I heard of his, you know, powwows of certain people, but we was rock stars in 90 miles an hour wasn't no time to stop. Like, where I got, you finished the verse? All right, cool, I got two bitches waiting over here. It was out of here. Listen, you heard it, that's funny.

It's just, you heard him on some black powys though, and you were like, we were just with the holes. What the hell is he talking about? But I got it, I get it, that was his upbringing. And the first time he, so he had not displayed that, that because he was like, you know, like sort of like a sleeper sale at the time. And the first time you put him on national TV,

he goes, yeah, and you're going to treat my people right. And I'm like, whoa, but that was him. And he seized the moment with Kanye jumped on stage and said George Bush don't like black people. We didn't know that was Kanye, but we've known it every sense that he was going to speak his mind. He was going to speak up for his belief. So, you know.

That makes a lot of sense. Because what you're saying is like, okay, even if I don't put it in my music, I'm going to do it in real life. When these interviews and stuff happening, and not getting in front of these cameras, it's going to be a whole different conversation. You have never in your life heard about two shorts community work.

It's not something that is advertised. As we sit here right now, I am working with people in Oakland, California, to make our community better for the kids, for the future of the kids. Man, I'm tapped in with the school district and politicians who are trying to bring stuff, you know, businessmen.

Our thing right now is we're trying to motivate the tech companies in the Bay Area to invest. Like you guys is doing all this, getting all this money for all these years. We got a little city here, Oakland, California. That's not that big, but we need a lot of help. Y'all, y'all have been milking the community.

Give us some help. You got all that money oozing out your ears. So it's a lot of things going on that I don't think as too short to rapper, I'm going to put it in my music. But I believe in it. And you'd be surprised. You're like, I thought too sure it's just

wake up in the morning, they're, where the bitch is at? That's not me. So you clearly separate the man from the artist. That's it. Yeah, and I'm never going to grow up on a song. I'm not. You couldn't be a better pimp than me,

even if you was macking every day of the week. I know you think you got it like that, but Pete, I pimp these hos every day or the week. It's just good music. And when you're riding, you're like, I'm a pimp too. I make a female thing she's pimping.

Period. And actually, she might start pepping. You have a, Clock some money from a chick. What? Well, no, not a chick. I was a pet back in a day. Oh, you mean like a female running.

Like, I'll be the check. Oh. And then she brings the money back to you because you hit the play up. Like an actual pimp. Okay. It's a thing. Oh, that's it. Okay.

That's considered pimping. You might have did a little pimp. I didn't do it, but I got home girls who like, it's like, all right, I can't deal with him. So you go deal with him. You know what he's going to run back. And then I have friends that do that. I didn't, that's not pimping, though. It is.

No. I just drop the song about putting your home girls on. It is if you do it consistently and it starts to be like, I want my percentage. I would run you bitch some plays. You end up pimping. Harriet. You're looking at your eye like,

because I'm just thinking, like, I know people who do that. I don't think that they consider it pimping. It's just like a thing of like, yo, like you should go do this. There's a gray area. It might have been. Maybe. I don't know. Never thought of it.

If you make enough phone calls and you hook up enough plays and your phone is being tapped, you could catch a case. Maybe it wasn't considered pimping in Delaware, but that's what it was. Actually, no, I'm not telling you. Ain't nothing in Delaware but squares, no, that's not.

That's what is you from, you know? I'm joking because that's an old PIP saying. It's like, bitch, you think I'm some kind of square from Delaware. Yeah, I know. Everybody always said to me. That was like a famous saying? Yes, they always say it to me when they meet me like, ain't that the squares in Delaware.

Okay. It's just because it rhymes. It ain't got nothing to do with you. It circles there. What's a misconception people still have about Too Short that you've never been able to shake? That I don't like the women. That I've just, like, first of all,

I know that all women are not bitches. I know this for a fact. Secondly, I know that all bitches are not female. All females ain't bitches, and all bitches ain't females. So I think that when a lot of women, and meet me and they say this to me they go wow i wasn't expecting that they were expecting a little bit of rude and a little bit of um just like you know the the the resentment toward them yeah and then here comes this polite guy who's just courteous and cares and they're like damn so you're a successful

professional beautiful woman and here you go to your professional beautiful female friends I'm dating too short And they're like Bitch what You know And then you gotta You gotta explain that No he ain't like that

He ain't like that So I got I walk in with a reputation That is not Necessarily who I am And yes I love to be treated like a pimp I love to live my life

Pimp-ish Pimp-ish But My mother's name is Dorothy And she raised me a certain way And I've never let her down because when I was 16, my mother found one of my rap books. And at 16, I was, you know, suck my dick.

I busted in her eye. I was saying everything. And she found my rap book, and she was hurt. She was hurt. I opened up my rap book. You know, we used to write rhymes, y'all. I opened up my rap book, and I found that letter from my mother. Wow.

What is it? It was just like some therapy shit you would throw on me. And it was just like, I hope you. you don't believe these things and I always just wanted you to grow up and be like you know successful and have a family and if you really believe this stuff you know it was it was deep I'm glad I threw it away because they probably would yeah I would have read it over and over again and straighten my life up as you sure but instead I'm like nah my mama ain't pippin it's my singing group these ain't hoses these are singers we working on their album

They had the misconception too Well, you apologize for this When you said that you never fall in love with any woman That wasn't a mixed woman You were talking about the mixed babies being beautiful I never said that You said, you said, I don't think I've ever fallen in love With a woman that wasn't mixed

And the Bay did that to me I feel that way about life too Like biracial babies are You didn't say it that way the first time You sure didn't Well, that's why I read the quote That's why I read the quote You said you could take two of the ugliest people

Well, you said mother F first But two the oldest people from different races And they'd F and make a baby Is that an ugly beautiful thing, though? Is it? What? That you could take unattractive people and make beauty. That's a beautiful thing.

I think it was the mixed race part. It could be ugly, but it's a beautiful thing. I think people took it as you're saying because you're dealing with a woman that. So now they came with this, what's this stuff y'all send y'all DNA to, the 23. 23. Yeah. Ancestry. Ain't nobody nothing.

We all, everything. All of us. Yeah. Right. Everything you thought you was, you ain't. You mixed up. Everybody. You know why?

This conversation is irrelevant. because our grandparents are fucking liars. They don't tell us that they was mixing and mingling and everybody got, you got your little curly hair and you got your liar. My grandma will be pissed when she see you say that. Also, too, a lot of our grandparents got raped. Yes.

That part of everything. Everything. Everything. And I really like this for white people because they think they're white and they're not. And they got like, why do you think Amy got a fat ass and all to dance? Because Amy's grandmother had a black baby daddy.

And it came out looking white, but it's she still got that ass and that rhythm. And I'm just saying, I love black women. Love it. If you look through my phone and check ex-girlfriends,

you'd be like, oh, this niggas in the spectrum. And it ain't about was they mixed. It ain't about, was there another race. It's just I was saying that living in the bay, so many people in the bay

since the 60s and beyond, I don't know how long they've been doing, mixed. And then in the bay, there was always a thing that you could say. when you meet somebody like what you mix with and they just tell you it it's an instant answer it's not you say that in other places and they get mad at you and it wasn't a thing like that

in the bay and at that time i was talking to a bay person yeah you're talking sweetie yeah who is mixed and i'm like damn i'm looking at you i'm just thinking i'm like damn i have who i love that's crazy i never have it was an epiphany at that moment i'm like damn oh my this girl's was kind of mixed and i was just thinking that out loud her mom is it her mom is Filipino. Oh, okay, okay. Her dad is black or something? Yeah.

Yeah. And I was just saying that to a person. And at the time, you know, my naive thing I was doing was I didn't realize this new Instagram, what they call it? Communities. When you're on together. The Instagram lives. Yeah, going live with somebody with the split screen and shit. I didn't realize the magnitude of that what the backlash was on, it's not a private conversation.

This is. This is the world. And I could see how one person would go, too short said he don't like black babies. That was the next statement. The niggins said he don't like black babies. And somebody said, he don't even like black women. And I'm like, I didn't say none of that shit

because I actually, actually like beautiful women across the board. And I actually don't think that beauty is something that is on your face or your body. I think you could take the finest motherfucker in a picture and bring them to life and be like, soon as this bitch open her mouth, she ugly as fuck, because of her things that she says, the facial expression she makes,

she's very photogenic, but she's an ugly person when she's animated, and vice versa, you can take, look at a picture of somebody and go, I don't think she looks good. And then you see that woman in person go,

oh my God, she is beautiful. Because of the way she carry ourselves. And everything is not even like, the camera, which is a mechanism, cannot capture that, beauty. It is not made right to capture that and other people

know how to cheat it with a little facial expression and a pose. You're like, you can be cute all you want in them pictures. You're an ugly motherfucker in real life. And I love beauty. Do you like butterflies and trees and nature and other

beautiful people? Do you like that? Because you know some beautiful people that just have a bad day all day. Everything just piss them off. They're just mad all day. And I am not prejudice in any kind of way. I am not race prejudice in any kind of way. I can sit around

and tell jokes about racial jokes about everybody amongst us and it's all in love. I got a song right now called Don't Say the R. I'm about to change the title to it's a five-letter word because it's addressing the word, niggott.

And I'm like, it's a five-letter word. It's just a five-letter word, niggit. And I literally, all my entire adult life I refer to every race as my nigga then my Asian niggas and then the white niggas over there then my niggas

like it's called everybody a nigga like niggott like women I'd be like nigger what is the fuck up in you and that is not a good thing for everybody to accept because what if like one of the Asian nags like no you're my nigga then and they run it back in the bay

we do run it back though we run it back a little bit to a certain extent what's that mean Filipino's called each other nigger in the bay. As do Mexicans and... I know Mexican. I don't know if I could do it.

You know, but that's because where are you from? I'm just saying somewhere right now is four white boys who act like black dudes. When nobody else is around, they call each other niggas. They're doing it right now. We don't approve of it, but it's reality. I don't care what they're doing. I'm saying me.

When I walk in the room, I'm like, hey, bro, I want you to meet my Arab niggas. These niggas cool as fuck. That's how we talk. And I made a song about it, and it's kind of itchy. It's a little itchy. You're like, so what are you saying? And I'm like, I'm saying if you ever uttered that word out your mouth,

it better be a five-letter word. And not a six-letter word. Yeah, I got you. No, that five-blood ain't going to work for the music. I know. It's going to get somebody's ass with it. Yeah, nigger or nigger is going to get. But I'm saying, if you dare, it's never a six-letter word, ever, ever, ever.

That's just a tidbit of advice. Like, you know. Okay. That's how I use it. I'm not telling you how to use it. I'm just telling you, this is what this is. We dropped the R a long time ago.

The R, you get your ass whipped. I know that the Mount Westmore thing don't know that the wives like Too Short do this. Let's think about it. I think that everybody has positioned themselves in a clear space that, you know we don't roll with short like that. That's our guy.

George the guy. So I'm definitely, I'm definitely, and I, you know, I know how to walk up and say shit like, like, you know, one time I saw Cuban his wife, I was like, man, I remember that time,

back in 89, when you had first met her, and you was like, man, I think I found a one. And he was like, tell that story again in front of her. I'm like, you know, because there's a true story,

but you would think that I'm the guy who's like, nigga, let's go to Magic City. But actually, you know, I condone your behavior. and I admire that all three of those guys are married to their high school sweethearts. That's amazing in hip-hop.

Your high school sweetheart is your sweetheart right now? That is a... You remember that? You remember when he said he found a one? Yeah, because he had left the tour and went to Hawaii or some shit, and he came back showing off the pictures. And he was like, I think I found the one.

He went in line. Wow. And he kept her. We know Snoop's story. you know but E-40 no what's a new story I had my hands in the air

like I just said we know his story oh got you got you of over the years Snoom had a lot of you know people from outside trying to throw rocks at his glasshouse and all that shit but E40

E40 I swear to God I've been knowing this brother my entire adult life we the show is over we're playing dominoes we talking shit playing cards E-40 is like do not bring them bitches around me.

Don't bring the bitches in my room. I don't, I ain't got no conversation for him. That nigga's like, I love my wife. Since when he was a young nigga, like rock star status, he's like, I ain't thinking about these holes out here. And that's just been his thing. I'm like, we're going to play a couple of games that Diamond Nose. I'm going to fuck with the holes.

See you niggas later. You know, up all night crew. Them niggas go to bed. I'll be out. More for you. That's real. Not more for me. I mean, it was a lot of them.

So the wives do like you. That's what I'm saying. They position themselves aware they don't have to explain what they're doing out with Tushore or any of that stuff. I think the wives like Todd. But they're saying we're not on what he on. I am who I am, but I'm not a bad influence. I'm not trying to make you be what I am.

And they don't put themselves in positions. I saw Tank the other day. I was at a restaurant in Atlanta. And I was just sitting there and I'm looking at the bar. I'm like, this nigga little like Tank. And I said it about three times I was like, I'm just gonna go see this nigga, the nigga looked that much like

Taint and it was Taint. And we shopping it up, we laughing and shit and I'm like, I'm like, we're about to go hit the strip club. I just got the town. That nigga said, nigga, I have a real wife. I'm not fucking too short. And, you know, that's that. That's the space that you need

to not be lured into what I might do. And that night would have, it probably would have gotten. But you know, depending on the night, me and my wife will go together. My wife like the script club. But that's cool, but what are you doing when you're not with her? That's what, you know.

Oh, I'm going, yeah, I'm going home. He only be nowhere. Yeah, I don't go to. No. And I got, um. And he only goes to the strip club when she want to go. That is a fact. And I never, you've never seen my social media from my perspective.

You have never seen me post anything of where I'm at and what I'm seeing. I've never done it. I've never asked anybody to hold a camera behind me and, and like, catch, capture me in the moment. I've never done that ever, but I got people that be with me and I got women in my life who fucking are like CSI investigators and they'd be like right there of the homies as Graham and right there your hands on her ass. I'm like I'm like I was clapping. No, it looked like that if you look at the right angle I'm just far away from her like that's your hand on her ass I've been I've been through it I've been through it as no I am

not holding her ditty. I am literally like this. My hands way out in the camera. It's 2D. It's not showing that I'm not touching. But that's the story of my life. I could be completely wrong with this. But in my mind,

I feel like you were like the first rapper I remember talking about moving to Atlanta. That wasn't from Atlanta. When I got to Atlanta, I moved to Atlanta in 1993. When I got there, Eric Sherman was already there. Eric Sherman, okay, okay. Left eyes from Philly.

I don't know if I want to call her a rapper, but TLC was just about to emerge. Bobby Brown was there He kind of a rapper He acted like a rapper And Bobby Brown was my Like my spiritual guidance When I got to Atlanta

He didn't really tell me what to do But I'll kick back and watched him I watched Bobby Brown How he moved around Magic City I was like that's what I want to do What was it about Atlanta that made you want to be there There was a very violent war Going on in Oakland

At the time in the young 90s and I was just out doing shows and kicking it and doing stuff and I got to Atlanta for the Freak Nick 93 and we just had so much fun that it left the impression I mean I literally came for a three-day trip and stayed for two weeks good coochie and then I came back for this convention I used to have called Jack the rapper which was Freak Nick's in April jack the rapper was like in August and I literally just I had the homie one of the homies from Oakland I already lived out in Atlanta I was like man show me and properties and I went out I just bought a house that day

wow just went and bought the house and I snuck out there and and it was it was things like like in California LA and the Bay at that time if you saw a police officer in a car

and you in your car he's gonna pull you over and give you a ticket for something like something they might pull you over and search you they might pull you over and just fuck your day up for a little while some kind of way but Atlanta

the police was pulling up next to you at the light time on my what's up bro, I love your music I'm like I like this place man I remember I was in Atlanta and I called one of the homies at Oakland and said, nigga the police just spoke to me

and said what's up that was like a big deal the police just said hi the fuck so I'm like I want to go here where all this black excellence is I love the fact that it was a melting pot I also have previous history with Atlanta

I went to seventh grade, half a seventh grade and half of eighth grade in Atlanta schools. Oh, wow. And living in college park. A lot of people that I knew from those years knew that I was too short later on. When I got back to Atlanta in the 90s, we reconnected. I already had some infrastructure, some family and friends,

and I had a love for the city. So it was the right place at the right time. And I tell you, man, it turned out better than I thought because I ended up working with guys like Jazzy Faye who's from Memphis, Tennessee, but who came up in Atlanta, and guys like Little John who was born and raised in Atlanta, and they gave me a different feel to my music,

which we kind of helped each other by me being a multi-platinum artist, back to back to back, fucking with them at a young time in their career, and then by them having that new fresh sound that I went on and kind of extending my career into going from just being a rapper in the trunk, I used to make music for cars.

I just wanted you to play my shit in the car. I didn't fuck a dance club, fuck anything. Then I started making songs at Liljohn. And now I'm on a song at the club. I'm like, oh, shit, let me try this new shit. So. Yeah, little John loved you and Q. Atlanta worked out for me really good.

And it was some of the best years of my life as far as I moved to Atlanta when I was 27. And I stayed there for 15 years. It was like, it was life-changing, man. You know, at that age, I'm like, you know, I'm at Magic City and the club closes. And they're like, everybody leave. And I'm just like sitting there. I ain't going nowhere.

I'm hanging out. I'm in the dressing room while the ladies is putting their clothes on smoking a joint and just, you know, tities everywhere. And just, I was loving it, man. I was, I had a really good. you know, late 20s, 30s in Atlanta. It was amazing. And you also wanted the rappers, I think few, select few rappers who had a relationship with both big and pop.

Ampox, JZ, everybody. You know, I was, first of all, I'm the big homie. When I asked me this question, you really can't picture what the situation was at the time. Everybody you name, you name a list of rappers, and then you go look at the years that we were out. By the time these guys are just now coming out, I'm already on like the third, fourth platinum album.

So if Jay-Z is like I want too short on the album, it's not like the Jay-Z you're looking at now calling the two-short you're looking at now. It was the little homie calling the big homie. Like, bro, when you get on my album, and I'm like, cool, like big, when I got to call, a Puff gave me to call Big, once you on a song. I'm like, cool, I'm fucking with it. And the world is filled. I could tell you one thing about me, though.

And I've been on, I've been featured on dozens and dozens and dozens and dozens up into the hundreds of people's songs, I very rarely, very rarely called anybody and say, hey, do a song with me. All the songs you hear me with somebody else, they called me. And that's just, I take pride in that. And I know the secret to all of it is,

I'm the big homie. I did it before them. And it means something. It means something if you can get too short on a song. It meant something. It was, especially on the East Coast. They was, I mean, they didn't even. nobody on the East Coast

fucked with me before I did a song with Eric Sermon that it was called Bayou Sun and it goes out and Eric Sermon brought that shit to New York. The song broke in Atlanta. We made it in Atlanta. We used to be neighbors.

And he brought that shit to New York and he started moving around New York. Next thing I know, Jay Z want to do a song with me. Little Kim, we're in the studio doing call me for the booty call soundtrack and then next year you know I used to be like on the I remember the one time I was on an elevator

in New York City and the bellman was bringing my luggage up and he was like what you do I'm like I rap he's like oh yeah what rap what you do like what you do I was like I just did a show last week Big Daddy Cane open for me like shut the fuck up the Belman Nick he ain't Big Daddy Cain ain't open for you He's taking my luggage to my room

I was like okay we'll be He was on the same show. I mean, he wasn't my opening act, but I went on after him. Like, look the fuck out of here. He didn't, big daddy can going on before you. And it was just, it was a deep.

He didn't, he never heard of two shorts. Right. Like you're lying ass, motherfucker. You know, rapper. But finally, when the door is open, did a song, Little Kim, Foxy Brown, you know, Jay Z, big. And I go through the streets of New York

and they'd be like, what up, O.J., respect. I'm like, damn, y'all know me there? Did you understand? I mean, you felt it because, like, people were getting to know you in a different place, but did you understand. did you understand really how you were ushering in a sound to a whole other coast, like how major

that was at the time when it was happening? You don't think like that in the moment. You do not think. I never thought about longevity, never thought about legendary, never thought about multi-pladnums, none of that shit. You just live in the moment.

I thought about how much money I was getting as an independent and how it was coming in, but we were regional. We couldn't break the whole world or the whole country. And then I signed a day, Jive records and all of a sudden everybody knows my shit and I'm selling millions of records and then the fucking check comes and I see the check and I'm like I've been rapping

years 10 years see this fucking check I'm like oh I'm about to wrap my ass off now yeah like let's go and it was just like I was more or less like if you go check check the numbers too I was dropping albums like every 9 10 11 months and I was I was rapping faster than everybody else They're like, well, it's not the same quality. Right. But I was doing those numbers. And I was working so fast, having so much fun, doing so many tours. I was not thinking like the long version of what the effects would be.

I was thinking like, this is what they're giving me right now for this. This is how much I make per show. Nick, let's hustle. Let's go. Who with me? Let's go. We're gone. I'm out.

I called my girlfriend and said, I'm getting ready to go on tour. I see you when I get back. I love you. and never talk to her again. Lord, God, damn, Todd. How did she feel about that? She hated me. Yeah.

She used to blow my page her up with evil, evil coded numbers. And you turn it upside down, go to hell. Todd went into response, but too short was like, nah, another album got a drop. But in reality, I was madly in love, and then I was madly in love with her,

and then I got on this stage, and I was madly in love with that. Yep. That's your passion. And I'm like, I just could not take anybody romantically through the journey of what was calling me, which was, I call it rock star, but it was calling me. I just wanted that a lot. I wanted to enjoy that shit.

So do you regret it now? I think that it would have been a different path of what my life would have been had I stayed with so-and-so, settled down. I would literally have kids. years that would be like fucking 30 something 38 42 years old right now and it would have been a different life I know that um you would have heard whatever happened to me when I got to Atlanta the turn in the corner of you know the music and the dance music none of that shit would have happened yeah because you had to be outside for that it wouldn't be no shake

that monkey no blow the whistle none of that would happen yeah you feel like being independent kind of leaned into that as well too because you were working you had to figure out so much I'm assuming well because you were early independent Yeah, I was independent. I always had an independent mentality, but when we signed the majors, we still functioned like we were independent. And I think that just my connection to the fan base

was, it stems from that independent style of, like, you have to ask somebody, want to buy this shit? What I'm saying? Like, even when we were selling music in the stores, they say, too short they sold this shit out the trunk. We would have the boxes, same boxes we sold to the record stores in the back of the truck. You want to buy a fucking album or cassette here.

But, you know, you guys keep trying to find this regret. There's no regret. It's going to sound like a little bit. Like you have some thoughts. No, it's like we have these crossroads in life. We all come across the crossroads. Do you want to stay on the path that you're on? You want to go back to where you came from or you want to go on these new paths left

and right. What do you do on the crossroads? I have so many opportunities to change my lifestyle. And I chose to do what I. I did. It could have been so many different stories, but I just didn't do that. Atlanta would have been a great place to just find love, raise a family,

stay there. You know, I would have been on love and hip-hop, all that shit, you know. It would have been a different lifestyle, but whatever it would have been, I would have been a hustler. I'm pretty sure I would have survived the game, but I took this path. Yeah. Two more questions. Okay, because you got to say it.

I don't think you had. It doesn't sound like that to me that you have any regrets. I'm looking, yes, you had over 20 solo studio albums across the span of four decades. That's a lot of fucking music. That's a lot of studio sessions, a lot of work. A lot of neglect in a relationship would have been involved in that. A lot of absentee fatherism would have been involved in that.

And I didn't want that. I didn't want. So you technically saved the girl. You would have took her down a whole road of pain and hurt if you would have. I mean, it's too short. What works for you or what works for you, but that's bullshit. I mean, E40 got 30 solo albums. Cut it out.

E40 Studios at his house. You had money. You was 15 albums in by Blow the Whistle. You could have figured it out. You niggas be out there at the club chasing his pussy and shit, nigger my pussy, right up the hall. Right. That's a quote from him.

He's living your life. Snoop not 23 solo albums. Have it your way, man. Snoop Dog is an anomaly. He's a one-off. He's the most popular guy on Instagram. He is Snoop. In the world.

He's Snoop. Countries love the name. He's the most recognized rapper on planet Earth. He's the first rapper I ever seen old-ass white ladies about to fall on their knees like, Snoop Doggy, can I have a picture? But I respect it, though, because I mean...

Snoop Doggy. When women talk, like, how you're talking and they're like, you just didn't want to get married or whatever, they're applauded for it. So... Are they? Yes. No.

Women who say, I don't want to get married. I want to wait. I don't want to have... Today, they get dragged, and they be... And they're not like me. Yes, they call them cat ladies. You want to be by yourself. What about this?

Who am I if I'm in a Tyler Perry movie my whole life? Who am I? How does that reflect in the music? We're in the house trying to kill each other. I'd be a different type of life. I love it. Two more questions. What's easier to sell?

Music or Coochie? Definitely. Pussy. but you've got to have a talent to even do that. What's easier to sell? From the owner of the pussy or somebody who's directing the pussy? Like a pimp.

A pimp. Yeah. Definitely pussy. Yeah. Definitely pussy because, you know, the pussy at least has a brain. It can, like, float and go out and find customers. Music, you got to push that shit.

You got to... I would, but I would take the music over pimper any day, any day, because the music does not come with built-in penitentiary chances. That's right. So, yeah. But I think pussy's an easy sell, man. And I think that when our subgenres, when we get our subgenres together, it should be a version of hip-hop should be called Ho-Rap.

Stripper rap and hole rap should be two different things. They say pussy rap now. It's different. I need a hoe rap to be in its own category. Yeah. Because this vague hoeing. Give me an example. Who's the whole wrap?

Anybody who said you got a cash at me for a date, that's hoeing. Oh, my God. So what's the stripper wrap on the stage? Stripper wrap. I'm going to shake that ass on your face and make it rain on me. That's stripper wrap. Is she working? Twerk culture is amazing, though.

That has been around in hip-hop because it goes beyond before hip-hop. But in hip-hop, we have been consistently supporting twerking since the late 80s, early 90s. And it's going strong. Like, you put on a song like Future, Wicked, and be like, Nick, I did not know my school teacher could dance like that. Just shake that monkey still right now. Shake that monkey. It'll bring out the church ladies. Period.

And they've been in the wines too. Last question, you spent your whole career telling people to get money, you know. Motivation music. But if someone asked 60-year-old too short, what should they really be chasing? What would you tell them? If you want to be really focused and be on point, I think the whole, we get older and we start understanding what the older people were telling us about building wealth. We as youngsters are conditioned to show off.

I think that goes way back in African culture to you want to fuck the chief's daughter you got to pull up with like 20 goats and some cows and some offerings. Gold, yeah. Yeah, you've got to be tatted up and painted up and shit to look like, you know, the proper representation for the chief's daughter.

And we just show-offs by nature, man. We'll show us in our culture because we are to have-nots and when we have, we want everybody to know we got it. And we were subjected to the older people older than us getting the Cadillac riding by and like, ooh, I want to be like slick Willie. Like that's the thing. And I think that wealth building is something that we don't take seriously as youngsters. What about all the wealth that slipped through our community in the form of crack cocaine?

Crack cocaine was a lot of jewelry, a lot of cars, a lot of money spent, a lot of fucking off. But what if crack cocaine, the main... Offspring of that was all the property that we bought. We literally had all the money to buy up our own communities, and we didn't do shit. We bought a bunch of cars and jewelry and painted the motherfucking same car five different times. Instead of buying the abandoned building that was right across the street, that probably was way cheaper than the cars was buying. So when we get older, we think back on it, but we didn't actually do it in real time.

And I think that that was one that got away. Hip-hop is another one that's slipping through our fingers right now as we speak. the wealth that has been generated from the beginning of hip hop till now hasn't really trinkled down to build up the communities that the rappers came from. I think that's another missed opportunity that at some point we're going to have to realize young and old that we have to build wealth not just for our generational wealth

for my family. Like we regurgitate that a lot. You've got to build up the communities, man. And we keep finding ways to get this money. But you look at the neighborhoods and we don't see it. And I don't know why collectively, as black millionaires, we don't do something collectively. It's like you get all this shit, and you're like, this is my shit.

I don't know why we don't see that. If we were having what we having now, and we were the black people of the 50s and 60s, we would probably invest in community. But us black people are the 80s, 90s, and beyond, we're like, nigga, it's mine. And we just don't see it that way. So I think the mentality needs to change in wealth building.

Is wealth just money or is it the comfort of our full community? Is it the well-being of the kids? Is it the schools? Like, we fucked up in so many ways that I think we're all sitting on the resources to this day to fix it. But we don't see it that way. You're like, I'm going to lead these millions to my kid. We're like, but what about where we came from? I don't know, man.

Somebody need to call it. We need like a big boss Farrakhan type to be. like call him martial law and it's like you niggas got to kick in we got to kick in to the community fund something got to happen it's too short ladies and gentlemen his new album sir too short

bomb two drinking smoke sampler is out right now thank you for joining us man always a pleasure thanks for the therapy guys absolutely it's too short at the breakfast club and it didn't work I feel like out the dope pippin yep I feel you

take this pick real quick I know you have to be somewhere Don't work for everybody. Yeah, we ain't know. No, they see you running late, man. Oh, no. Every day I wake up. Wake your ass up.

The breakfast club. You're all finished or y'all done? My first guest is Terrence Hilton. Shakira. Luke and Yerrin. Have surprises? Many surprises. Welcome to the Sweet 305 podcast where the group check comes to life.

What? Oh, B. You're the only person I know that loves a yellow starburst. It's lemonade. This is Sweet 305. Here, overshed. sharing is encouraged. Listen to Sweet 305 with Lle Pons on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you

get your podcasts. On Raiders of the Lost podcast, we explore cinema like no one else, including huge interviews with stars like Ryan Gosling on Project Hail Mary. It was like the Jaws Shark. Didn't always work, came with its own problems. That's what made it great. The cast of obsession. On set, there was so much magic happening with each scene we were putting together.

deep dives into classics like 2001 of Space Odyssey or Fight Club, plus weekly episodes on all industry news. Listen to Raiders of the Lost podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And for more,

follow at Raiders of the Lost podcast and at TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Hey, Portlandia fans. Carrie Brownstein and Fred Armisen here. The Dream of the 90s is alive in podcast form. We're launching Podlandia,

A0 ReW. our brand new podcast where we revisit every episode of Portlandia together, breaking down sketches, going deep on our iconic characters, and pulling back the curtain on how it all got made. And we'll also be joined by the people who helped bring it all to life. Guest stars, collaborators, and friends, including director Jonathan Chrysall, the mayor himself, Kyle McLaughlin, legendary musician Amy Mann, and many more. Kyle is going for it here.

You fully improvised, not just words, but a song about it. Well, I thought you were all going to write a song. I remember you thinking. that. Listen to Podlandia. AEO rewatch on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What's up, fam? I'm sports

journalist Ari Chambers. Hey, what's up? Y'all. It's your girl, Sam J. And we're the host of everyone watches women's sports, a new podcast from Together and Iheart women's sports. We're breaking down the biggest headlines. Naomi Osaka, showing out. Shout out to you, Naomi. The viral moments. I've been obsessed with Kashan Rock's

boxing journey. She looks good. Her combos are swift. And the stories everyone Everyone's talking about across women's sports. Because everyone watches women's sports. Listen to everyone watches women's sports on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHeart podcast. Guaranteed human.