Entertainment

FREESTYLE: “If You Make It Here, You Can Make it Anywhere,” Says Too Short

Published

12 years ago

January 22, 2014

Todd Anthony Shaw, more commonly known as Too Short, has been in the music industry for more than 20 years. A pioneer in the Bay Area music scene, he helped paved the way for numerous Bay Area artists today.

Raw and uncut with his lyrics and catchy with his beats, Too Short has gathered a large following and respect within the music industry. Even Beyoncé noted a “Too Short influence” in her most recent track “Partition.”

He says he could hear his influence in the beat too but wasn’t too surprised because Houston has been one of his number one markets throughout his career. And given it’s her hometown, he’s pretty sure she listen to his music while growing up.

“She might be the ‘Queen of Manhattan’ (now), but she is still ‘H-Town’ all the way,” he said.

It’s that underlying impact that Too Short has had in the music industry that now makes him the focus of TVOne’s Unsung, a series that profiles some of the most influential, talented Hip Hop, R&B, Soul and Gospel artists of the 1970s, ‘80s and ’90s.

Most of the time the show ends tragic, detailing the tribulations and obscurity of the artists at the end of their lives, according to Too Short. But he says his tory is different, because his career isn’t over, and the show will only be able to document a portion of it.

“I’m still trying to have an active career, but I’m not thinking I’m about to sell seven platinum albums in a row,” he said, noting that having multiple records go platinum back-to-back was one of his greatest career accomplishments.

He says that he will be getting in the studio with E-40 to start another album, which he says is going to be crazy.

Too Short performed in front a sold out crowd a Club Vinyl in Downtown Oakland last Saturday.

Too Short performed in front a sold out crowd at VENUE, 420 14th street, in Downtown Oakland last Saturday.

Today, Too Short still credits Oakland for providing the “tough skin” that’s needed to survive, both personally and professionally. Without it, he says Oakland will swallow you up but just like Chicago, St. Louis or New York – if “you make it here, you can make it anywhere”.

And if more youth use that training to excel in other areas of life, whether business, music, or education, and put it to use outside of the city, they would appreciate Oakland a whole lot more.

“…You have to go somewhere else. Go to school outside of the bay,” he said. “I don’t want you to leave and abandon the city, but to expand, sometimes that’s what you have to do.”

But since that isn’t happening, the positive history and culture of Oakland is being overshadowed by the violence, he said. Calling it the “I can’t control myself’ movement,” Too Short says it is ruining the value of the city.

“If you really knew how this city really was how it’s been…we have totally killed that,” he said. “We took away a lot of our economy with the violence.”

TV One’s ‘Unsung’ returns January 29th. Visit www.tvoneonline.com to find out more informaton about the premier of Too Short’s episode.

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Activism

OP-ED: AB 1349 Puts Corporate Power Over Community

Since Ticketmaster and Live Nation merged in 2010, ticket prices have jumped more than 150 percent. Activities that once fit a family’s budget now take significant disposable income that most working families simply don’t have. The problem is compounded by a system that has tilted access toward the wealthy and white-collar workers. If you have a fancy credit card, you get “presale access,” and if you work in an office instead of a warehouse, you might be able to wait in an online queue to buy a ticket. Access now means privilege.

Published

2 days ago

January 9, 2026

Oakland Post

Bishop Joseph Simmons, Senior Pastor, Greater St. Paul Baptist Church, Oakland

By Bishop Joseph Simmons, Senior Pastor, Greater St. Paul Baptist Church, Oakland

As a pastor, I believe in the power that a sense of community can have on improving people’s lives. Live events are one of the few places where people from different backgrounds and ages can share the same space and experience – where construction workers sit next to lawyers at a concert, and teenagers enjoy a basketball game with their grandparents. Yet, over the past decade, I’ve witnessed these experiences – the concerts, games, and cultural events where we gather – become increasingly unaffordable, and it is a shame.

These moments of connection matter as they form part of the fabric that holds communities together. But that fabric is fraying because of Ticketmaster/Live Nation’s unchecked control over access to live events. Unfortunately, AB 1349 would only further entrench their corporate power over our spaces.

Power over live events is concentrated in a single corporate entity, and this regime operates without transparency or accountability – much like a dictator. Ticketmaster controls 80 percent of first-sale tickets and nearly a third of resale tickets, but they still want more. More power, more control for Ticketmaster means higher prices and less access for consumers. It’s the agenda they are pushing nationally, with the help of former Trump political operatives, who are quietly trying to undo the antitrust lawsuit launched against Ticketmaster/Live Nation under President Biden’s DOJ.

That’s why I’m deeply concerned about AB 1349 in its current form. Rather than reining in Ticketmaster’s power, the bill risks strengthening it, aligning with Trump. AB 1349 gives Ticketmaster the ability to control a consumer’s ticket forever by granting Ticketmaster’s regime new powers in state law to prevent consumers from reselling or giving away their tickets. It also creates new pathways for Ticketmaster to discriminate and retaliate against consumers who choose to shop around for the best service and fees on resale platforms that aren’t yet controlled by Ticketmaster. These provisions are anti-consumer and anti-democratic.

California has an opportunity to stand with consumers, to demand transparency, and to restore genuine competition in this industry. But that requires legislation developed with input from the community and faith leaders, not proposals backed by the very company causing the harm.

Will our laws reflect fairness, inclusion, and accountability? Or will we let corporate interests tighten their grip on spaces that should belong to everyone? I, for one, support the former and encourage the California Legislature to reject AB 1349 outright or amend it to remove any provisions that expand Ticketmaster’s control. I also urge community members to contact their representatives and advocate for accessible, inclusive live events for all Californians. Let’s work together to ensure these gathering spaces remain open and welcoming to everyone, regardless of income or background.