Born Todd Shaw 40 years ago in Los Angeles, where he recently relocated after 12 years in Atlanta, Too Short says he never was a pimp, though he planned on becoming one until early success in the music business altered his career course[…]was at first little more than a fantasy for Too Short, whose clear enunciation betrays his middle-class upbringing and private schooling in Southern California. Pimping became a possibility, however, when he moved to Oakland to live with his mother in the early ’80s. He found himself for the first time in public school, at Fremont High in East Oakland.

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Almost thirty years ago in 1977, the Rocksteady Crew came to life and set a standard in the Hip-Hop culture that would echo decades later. Richard ‘Crazy Legs‘ Colón, a then youngster with the liquid motion, evolved from a crew favorite to President of the Rocksteady empire. One of the longest standing crews in Hip-Hop, the Rocksteady Crew is much more than the league of extraordinary members that compose it. B-Boys, B-Girls, MCs, producers and activists alike, individually walk this earth to respect and represent this historic army in their own unique ways–with their leader Crazy Legs still standing and still dancing, after several surgeries and herniated discs.

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A Black Eyed Peas concert in Bangkok has ushered in the beginning of “The Freedom Campaign” for detained Nobel Prize-winner Aung San Suu Kyi in Myanmar. The hip-hop group’s performance in the capital of Thailand Monday marked the start of an effort to bring attention to the Myanmar people and to Kyi’s non-violent attempts to bring democracy to the region, a news release said.

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Esteemed rap journalist Soren Baker has authored his first book, The Music Library: The History of Rap and Hip-Hop. The book, published by Thomson Gale, part of the Thomson Corporation, is an overview of the evolution of hip-hop culture and rap music geared toward middle school and high school students. “It is an honor to have been able to write this book,” says Baker, the Senior Editor of The Source and a writer for the Los Angeles Times, Scratch and Down, among other publications. “Hip-hop and rap have been integral parts of my life since I was about 10 or 11 years old. I feel blessed to be a part of the culture and to have had the opportunity to help explain the culture’s origins to a national, and hopefully, international audience.”

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Some of Tupac Shakur’s ashes have already been scattered in the Pacific Ocean and Malcolm X Square in New York. Soon, part of his remains will rest in a third location of great significance for the late M.C. In September, Shakur’s family will fly to South Africa to record a track with local rap sensation, Zola. During their visit, a portion of Pac’s ashes will be scattered in the township of Soweto.

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For years, “Hip-Hop Cops” were perceived as myths. Derrick Parker candidly reveals otherwise, touching on the profiling, the record keeping, and the network that these officers used. Just as with the rap industry, Parker says that the cops themselves grew greedy in search of desired positions in a glamorous life. After years of Detective Parker watching Hip-Hop under a microscope, the culture stares right back in the eyes of the Hip-Hop cop.

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This weekend Miami rapper Trick Daddy is celebrating the return of kids to school this fall, giving Florida young’uns a special party to help motivate them[…]”We want to encourage students to do their best in school. South Florida schools are among the lowest schools in the state with low FCAT scores,” Trick Daddy said via statement. “We want students to be excited about learning.”

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