SHORTY-140

Early Life

Joseph Hyman born on February 27th, 1991 in Pittsburg, California. He is known professionally as an artist by the name of Shorty-140.

His parents separated shortly after he was born. For a few years, Joseph relocated from state to state before settling with family in Florida.

He began to live on church grounds where he spent a lot of his time experimenting with poetry, song writing, singing and instrumentation. He nicknamed himself Shorty during his early raps, however the universe gave him the number 140; the number kept reappearing and he knew it was meant only for him. 

Shorty-140 turned several of his poems into song lyrics by the age of eleven. He successfully partnered lyrics with beats and composed quite a few songs. After purchasing a thesaurus to improve his verbal approach, he then invested in a MK-II 1600 multi-track by KORG and a NT1-A RODE Microphone. Those were his first pieces of equipment that he purchased with which he could record his songs. 

Shorty focused solely on his music in order to get him through the tough times. He leaned on his closest friends to provide stability within his life, which have fueled his creative talents. The church atmosphere provided a supportive environment that allowed Shorty access to drums and guitars, the instruments that he taught himself to play. It was there that he worked on creating his own voice.

After living in Illinois briefly, Shorty-140 moved back to Florida at the age of fifteen. Graduating high school was a big accomplishment in his life. After graduating Shorty-140 began to focus on music by writing songs, producing and performing. Still working and pushing to achieve his goals, he is now a full time musician. 

Early Career

Shorty was heavily influenced early on by west coast Hip-Hop music from the likes of Tupac, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg & E-40, but also drawn to Bone Thugs N Harmony. With a deep respect and admiration, Shorty also turns to one of the most prominent lyricists in Hip-Hop for inspiration and guidance, Eminem. 

The songs that Shorty-140 writes are predominately about his life experiences, the struggles of raising himself, feelings of isolation, and not having people to guide him through his adolescence. His experiences helped him remain true to himself by writing only about real life. 

Shorty-140 has built his music and entertainment label, R.I.L. Entertainment, Inc., from the ground up. R.I.L. is a conceptualized a company by Shorty that would only produce true to life music. Around eleven years of age he produced his first solo song called, “Rap Is Life”.   The song title, Rap is Life or R.I.L. had a second meaning for Shorty and it quickly became his motto.

Shorty-140 has a considerable amount of experience for being so young. He is typically the youngest among his peers but working with veteran artists has taught him quite a bit and has made him a better MC and businessman. 

In 2012, Shorty-140 was blessed with the opportunity to record a song with Southern rap legend Pastor Troy. A month after recording, “I Want It All,” Shorty and his production company joined Troy in his hometown of Atlanta, Georgia to shoot the music video for the song.

He has made multiple guest appearances on several radio stations for the underground mixtapes he had produced. His works help land him an appearance in an episode of the MTV series Friend Zone.

Shorty-140 is a hard working, dedicated and focused musician. He is fine-tuning his sound by putting in the hours at the studio, recording new music, and paving the path to his future.  The one thing that separates Shorty-140 from other artists is his life experience. Shorty-140 plans to expand his artistic abilities by exploring the worlds of film, television, fashion, sports and book writing. 

In July of 2016, his first official release “Something To Say EP” is the beginning to a different approach on HIPHOP culture. An unmatched style towards music, dubs this unique genre, as "NEW FLOW", for its unorthodox delivery & urge to innovate. Created with variety, this technique displays a true mix of rhythm & melody.