Tom Shimura, better known as Lyrics Born, has been a heavy weight in the hip-hop scene for over a decade. Currently based out of Berkeley, CA, the artist spent his childhood living in Japan, Utah, and Florida, his music drawing on the diverse influences of his experiences.  Lyrics’ career took flight as a DJ at the University of California Davis radio station KDVS.  He teamed up with other UC Davis students Lateef the Truth Speaker, Gift of Gab, Chief XCel, and DJ Shadow to form Solesides, an independent record label used to launch Lyric’s first single, “Send Them,” under the moniker “Asia Born.” 

Since 1993, the artist transformed himself, adopting the name Lyrics Born, and reforming the label as Quannum Projects, established as a hip-hop collective. 2003 saw the release of his first solo album, Later That Day…, a collaboration with guest artists Cut Chemist and DJ D Sharp. For its witty tracks and irresistible beats, the album was hailed as one of the most important hip-hop releases of the year, with Rolling Stone dubbing it “the rare hip-hop album that's as free and fun as it is tight.”  Hit singles “Callin’ Out” and “I Changed My Mind” rocked radio waves and were sought out for Diet Coke and EA Sports advertisements. 

Lyrics Born has continued to write, perform, and produce chart rocking albums from the Quannum label like 2005’s Same !@#$ Different Day that hit spot 27 on the Billboard Charts, a live album, and several mix tapes featuring guest artists from wife Joyo Velarde to Chali 2na of Jurassic 5. 

Epitaph/Anti-Records partnered with the artist in 2008 to release Everywhere at Once, which sky-rocketed to #11 on Billboard. The album’s anthems lit up hit television shows “Entourage,” “Gossip Girl,” and “Six Feet Under,” advertisements for Nokia, Vans, and Motorola, and the single “I Like It, I Love It” served as the title track for the 2009 remake of the movie Friday the 13th. Lyrics Born's July 26 Stern Grove performance represesented what the artist is best known for, high energy, positive music through collaboration with some of the most talented voices in the genre, like Joyo Velarde, Trackademics, and Pigeon John.