INQUISITR.COM / Entertainment

Bow Wow Retires From Rap At Age 29, Twitter Throws Him In The Dog House

By Victoria Miller
Published on: 22:51 PST, Aug 7, 2016

Bow Wow has announced he is retiring from the rap music industry. The 29-year-old former child rapper posted a series of tweets on Sunday revealing that he has already made over 20 million dollars from rap and can’t see himself rapping at the ancient age of 30. Bow Wow, whose real name is Shad Moss, also promised fans that his retirement from rap actually means the start of a new adventure.

But in the same breath that he announced his retirement, Bow Wow announced that he still has one more album in him. Bow Wow revealed via Instagram that his final pre-retirement album will be produced by his “Uncle” Snoop. The final Bow Wow album will reportedly be titled Nylth.

“Since he brought me in the game, it’s only right I involve him and end it with him,” Bow Wow wrote of Snoop.

Bow Wow is currently in Australia on what could be his final rap tour, but it’s no surprise that Twitter had a field day after his retirement announcement. While some fans defended his hits from back in the day, it was not lost on many that Bow Wow hasn’t been considered a big name in the rap scene in a long time. Many social media users questioned what Bow Wow is retiring from because he seemingly retired from rap years ago.

Bow Wow was a hip hop prodigy when he first hit the scene in the early 2000s as Lil’ Bow Wow. The pint-sized Bow Wow was discovered at age 6 by Snoop Dogg when he hit the stage during Snoop’s Chronic tour with Dr. Dre. Bow Wow was soon mentored and signed by Jermaine Dupri, who produced his platinum-selling debut album Beware of Dog. Bow Wow details the story of his rise to fame in the video below.

According to his BET bio, Bow Wow dropped the “Lil'” ahead of his second album, Doggy Bag. He also segued into acting and hosting, with stints in the movie Like Mike, HBO’s Entourage and BET’s 106 & Park. As an adult, Bow Wow’s rap career had few notable moments like when he collaborated with Omarion for the album Face Off.

In 2014, Bow Wow dropped his doggie moniker for good and revealed he was going to be known by his birth name Shad Moss. Of course, many fans still call him Bow Wow.

While some rap fans wondered where Bow Wow has been for the past few years, in 2013 he was featured on Oprah Winfrey’s update show, Where Are They Now? At the time, Bow Wow talked about his days as a young rapper, and he revealed what he spent some of that $20 million on when he was given a $6,000 monthly allowance as a child star.

“When I was younger I pretty much bought every car I wanted,” Bow Wow said in 2013. “We call it stunting you know that’s when you’re flashy and you got all the jewelry. But, like, I don’t even wear all that stuff anymore, like, I’m so laid back and you know, just chill. I feel like now I’m at that point in my life where that stuff doesn’t – it doesn’t identify who I am. I don’t need it anymore.”

While he dropped the rap trappings, it was just last year that Bow Wow talked about all of the records he still had in him. He also talked about his varying fan base.

“Whether it is age, race — everything. It’s just different. I got fans that are six to 40 years old. So with that being said, all I gotta do is just go in the studio and just do me. No matter what I do, just be Bow. Just pray that my fans accept it. That’s all I can do.”

“I’m definitely starting from scratch soon because the sound has changed,” Bow Wow said of his future records. “I’m for sure gonna be putting out these records that I’m holding on to for some time.”

Sounds like he better do it soon because with Bow Wow’s retirement from rap—and the big 3-0— looming, he’s running out of time.

[Photo by Todd Williamson/Getty Images for CSE]

Share this article: Bow Wow Retires From Rap At Age 29, Twitter Throws Him In The Dog House
bow wow
More from Inquisitr