After entering the rap game at the age of 13 under the tutelage of Jermaine Dupri and Snoop Dogg, Bow Wow has decided to bow out of the Hip Hop game and focus on acting. Over the last several years Bow Wow, whose real name is Shad Gregory Moss, has seen his acting resume increase with roles in The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift, Roll Bounce and the upcoming films Patriots and Driving Lessons.
“After 16 years in the music industry and six successful albums, I’ve decided to shift my energy to something else I’m passionate about, acting,” Bow Wow tells The Hollywood Reporter. “I’m going to try to be the next Will Smith.” Since the rapper-turned-actor is 21, his reference of “16 years” likely includes his 1992 appearance on The Arsenio Hall Show at the age of 5.
Prior to his announcing his decision, Bow Wow began recording material for his seventh album, H.I.M. (History In the Making). The album is expected to be released late in 2008, and Bow Wow would not definitively state if it would be his last. In the meantime, Bow Wow will take a recurring role in the upcoming season of HBO’s Entourage. Bow Wow will be cast as Charlie, a stand-up comic who is a client of Kevin Connoly’s character Eric Murphy.
Bow Wow retiring doesnt surprise me at all. I was at the playground last night and we were discussing how Yung Berg is taking his spot in the rap game. And hours later I get the news that Bow Wow is retiring. I can’t hate on anyone making money and doing something positive with themselves, so switching fields to movies and acting isnt bad. There is more money in acting then rapping anyways. But I feel as if he will drop a cd again after a few more years when people will forget what Bow Wow music sounds like. Then he will probably drop a cd with so much cursing and gangsta type rap to prove that he is hard. Because at this point in time we have seen Bow Wow since he was a little kid and even now talking about sex in his raps is a little shocking to most of his fans. I think taking a break from music because he isnt selling cds even with Omarion onboard to eventually drop again with a more gangsta a rap style isnt a bad idea.
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