had Gregory Moss, also known as Bow Wow has been famous in the world of rap and acting since the young age of 13. After releasing an entire debut album in his early teen years, Bow Wow became known as Lil Bow Wow and shortly after ventured into acting. Fast-forward to the present day, Bow Wow is now 33 years old and has sold over 10 million albums worldwide. This number doesn’t even include the 14 million digital copies of this work that’s been sold online. Through all of his success and time away from the spotlight Bow Wow’s net worth sits at $1.3 million. Like many other artist's in the entertainment industry, Bow Wow was hit especially hard due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Without consistent ticket sales to his shows, he was left to drop the entry fee drastically. Bow Wow's steady income allegedly took quite a hit, in turn, denting his overall net worth.
Young Rapper
Bow Wow’s debut album, Beware of Dog was released when he was 13; however, he actually began rapping at a much younger age - 5 years old to be exact. Snoop Dogg took notice of him and even brought him on stage during a concert. It was Snoop Dogg who gave the name Lil’ Bow Wow to the rapper. So yeah, Bow Wow’s net worth has been brewing for quite a long time.
Early Life
Born as Shad Gregory Moss in Columbus Ohio, Bow Wow began writing his own raps at the age of five and went by the name Kid Gangsta at the time. He was influenced by specific hip-hop groups like N.W.A. Bow Wow’s parents, Teresa Rena Caldwell and Alfonso Preston Moss supported him through his choice of music as a career.
Snoop Dogg Collaboration
When Bow Wow was just six-years-old, Snoop Dogg invited Lil’ Bow Wow to feature on one of the tracks for his very own debut album. The album Doggystyle was released in 1993 and Lil’ Bow Wow was featured on the track Gz and Hustlas. This first experience with professional music contributed to Bow Wow’s net worth and also opened many doors for him to advance his musical career. Shortly after his collaboration with Snoop Dogg, he appeared on The Arsenio Hall Show and gained popularity.
The Debut Album
At age 11, Bow Wow met Jermaine Dupri, a well known producer who took on the role of shaping Bow Wow into a seasoned rapper, also a contributing factor to Bow Wow’s net worth. After having his very own track featured in the Wild Wild West soundtrack, Lil’ Bow Wow released his very own debut album in the year 2000 - Beware of the Dog. Continuing his relationship with Snoop Dogg, Bow Wow’s debut album included a feature track with him, which topped the rap charts and undoubtedly helped Bow Wow’s net worth gain traction. This debut album featured well-known tracks such as Bounce with Me and Bow Wow. This album sold over 2 million copies in the first year and earned platinum status.
Acting Career
It was after the success of his debut album when Bow Wow began testing the waters in acting. Starring in big-name films such as Like Mike and The Fast and The Furious: Tokyo Drift even further helped Bow Wow’s net worth. The acting wasn’t the only thing on his radar; Bow Wow continued releasing albums as he starred in films and his popularity only grew more.
Rich and Famous Life
It got to the point where Bow Wow gained so much popularity, he was quite rich and famous at a young age. Now, what did he do with all of his money? Well, like any rich teenager would do, Bow Wow spent quite a large amount on cars and other toys, and we all know what happens after going on a spending spree. Come 2012, the media discovered that creditors were on Bow Wow’s trail after he had accumulated large amounts of debt from purchasing a Ferrari F430 and falling behind on payments for it.
Now, it’s also important to note that Bow Wow said he would retire from the music industry before age 30. He claims that he made more than $20 million throughout his career, so Bow Wow’s net worth of $1.3 million kind of makes us think he spent a lot of his money frivolously.
The Lamborghini
Bow Wow didn’t just treat himself to one sports-car, there were several on his radar. The rapper also bought himself a Lamborghini Murcielago. It’s been estimated this cost Bow Wow about $350,000 at the time. The car has a 6.5-liter V12 engine that generated over 630-hp, going from 0 to 60 MPH in about 3 seconds, hitting a top speed of 210MPH. Side note: Bow Wow’s net worth took a 25% cut for this purchase alone.
The Financial Decline
Come 2012, Bow Wow’s net worth took a bit of a hit. The artist came public about some conflicting moments regarding his finances and claimed that he was broke. He also told reporters he only had $1,500 in his bank account and that he owed twice that amount per month in child support alone.
It doesn’t end here. Bow Wow was also sued by the bank that he took his $300,000 loan out to purchase his Lamborghini. When he fell behind in payments in 2011, the bank repoed his car, even though he had apparently already paid about half of it off. Because banks are just so friendly, they also added a $25,000 fee for the repo. Adding to these troubles, it was also reported that he owed $280,000 to Ferrari. Bye-bye to Bow Wow’s net worth?
Financial Future
So what does the future look like for Bow Wow’s net worth? Well, rumors have it that he might create a final album called NYLTH, but there’s no confirmed release date as of yet.
