Today, March 9, is the 31st birthday Ohio rapper Shad Moss.
Born Shad Moss, the Columbus, Ohio native became a young rap protege at the age six when he was discovered by Snoop Dogg at a Los Angeles concert. Under the stage name Lil Bow Wow, Moss dropped his debut album Beware Dog at just 13-years-old in 2000. Thanks to chart-climbing singles like "Bounce with Me" and "Bow Wow (That's My Name)," Beware Dog went double platinum by 2001.
"Bow Wow (That's My Name)" changed Moss' career, and quickly made him one the most popular young rappers the time. Joined by Snoop Dogg, Bow Wow's fun lyrics and youthful voice propelled him to stardom. "The girls recognize and these niggas do too/I'm the flyest thing walkin' through junior high school," he flexed, as only he could at the time. "So make room next to your little, Backstreet poster/Cause Bow Wow's here and it's over! Ya heard!"
Since then, Bow Wow has released five more albums, worked with the likes Mario, Birdman and Amerie and successfully transitioned his career into the acting realm. From 2013 to 2014, Bow Wow was a co-host on BET's daily music countdown show, 106 & Park and starred in the CSI spinf show, CSI: Cyber.
Even though he's previously said that he's done with rapping, he teased some new music in 2018. Soon after, he released the song "Yeahh," a single from his forthcoming project Greenlight 6.
Happy birthday, Shad Moss!