--- description: Rapper Bow Wow has announced that his upcoming studio will be his last as he is retiring from the industry. title: Bow Wow Has Retired At The Ripe Age of 29 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta66bbaa83a3f1d39/6988a187fb4eac988f88ea93/shad-moss-bow-wow-retires.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Bow Wow Announces He's Retiring at the Ripe Age of 29  by [Cady Lang](/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 8, 2016 2:59 PM CUT  Bow Wow attends the premiere of 'Angry Birds' at Regency Village Theatre on May 7, 2016 in Westwood, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images) Bow Wow attends the premiere of 'Angry Birds' at Regency Village Theatre on May 7, 2016 in Westwood, California. (Photo by Emma McIntyre/Getty Images)Emma McIntyre—Getty Images  by [Cady Lang](/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 8, 2016 2:59 PM CUT After 23 years in the entertainment industry, Shad Moss, better known to the world as Bow Wow, is retiring. The 29-year-old rapper and actor made his farewell announcement via Twitter, noting that [his upcoming album, “Nylth”](https://www.instagram.com/p/BIxgBw4gTFK/ "undefined") with [Snoop Dogg](http://time.com/4107828/leafs-by-snoop-dogg-marijuana-weed-cannabis/ "undefined") will be his last; he also disclosed that he was retiring because he doesn’t want to rap at “30 years old.” Moss was discovered by Snoop when he was just six years old and proceeded to tour with the legendary west coast rapper and [Dr. Dre](http://time.com/4006621/dr-dre-sorry-women-apology/ "undefined") on the Chronic tour under the moniker, “Kid Gangsta.” Later, Moss used the stage names Lil Bow Wow and Bow Wow while producing hits like “Puppy Love” and “Bounce With Me” and appearing in films such as _Like Mike_ and _Roll Bounce;_ he later went on to host BET’s _106 & Park_. Read Moss’ goodbye tweets below. > [](https://twitter.com/smoss/status/762202202903416833) > [](https://twitter.com/smoss/status/762250891105751042) > [](https://twitter.com/smoss/status/762296476965806080) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4443013/bow-wow-shad-moss-retires/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4443013/bow-wow-shad-moss-retires/"},"headline":"Bow Wow Announces He's Retiring at the Ripe Age of 29","datePublished":"2016-08-08T14:59:09.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:35:12.326Z","description":"Shad Moss is calling it quits after 23 years in the industry.","url":"https://time.com/4443013/bow-wow-shad-moss-retires/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Entertainment","Music"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta66bbaa83a3f1d39/6988a187fb4eac988f88ea93/shad-moss-bow-wow-retires.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Cady Lang","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/cady-lang/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta66bbaa83a3f1d39/6988a187fb4eac988f88ea93/shad-moss-bow-wow-retires.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Premiere Of Sony Pictures' \"Angry Birds\" - Arrivals","caption":"Premiere Of Sony Pictures' \"Angry Birds\" - Arrivals","creditText":"Emma McIntyre—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4443013/bow-wow-shad-moss-retires/","name":"Bow Wow Announces He's Retiring at the Ripe Age of 29"}}]}] ```