- 4/16/2025
Bow Wow discusses his success with the Millenium tour and why he loves touring, reflects on his Hot 100 hits including “Let Me Hold You,” “Like You” and others. He also shares what you can expect from his new album with Chris Brown, Future’s cameo in his music video and more!
What's your favorite Bow Wow song? Let us know in the comments!
What's your favorite Bow Wow song? Let us know in the comments!
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MusicTranscript
00:00We come together as a collective. Expect nothing but greatness. Me and Brown don't miss.
00:05Future was in the video.
00:07He was just there chillin', like I think he was like picking up some grapes and stuff.
00:11So let me explain.
00:12Okay.
00:12And I'm glad that you brought that up so I can go ahead and clear everything.
00:15Because I did see that.
00:16Didn't like the record at the first time.
00:18Did not like the song.
00:19Didn't understand it.
00:20I think that's when we were entering that new wave of hip hop.
00:27What's going on, y'all? I am deputy director of R&B.
00:29R&B and hip hop, Mr. Karl Lamar.
00:31We are here at the Barclays Center for a special tour, the Millennium Tour.
00:36Super throwback, super nostalgic, but we are here with Mr. 106.
00:40But I told him today he's going to be Mr. Hot 100.
00:43I'm talking about 21 of them bad boys.
00:45Three top 10.
00:47That's crazy.
00:48Mr. Bao Weezy.
00:49What's up, man?
00:50How you feeling?
00:51I'm good. I feel blessed. I'm great.
00:52Listen, man, we are on tour in Barclays at Brooklyn, man.
00:57How has the tour been for you so far?
00:59Tour has been a blessing.
01:01You know, this is our fourth one, fourth Millennium Tour, third one for me.
01:04And just going out on the stage and going to these arenas and just looking at 13, 14,000 people every night.
01:11I mean, it's just words can't even describe because now staring at my own self at 38 years old,
01:16knowing that I was doing this 25 years ago and I'm still doing it and I'm still going through these same tunnels and hallways.
01:21And sometimes I think like, damn, like I'm not supposed to be here.
01:25Right.
01:26You know, a lot of young child artists that start off young, they usually don't make it this far.
01:29For me to still be here doing it, man, something must be going right.
01:32Yeah, that's y'all working right there, man.
01:33Absolutely.
01:34For cats who haven't seen you perform, what's your stage game like right now at this juncture of your career?
01:39It's energetic.
01:40I believe it.
01:40It's energetic as hell.
01:42That's always been my thing, performing.
01:43I always took that serious.
01:44You know, you got a lot of people out here who pay their money, who could have did other
01:49things with their money, but decided to spend that $50 or however much it costs to come see you.
01:53Always keep that in mind.
01:54And I'm like, if I go to a concert, I don't want nobody just standing in one spot or just,
01:59you know, lollygagging through.
02:00And like, I like for the people to know, yeah, I'm making a big bucks, but I'm earning it.
02:03Right.
02:04And you can see it through my passion on stage.
02:06Me sweating.
02:07I got this one vein that shows.
02:08It's popping already.
02:10Every photo I look at, they're like, damn, that boy working hard up there.
02:13So like, if I don't sweat on stage, I feel like I didn't do what I need to do.
02:17So it's a lot of high energy, a lot of fire, a lot of lasers.
02:22Oh, yeah.
02:22Yeah, it's a show for sure.
02:23Oh, yeah.
02:24I mean, listen, for these Millennium Tours, if y'all never been, it's pretty much the Avengers
02:28that all come together this time around.
02:31Obviously Omarion, Trey, you got Boosie, you got Ross.
02:35Talk about how it's been just kicking in with the fam, these kind of legends and just vibing
02:40it again.
02:41The great thing about this is that I've had the opportunity to tour with a lot of these
02:45cats.
02:46Speaking of like Pleasure P, Pretty Ricky, those guys have been down with me and touring with
02:50me since, you know, the old Scream Tour days, so to see P still out here doing this thing.
02:54And of course, Trey was a part of the Scream Tour umbrella as well.
02:56That was his first tour.
02:57So it's dope for us to be here now, some 40.
03:00I'm still younger than P and Trey.
03:02So, you know, we have those moments on the road, too, where we do reflect, especially
03:08Trey.
03:09You know, he's always giving me my roses and vice versa.
03:12And even throughout the fun and the work, we always find the time to tell each other
03:16that, like how important you mean.
03:17I know for Trey, he's always telling me, bro, you're the reason why I'm doing this shit.
03:20You wanted me to headline this one this time, but he wasn't even all the way comfortable
03:23doing it all the way.
03:24He's like, nah, this is your shit.
03:25I'm like, nah, bro, look, I need you to do this.
03:26I need you to do this.
03:27You know what I'm saying?
03:28I need you to do this.
03:29I've been doing it my whole entire career.
03:31And I won't elevate unless I, you know, pass that torch off.
03:35I'm going to still do what I do regardless.
03:36I'm co-headlining, but still, it's like, we all do the collective effort, but we always
03:41make sure that we have those times where we remind each other just who we is and we
03:44some bad motherfuckers.
03:45Because sometimes you got to let them know and you got to let yourself know sometimes,
03:48too.
03:49I love that you brought up the Legendary Scream Tour, man.
03:52So far, like you said, you've been doing the Millennium Tour four years.
03:56Any in particular moment that made you feel like, damn, this feels like the Scream Tour
04:00all over again?
04:01Probably just selling out.
04:02You know what I mean?
04:03Just, you know, especially the times we're living in now with the marketing, you know,
04:06a lot of people not having the funds and the needs to really go out here and have a
04:09good time.
04:10So for us to, like I said, and we in the Barclays right now, for us to be putting up the numbers
04:15that we putting up, it's amazing.
04:16I'll tell you this, as legendary as the Scream Tour is, and it means so much to me and it will
04:20forever mean so much to me.
04:21It didn't win a Billboard Music Award.
04:23The Millennium Tour, we won Best Rap Tour.
04:26This right here makes me a two-time, two-time Billboard Music Award winner.
04:32We beat out Baby and J. Cole.
04:34Yeah.
04:35Shout out to J. Cole and Baby because, you know, that was tough.
04:38You know, even I was doubting myself on that one.
04:40But that's when I knew.
04:41We made a lot of history with Scream and we're going to continue to do that.
04:44But I've never won an award for a tour.
04:47And it happened to be the one where they added me.
04:49So it was my first Millennium Tour.
04:51And we brought home some hardware.
04:53I'll say it is.
04:54Shout out to Billboard on that one.
04:55Not being biased, but I was at that show in 2021, that potential.
04:59Oh my God.
05:00So you know what it is.
05:01Yeah, it was nuts.
05:02It's crazy, bro.
05:03It was nuts.
05:04No cash.
05:05It is rap.
05:06It was fucking fun.
05:07Well deserved.
05:08And I'm glad we got it from rap.
05:09That's what meant a lot to me because on the first Millennium Tour, it wasn't really no rap.
05:13Right.
05:14Like it was really R&B.
05:15R&B.
05:16And then when they brought me on board, they know what's happening.
05:18Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:19The dog here now.
05:20So I saw the shift.
05:21The shift, for sure.
05:22Is there anybody from that 2000s era that hasn't done the Millennium Tour that you would
05:25love to add or see in the future?
05:26Sierra and T-Pain.
05:27Ooh.
05:28Why those two?
05:29T-Pain because he came in the game with his own sound.
05:32He wasn't afraid to be original and try something different.
05:34And to this day, I don't think we'll ever see like another T-Pain.
05:37T-Pain is a character in the zone.
05:38To me, he's very, very talented.
05:41Rap, sing, and we have four records together.
05:45We got Flirt.
05:46We got Out of My System.
05:47Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:48We got the Pop, Lock, and Drop, and Remix together.
05:50Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:51He's up there with Chris and Omarion as far as the features, the hit records that I've
05:55done with the most.
05:56And then with Sierra because she just deserves it.
05:58Yeah.
05:59And I feel like she has yet to really receive her flowers in the way that as an artist,
06:04especially a female, the way that she deserves to be received.
06:07So to have her a part of it, I know the fans will love it.
06:09I'm always big on what the fans want to see.
06:11And I always put myself in their position.
06:13I know I would love to see Val and Sierra do like you.
06:16You know what I mean?
06:17We ain't done that in over 20 years.
06:19You know what I mean?
06:20I think we're at that point now in our lives where it's a possibility.
06:22Well, I hope that we can make that happen.
06:24But if I was to pick my tour off the rip, no second guess and I'm going Sierra and T-Pain
06:29to definitely be a part of anything Scream tour, anything Millennial tour for sure.
06:33I love those picks and I love that you brought up Like You.
06:36That was top five record in 05.
06:39We're about to venture back to 05 when you dropped your fourth album.
06:43Yeah.
06:44If we talk about the litany of hits you had, I'm talking Like You.
06:48I'm talking Let Me Hold You.
06:49I'm talking Fresh As I Is.
06:51Where would you rank that era in your career versus the other albums you've had?
06:56I don't know because that was like 17 going into 18 Bow Wow.
07:02And that was a moment in my career where that was like young adult hot.
07:07That was still Scream 4 toward that time, Southern Arenas.
07:10If you want to go before that, beware Dog Doggie back days.
07:13That's like Mike Bow Wow.
07:14That's, you know, the Harlem Shake and Bow Wow.
07:16That's, you know, they both on fire.
07:19But I don't know.
07:20I can't pick.
07:21They both was hot as hell.
07:23Hot.
07:24Yeah, I don't know.
07:25Yeah, I can't.
07:26I can't pick.
07:27We'll let y'all pick on that one, man.
07:30But we got to talk about one of the classics, Let Me Hold You.
07:33There's so many layers to it, but let's start from the beginning, man.
07:42Talk about the recording process with JD and O for that record.
07:45I know we did that at Southside Studios, which is our studio in Atlanta.
07:48Got the track from No ID.
07:50A lot of people would think that Jermaine actually did that beat.
07:52No ID produced that.
07:53Hot to No ID, man.
07:54Yeah, man.
07:55Chicago.
07:56Absolutely.
07:57Yeah.
07:58One of the GOATs.
07:59And so to have a No ID track.
08:01Yeah, it's huge.
08:02Yeah.
08:03And to have him in the studio and to have him in Jermaine in the same room, Jermaine writing
08:07and dictating, you know, what direction we're going to go with the record.
08:10We automatically, we knew who we wanted to put on the hook just because of the dynamic
08:14that me and dude, that we have when it comes to collaborating.
08:17I learned this on Instagram just the other day.
08:20Yeah.
08:21Future was in the video.
08:23He wasn't.
08:24So he was just there chilling.
08:26Like I think he was like picking up some grapes or something.
08:28So let me explain.
08:29Okay.
08:30And I'm glad that you brought that up so I can go ahead and clear everything because
08:33I did see that.
08:34Yeah.
08:35Went viral.
08:36I mean, it's the internet.
08:37They're going to have fun.
08:38They're going to make what they want to make out of things.
08:40No, that was not Future.
08:42That was a guy by the name of the kid Slim who was one of my writers who did a lot of
08:48writing with me on Like You.
08:49Yeah, yeah, yeah.
08:50Different other records.
08:51So his name is Slim.
08:52He's from New York.
08:53And there's a reason why we call Slim Slim.
08:55He's very skinny.
08:56Yeah.
08:57And I believe Future is six feet something.
08:58Very tall.
08:59Well built.
09:00Yeah.
09:01But that was the kid Slim.
09:02So.
09:03I'm glad we got the clarification on that.
09:04Me too.
09:05So I hope this goes viral so everybody knows.
09:06This will.
09:07That was a rapper from New York.
09:08Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
09:09Another moment that has gone viral courtesy of your daughter, man.
09:14Like, are you surprised to this day, like the reaction, whether it's to fans or just seeing
09:21like the dance still make noise on the internet?
09:23Look, I came up with it so I can take full credit.
09:25Take full credit.
09:26It made sense, you know.
09:27But it's dope.
09:28Every night I see them do it.
09:29They wait.
09:30They wait.
09:31They're waiting on it.
09:32Yeah.
09:33Like, if I don't do it, it's disappointing.
09:34Like, to the point where even if I'm out in public, people, they do it to me.
09:37I love it, man.
09:38It's just a solid gesture.
09:39It's just letting me know that they appreciate the music.
09:42It's making them feel some type of way.
09:45Regardless if you're having fun doing it, if you don't understand it, it doesn't matter.
09:48It's the fact that it's bringing out an emotion out of you.
09:51That means that my little move did something.
09:53I think it's up there with the keyboard.
09:55Yeah, that's the fingers.
09:56Yeah, the fingers, yeah, yeah.
09:57I do that too.
09:58Listen, a lot of things that, especially concert-wise and things that I went viral for dance-wise,
10:03I always make sure I incorporate it to the show because I feel like that's what people
10:06want to see.
10:07Get on stage tonight in Brooklyn, New York and that Harlem shake in New York.
10:10You gotta be crazy.
10:11Yeah, yeah, yeah.
10:12You know?
10:13So, I always make sure I keep those things in mind.
10:14Another classic, we gotta talk about another top five Hot 100 record like you.
10:18Yeah.
10:19With Sierra, man.
10:25Talk about the memories of making the music video.
10:27Y'all in the elevator, just a classic.
10:29Yeah.
10:30Well, I remember cutting the record, like I said, in Atlanta.
10:31I found a sample.
10:32Yeah.
10:33You know, Jermaine was working on something on the album and I was like,
10:36oh, you heard his new edition album?
10:37I'm like, no.
10:38I'm like, man, this, this, da, da, da, da.
10:39I'm like, it's leaving you again.
10:41I'm like, it's something about this record that's so special.
10:43We gotta, JD, please, like, mess around with it.
10:45Yeah.
10:46When he did it, I got chills now talking about when he did it, I just felt it.
10:49I said, this is number one.
10:50All day.
10:51I just felt it.
10:52And then, at the time, C was on fire.
10:55About to be certified triple platinum on goodies on her first album.
10:58Yeah.
10:59And it just made so much sense that at that time, you know, that moment in my life when
11:04we were together then, it just made the most sense to record.
11:07I'm the youngest, hottest cat in the game.
11:09She's the youngest female in the game.
11:10And at that time, we were dating and it just made perfect sense for us to collab together
11:14with Jermaine, the pre-product.
11:15And boom, there you have it.
11:16Number one.
11:17Yeah.
11:18Like that.
11:19Yeah.
11:20First one out of the game.
11:21Yeah.
11:22I mean, knowing that you had said before, like, this was like 17 going on 18.
11:24I think this was like the first and like you endorsed the relationship.
11:28Like, was that tricky for you trying to make a hit, but also like putting that relationship
11:32out there?
11:33No, it wasn't tricky.
11:34Yeah.
11:35And it's been done before.
11:36Right.
11:37I think with us, it was the timing.
11:39It was effortless.
11:40Yeah.
11:41You know, it just made sense.
11:42And I don't even think we were in the studio together.
11:43I think I knocked my stuff out and then she came to Southside later, I believe.
11:47Like later on and did her parts.
11:49So, I just knew it.
11:50Like, it just made perfect sense.
11:52It was the perfect marriage for that record and nobody else could have sung that hook
11:56and did that verse.
11:57Like how she delivered on that record.
11:58That's funny.
11:59Gotta talk about Fresh As I Miss.
12:06Initially, cats were like, yo, they thought it was a diss to Romeo.
12:10Yeah, it wasn't.
12:11And I remember you clarified that.
12:12Yeah.
12:13But why do you think there was such like a competitive streak to see you guys collide back then?
12:17I just think you got two young black kids, braids.
12:20Yeah.
12:21Both have hip hop pioneers behind them.
12:23I had the Mickey Mouse.
12:24I believe Ron was wearing the Bugs Bunny.
12:26Yeah, yeah, yeah.
12:27But later on in life, when me and him had a conversation, we spoke and he kept it real.
12:31He said, bro, I looked up to you.
12:32Like, I'm not even gonna lie.
12:33Like, you know, you always wanted us to be pent against each other and I always wanted
12:36to be close to you and with you.
12:39Like, you know, when he told me that I just took that in, like, as a form of big bro,
12:44little bro.
12:45Like, you know, he's a grown man now.
12:46I'm a grown man now.
12:47But, Ron, that's my guy, man.
12:48I have the utmost respect for him.
12:49And it was never an issue.
12:50I just think that the media, they were trying to make it something.
12:54And then when I came out with Fresh Some Men's, the whole line, 18, make it more than your
12:57dad, which if people know hip hop, that's a line from another iconic rapper.
13:02I think they took that line right there and spent that, which I understand at that moment.
13:08Yeah, I definitely wasn't talking about Ron at all.
13:10Right.
13:11A few more questions before we wrap.
13:12We spoke about it off camera.
13:13I gotta ask you about your iconic verse on, oh, I think they like me.
13:18Yeah, yeah, yeah.
13:24You wanna know the story behind that?
13:25Please do it.
13:26I capped off your 05 run.
13:27Didn't like the record when I first heard it.
13:29Did not like the song.
13:30Didn't understand it.
13:31I think that's when we were entering that new wave of hip hop.
13:34You know what I mean?
13:35That's when Atlanta, the snap music started kind of taking over.
13:37Yeah.
13:38I'm an 80s baby, but also I grew up under, like, I was a death row baby.
13:42So I grew up off of hip hop.
13:43Yeah, bars.
13:44So I didn't understand repeating the same word over and over and over again.
13:47With that being said, I was just like, J.D., I don't know how I'm gonna be able to get
13:51down with this.
13:52You know what I mean?
13:53Like, this, I don't know how this is gonna work.
13:55I remember Jermaine flying out to L.A.
13:56Like, you're getting on this record.
13:58Yeah.
13:59Like, regardless.
14:00Like, I don't care if I gotta force you to do it.
14:02Like, even though he couldn't do that, I whooped J.D.'s ass.
14:04He's like, J.D. comes in my chin.
14:06All right?
14:07I love Jermaine.
14:08I love J.D.
14:09He knows that.
14:10He's here, running around here somewhere.
14:11But, no, he really flew all the way to L.A.
14:13I think I was filming a movie.
14:15I pulled up to the studio.
14:16I was pissed.
14:17I did not want to do it.
14:19The respect that I have for Jermaine is like, all right, whatever.
14:22Let's do it.
14:23All right, whatever.
14:24Little do you know, true story.
14:26The version of Only Anything Like Me that you hear, that's it.
14:29One take, and I left the booth, and I went back to the set.
14:32Wow.
14:33Yeah, I did not want to do it.
14:34I did not want to do the record.
14:35I didn't understand it.
14:36It was new to me.
14:37And it's crazy, because people say that's the hardest verse.
14:39Yep.
14:40And I really, like, thank God for mixing, because I rapped it so bland.
14:44Mmm.
14:45Like, you could tell, like, I didn't want to be here.
14:47Yeah.
14:48And I did it like that.
14:49Like, I never rapped in the same tone, ever.
14:52That's the only verse where I rapped in the same tone, ever.
14:55And, you know, Jermaine is like the king of ad-libs, so he had to get behind it.
14:58Spice it up a little bit.
14:59Yeah, yeah, yeah.
15:00But yeah, I did it one take, and it was gone.
15:02It said, there it is.
15:03Yeah.
15:04Take it how you take it.
15:05Next thing you know, number one record.
15:07And I'm like...
15:08It's a heater.
15:09I do like this shit down there.
15:10I like this.
15:11I like this a lot.
15:12It's a heater.
15:13It's a heater.
15:14We got to fast forward, and I want to talk about the new record you got coming out with
15:18C Breezy.
15:19Obviously, y'all got history, Shorty Like Mine.
15:21Shorty Like Mine.
15:23You got it, girl, but she ain't nothing like mine.
15:26Talk about the Use Me record, produced by a hit maker.
15:29Got a nice sample.
15:30I'll let you talk about that.
15:32Yes.
15:33What can we expect from that record?
15:35You do not want to hear it because you're going to hear it so much.
15:38Spring, summer, and all through the year is just what it is.
15:41It's hard to deny nostalgia.
15:43Yeah.
15:44When you see two artists come together that don't necessarily need one another.
15:48You know what I mean?
15:49Like, Chris doesn't need Val.
15:51Yeah.
15:52And, you know, he does what he does.
15:53And you're here with me now, and I'm doing what I'm doing, right?
15:56Yeah.
15:57But we know, and the fans know, we come together as a collective.
16:00Expect nothing but greatness.
16:02It's just everything.
16:03Me and Brown don't miss.
16:04No, never.
16:05We do not miss.
16:06We've never missed.
16:07I feel like this record's better than anything about you, for sure.
16:08I feel like we topped anything about you with this one.
16:11Shorty is the first collaboration.
16:12You know your first baby, always.
16:14Yeah.
16:15That's the one you hold tight.
16:16You hold tight.
16:17Damn, this one right here is going to be running up.
16:19Like, I feel like, you know, where I'm at now in my career, where Brown is at.
16:23In the world, no, that's my best friend.
16:24That's my dog.
16:25That's my brother.
16:26You know, we got a group chat.
16:27We talk every day.
16:28Like, it's my dog.
16:29And the fans know that.
16:30So when we come together, it's just organic.
16:32I'm happy that, you know, like I said, I love doing records with people that I love
16:35and people who I rock with.
16:36And so for me to throw something out here and do it with my man.
16:40And honestly, I'm going to give all the credit to Brown, man.
16:42Brown, I remember being at his house one time.
16:43He was like, what you doing, bro?
16:44Like, I need battle back.
16:45Like, we need you, bro.
16:47Like, you tripping.
16:48Like, gang, what we doing?
16:50And it kind of woke me up.
16:52He was right.
16:53He was like, you're sitting on arenas.
16:54You ain't putting out no new music.
16:55You got to put out.
16:56It's time to compete again.
16:57Like, I need you.
16:58So when he put that battery in my back, I said, all right.
17:00And I had to make sure it was going to be that one.
17:01So shout out to Hitmaker.
17:02Shout out to Brown.
17:03And I can't wait.
17:04You know the ladies going to dig it.
17:06Oh, they're going crazy.
17:07They're going to eat this one up.
17:08They're going to go crazy.
17:09And I'm glad that we got the sample cleared in time.
17:12Yeah.
17:13And got everything taken care of.
17:14And as soon as you hit play on that record or it just come on,
17:17you're going to know it because everybody love the original.
17:21Yep.
17:22But this motherfucker is...
17:24It's an instant banger.
17:25Woo!
17:26It's an instant banger.
17:27Like that, for sure.
17:28No cap in the rap.
17:29None.
17:30Because he's a busy man, he's about to, you know, do his biz soon.
17:32Before we let you go, please tell us your favorite Billboard moment.
17:36So I won two Billboard Awards for the tour.
17:41I would say tops a lot of things because I didn't have to put out a new record.
17:46For me to win a Billboard Music Award for touring in today's era, it was just like, yo, I needed that.
17:54Like, for self-confidence.
17:56I felt like we put our all into that tour.
17:58Like, we bust our ass.
18:00Getting Snoop to come out.
18:01Getting Chris to come out.
18:02Just getting...
18:03Like, you was at the show and I brought out the whole damn East Coast.
18:06You know what I'm saying?
18:07Yeah.
18:08You know, I put so much into my shows.
18:10And that one right there just meant everything for me.
18:13And it's like you said, who you were going against in those categories too.
18:15Again, I'm going against Lil Baby and J. Cole.
18:17Like, two heavyweights, two guys that are doing it.
18:20And then you look at the category and you just see Bao.
18:22And it's like, wait, where Bao come?
18:23Like, what do you mean?
18:24Oh, you want to know?
18:25I got to wake you, motherfucker.
18:26You want to see what's going on?
18:27I bet.
18:28We out here.
18:29I'm shaking it up too.
18:30That one meant so much to me.
18:32Like, I was so happy.
18:33Like, you don't understand.
18:35Like, the award right now is in my living room.
18:37Like, shining.
18:38Even at night.
18:39It's just polished.
18:40I just love looking at that gold microphone.
18:42It's just...
18:43You deserve, man.
18:44I love it.
18:45We calling him.
18:46I appreciate you taking the time.
18:47Come on, bro.
18:48I hope we got another one up there with this Use Me record with me and see Breezy.
18:50Which is a banger.
18:51So be on the lookout for that.
18:52Appreciate Bao Weezy for kicking it with us at Billboard News in Conversation.
18:57All that.
18:58Get them tickets.
18:59Who catch the boy on the roll?
19:00Millennium 225.
19:01You know we headed your way.