Bow Wow has long been known for being mentored by Jermaine Dupri, but he now says that T.I.‘s guidance was even more crucial.
In an interview with The Art of Dialogue, the rapper and actor was asked about his relationship with Tip, and responded by looking back on the creation of his third album, 2003’s Unleashed.
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That record was, Bow Wow explained, “the first album I did without Jermaine at all, completely.”
He said that at the suggestion of his then-A&R person, the legendary executive Kawan “KP” Prather, T.I. was brought in to work on the project. But he ended up playing a much bigger role.
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“This is before the King album, this is before A.T.L., this is young Tip,” Bow Wow remembered. “Me and Tip wrote that third album together with my man R.O.C..”
Bow Wow gave lead single “Let’s Get Down” as an example, saying that he, T.I. and R.O.C. each wrote one verse. But T.I.’s influence went beyond just penning rhymes.
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“Me and Tip really kicked it,” Bow Wow continued. “We had moments, especially in the studio: him giving me that freedom, him teaching me how to write — cadence, bars, song structure, just everything.
“He was giving me the answers that I wanted Jermaine to give me. He was definitely a hundred in the studio. Tip was, that’s my dog. Even to this day, that’s my big bro right there.”
Check the whole segment below.
The Art of Dialogue interview isn’t the only time in recent memory that Bow Wow has talked about the importance of a mentor who wasn’t J.D.
Back in 2022, the “I’m a Flirt” rapper went as far as to say he wished he’d stuck with Snoop Dogg rather than teaming up with Dupri. Snoop originally discovered Bow Wow in the early 1990s, and the youngster appeared on Snoop’s Doggystyle album and in the “Gin and Juice” music video.
When someone on social media asked: “If you could go back and change anything from the past what would it be?” Bow Wow replied: “Stayed w Snoop. And never signed w nobody else.”
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The comment was perceived as a jab at Dupri considering Bow Wow was signed to So So Def in the late ’90s. He dropped two albums with the imprint — 2000’s Beware of the Dog and 2001’s Doggy Bag — before signing to Columbia Records for Unleashed.
The album was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) shortly after its release, proving to Bow Wow he didn’t need Dupri to make a hit.
