Teresa Caldwell – Before the “Bow…Wow!”
www.bet.com
Teresa Caldwell is a savvy businesswoman. Early in life she learned the importance of self-expression and independence. Successful in her own right she has also done an exceptional job as business manager to rapper, actor and philanthropist, Shad Gregory Moss, her son, better known as “Bow Wow.” From the depths of struggle she managed to bring herself and her son to the heights of success. Along with business principles she taught him the importance and value of giving, compassion, respect, dignity and determination as equal parts of a successful career.
She has every right to be a proud Fly Mommy.
(Interview with Flaimahmy, August 11, 2009)
FM: We know that you are Bow Wow’s mother. However, could you tell us about Teresa Caldwell?
TC: Teresa is a very successful Black woman who raised her child as a single parent and who struggled a lot. I was determined to be a positive role model for not only myself but for my son and also for other young mothers out there just to let them know that you can do it because I did it.
FM: What were your dreams as a young girl?
TC: My dreams were always to be very spiritual and to be the best person that I could be. Also, I always liked fashion. When I was younger I always knew someday that I was going to own my own because in my mind I would rather own than be owned. That motto always stayed with me. I was always the type of person who would work hard. I was a go-getter. Then I realized that if I’m going to work this hard for somebody else, I would rather work hard for myself. I started my own business when I was in my early twenties.
FM: Were your parents strict?
TC: My parents were divorced. I was that little girl who was grown at fifteen. I left home at a young age so I had to learn to survive and to grow up at a very young age. I had to be grown at fifteen…sixteen…I was grown…in my mind.
FM: Who were you influenced by as a child?
TC: The only person that I can say that I really was influenced by was my Heavenly Father. He’s always been my best friend. Even as a little girl I dreamed and believed in my dreams. Without Him and with all the things that I’ve gone through in my life, I wouldn’t be the woman or the mother that I am today. He was the one person that never left me. I understood that at a very young age and I understood that no one is perfect. I tried to befriend everybody and I wanted everybody to like me and to accept me. Then it would hurt my feelings when people would talk about me. But, I learned that they talked about Jesus. So what makes me think they’re not going to talk about me. I’m very spiritual but also I live my life.
FM: In 2008, your son led a 15-city “Walk Across America” event to register voters. Where did that activism come from? Did you discuss politics as he was growing up and how proud were you of his involvement in that walk?
TC: I really didn’t get into politics until I had to pay taxes. When I started my own business and my accountants were like, “Teresa, you’ve got to pay taxes and it was six figures!” I’m like, “Ohhh Lord… are you serious?” I didn’t understand the whole tax thing so I was kinda mad about it and was asking why do we have to pay taxes. I did my research and I went to the Bible and I understood why we had to pay our taxes. I understood it so I had to teach him that because when it was time for him to pay taxes he was like “Mom, forget the IRS are you serious, you mean I’ve got to pay taxes?” I said “Yeah.”
When I broke it down to him I said, “It’s not about what we all think it is, it’s about what they say we have to do in the Bible. That’s just something that we have to do.” Then when Barack was running for president that’s when Bow really got into it and we started talking about it because he wasn’t always into politics. We started talking about it and he was the one who came up with that idea. He called me and said, “Mom, I have an idea, I want to do something,” and I said, “What?” He brought that idea to me and also to his other manager, Michael Malden. We went to Sony and they made it happen.
FM: How did you manage your time as his career was taking off at such a young age and do you have any regrets?
TC: Bow and I are very very very tight. We have a bond that can’t be broken. We are so much alike and he respects me as his mother. I tell everybody that I am not Bow’s friend, I’m his mother. I drew that line a long time ago…like…”You will respect me and you will respect me as your mother.” I don’t have to kiss his butt. I’m not one of those celebrity parents that will kiss their son’s butt or kiss the artist’s butt. I don’t do that. I don’t have to because I have my own. Bow doesn’t take care of me; I take care of myself.
I have my own companies; I have invested my own money. I don’t even take commission from him. I manage him but I don’t even take commission from him because I feel that kid celebrities have so much pressure put on them, not just celebrities, but people who are wealthy; it’s so much pressure put on them because they have to take care of their family members and that’s something I didn’t want my son to have to go through…like I’ve got to do this because I’ve got to take care of my mom…no, no, no, no…you do this because this is something you want to do…these are your dreams they’re not my dreams.
I think as a parent I feel like I had to make his dreams come true and that’s what I did. I put my personal life on the back burner and I focused on his dreams. Then I thought that once he was eighteen he was going to be out of my house and I could live my life. That’s not true, nobody told me that’s what parents go through. I thought that at eighteen they’re grown. I left at fifteen so I thought “You’re eighteen, you’re grown, peace, get out of my house.” That’s just what I did. “You’re eighteen, you’ve got to go.” At eighteen he bought a house around the corner from me. But, I realized that kids never grow up; they always need their parents because he needs me more now than ever. It’s so much stuff out in the world that we as parents try to protect our kids from and I think what I did with Bow is I let him go…go figure it out…go… get away from me…go make these mistakes. I would rather for Bow to make mistakes at a young age than for him to wait until he’s thirty years old and make some dumb mistakes.
FM: When was it that you saw that he was going to be a big star? At what age did you see that in him?
TC: I used to call him the weird kid. When he was a baby he was so advanced. He was smart, at one he was potty trained…he was talking. I was thinking “There is something wrong with this child.” He was just gifted. When he was two I started him into modeling. He was doing print and commercial at two. At three he was into mumbling, trying to rap because I was into rap. One of my favorite groups was N.W.A . and you know N.W.A. said bad words. So, this little three to four year old was singing “F… tha police com’n straight from the…etc.” He remembered all those lyrics. I’m like “Oh my gosh!” He would be in the car going “F…tha police!” I would say, “You can’t say that!” I mean like Ice Cube…he loved it and that’s what I listened to and we were so close. He would be mumbling. And, oh my God, he would go in the kitchen and all my utensils would be out all over the floor. I’m like, “What are you doing?” He would be rapping and I’m like ”Ok, this kid is talented.” I noticed that.
I also knew that God was going to bless me because I had gone through so much in my childhood. I knew that there was light at the end of the tunnel. I always said that one day I’m going to be wealthy. I knew that was going to happen to me and I saw it through my son. With the help of my Heavenly Father I went there. People say that Bow acts normal like this is nothing. What people don’t realize is Bow’s been in entertainment since he was three years old. As far as big homes and all that, that’s what he is used to because I always had a good job. He was born with me driving a BMW, you know? I showed him that in order to get these things you have to work hard at it. He saw me struggle; he saw me work; he saw me work three jobs to have all that. He saw that.
FM: We know that you own Taste Clothing Boutique. Is that your hidden artist coming out?
TC: I was a stylist for about ten years. So when I moved to Atlanta from California I noticed that something was missing here. It was hard for me to pull clothes for a lot of my clients. I would think what am I supposed to do now? I had to fly from New York to LA all the time to buy clothes and when I was doing videos I was wondering what we were going to do here. What I did with all of my contacts at first I thought Taste is going to be a supper club because that is what I wanted to do. I saw the building, everything, and was going to open it up in Mid-town. But, of course, God came in and redirected me and made me pull up to this little shopping center near my house and there was this little soft voice that said “Ok, get out of the car this is it.” I said, “What am I going to do with this little thing?” This was not fly! I heard Him speaking to me and He said, “What’s your passion?” I was like, “My passion?…Fashion” and He said, ”Ok.” I said, “What!…no, no, no, no, no…no!… I’m trying to open a supper club.” He said, “No.” So I went ahead and listened to the voice and took His guidance. I didn’t know anything about running a store; I didn’t know how to get the clothes, nothing.
So I get the store. Then I’m wondering “Now what am I supposed to do.” “How am I going to get the clothes?” I had no idea. So I go to Chicago. I went to this little boutique. I thought, “This is fun, this is cute.” I asked who did the buying and they told me. I emailed the girl and offered her a job. I didn’t know her. She took the job and we set the store up and that’s how Taste got started. I had no idea what I was doing and then the funny thing is nobody would sell clothes to me.
When I walked in the places there were nothing but White people and Asians. I’m like, “I’m the only Black, what’s up?” So, nobody would sell to me. I would say, ”I’ve got a new store in Atlanta, a new boutique…they would say “Sorry, we’re closed, we can’t sell to you.” I would try to get True Religion and all that stuff. People don’t understand that stuff was hard to get. I had to go back because I knew a lot of people in the industry. The man that owns a lot of these lines I ran into at one of the shows and he said, “What’s wrong?” I said, ”I opened a store and nobody will sell to me.” He said, “Yes they will,” so he took me around and opened the doors for me. That’s how I got a lot of my clothes and stuff. Also, Puff helped me out a lot because trying to get the clothes they wanted you to pay cash. They don’t trust a lot of us. I called Puff and said “I need a favor” and he put in a good word for me and that opened a lot of doors.
FM: Everyone has a story. I’ve always enjoyed these interviews because you learn so much.
TC: Oh yeah. It wasn’t easy.
FM: I get so caught up in the interviews.
FM: Name one place in the world that you would really like to visit.
TC: Greece.
FM: Why?
TC: One of my girlfriends went there and the pictures were so pretty and it looked like it was so peaceful. They were out in the middle of the water and this house set out there in the middle. I felt just peace.
FM: We consider you to be a Fly Mommy. In your own words what do you think makes you a Fly Mommy?
TC: What makes me fly is my personality…of course fashion…my looks. My presence…when I step into a room I want people to feel me. Success. When I speak you can feel that I’m very spiritual, that I’m in tune with something that a lot of people aren’t and I’m a great, great mother. I’m a great friend. I’m a great person.
