Rick Ross is moving away from Wingstop and has explained why he’s shifting his business focus.
In a new video shared on social media, the rapper discussed his decision to redirect his investments away from the chicken wing franchise business. “People in my DMs want to know if I’m still a lemon pepper stepper. Of course I am. It’s Ricky Ross. I love Wingstop. Always will,” he said.
“My game went from more franchising to stocks. I was down with Wingstop before stocks. You understand? A franchise is an amazing experience. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. But the stock game is a whole other game. And the way I went into the stocks, you could have 200 franchises and not play at that level,” Ross added.
The MMG rapper’s comments follow a review by investor Eric Jackson of nine years of Wingstop state franchise filings. Jackson shared the findings, which showed that companies under the Boss Wings name associated with Ross’ family had 21 restaurants operating at the end of 2016.
However, by the end of 2025, the same records listed just one active Wingstop location under the Boss Wings umbrella. The remaining restaurant is in Clarksdale, Mississippi, the hometown of Ross’ mother.
The revelations also gave 50 Cent an opportunity to poke fun at his longtime rival over the situation. Taking to Instagram, Fif mocked Ross, writing, “See this fool only has one location, LOL.”
Ross has made Wingstop a major part of his businessman image for years, which helps explain why records showing just one remaining location quickly gained attention. One notable development came in 2022, when Wingstop announced that Boss Wings had transferred its Memphis restaurants to a new operator.
Ross previously shared that his interest in the franchise began in Miami after he tried its famous lemon pepper wings. In August 2011, Wingstop announced that he had signed a deal to open restaurants in Memphis.
