Rick Ross Says He Shifted To Stock Strategy After 50 Cent Mocked Wingstop Business

Rick Ross said he shifted his focus from Wingstop franchises to stocks after 50 Cent mocked a report linking stores to his family’s companies.

A man on X named Eric Jackson said he traced 32 store numbers listed under the family’s Boss Wings companies in Wingstop’s state filings.

He found 21 open stores at the end of 2016 and just one in Clarksdale at the end of 2025. He said 28 of the store numbers were now listed under other franchisees. Jackson’s count covered the family companies he tracked, and he said the filings gave no price or reason for the changes.

50 Cent used the report to take another shot at his longtime rival. “See this fool only has one location, LOL,” he wrote on Instagram.

Ross offered a different view of his Wingstop ties, telling fans he still backed the brand.

“People in my DM want to know if I’m still a lemon pepper stepper. Of course I am. It’s Ricky Ros. I love Wingstop. Always will,” Ross said.

“My game went from more franchising to stocks. I was down with Wingstop before stocks. You understand? A franchise is amazing experience. I wouldn’t trade it for the world. But the stock game is a whole another game. And the way I went into the stocks, you could have 200 franchises and not play at that level.”

Ross did not say how many shares he held, when he bought them or what he paid. Nor did he give a price for any store sales.

Ross got into Wingstop long before it went public. The rap star said his interest began with its lemon pepper wings in Miami. In August 2011, the chain said he had signed a deal to open stores in Memphis. His first location was set to open that fall.

Ross took over a Miami location in 2012, his second investment in the chain at the time. He also planned a meet-and-greet at the store.

The chain later made its Nasdaq debut in June 2015 under the ticker WING, with shares offered at $19.

By September 2021, Ross was talking about how much his stores had grown. In an interview with Trapital’s Dan Runcie, he recalled reaching 25 stores but said he no longer knew his exact count.

He spoke about opening a store in Clarksdale, his mother’s hometown, and thanked his mother, sister and team.

Ross also stressed that buying a franchise was only part of the job. He said new owners had to find staff, pick managers and decide whom to trust with the money.

In his latest response, he still urged fans to order from the chain.

“So, still pull up the Wings Stop. Go get them lemon peppers. Still a ten piece shawty. That’s official,” Ross said.