His road trip starts April 13 in Cincinnati – near the 13-year-old rap sensation’s hometown of Columbus, Ohio – and so far takes him to 21 major-market cities.

He’ll also perform a three-night stand May 18-20 at Earthlink Live in Atlanta and a two-nighter June 1-2 at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. Additional dates are expected to be announced shortly.

The tour reportedly will be aimed at kids; shows will take place primarily on weekends and will have early start times so his school-age fans will be able to attend.

Lil’ Bow Wow’s debut album, Beware of Dog, was released September 26 and debuted at No. 8 on the Billboard Top 200 album chart. It has already been certified double-platinum by the RIAA.

The disc spawned a top single, “Bow Wow (That’s My Name),” and two videos. Lil’ Bow Wow was also recently nominated for two Nickelodeon Kid’s Choice 2001 Awards – best male and favorite song – and has been cast in MTV’s upcoming “hip-hopera” based on Bizet’s classic opera, “Carmen.”

Before his first album was even released, he was already working on movie soundtracks including “Wild Wild West” and “Big Momma’s House.”

Not too shabby for a kid who’s not quite ready for high school. Even at his tender age, he is a music industry veteran. Lil’ Bow Wow got his start with an impromptu freestyle between sets at a Snoop Dogg show in Columbus when he was 6 years old.

Snoop took notice and bestowed the canine moniker on the tyke known as Shad to his friends.

Despite seven years in show biz, Lil’ Bow Wow has managed to keep a level head – avoiding profanity-laced lyrics and maintaining above-average grades in school, all under the watchful tutelage of mentor and executive producer Jermaine Dupri.