The outrageous story of Bowwowwow has its beginnings in 1980, when the former band members of Adam and the Ants consulted Malcolm Mclaren (creator of The Sex Pistols) about refreshing their image. He suggested that they abandon their leader, Adam Ant, and form a new band. The story takes a youthful turn when a 14 year-old girl, Myant Myant Aye, an immigrant from Burma, took a job at a London dry-cleaners. She was singing to the radio one day at work when a friend of McLaren heard her singing and told her that a new band was holding an audition for a singer. She tried out and got the job, changing her name to Annabella Lwin. The combination of Annabella's sexy teen allure, the band's pulsating tribal rhythms, and the provocative, sex-laden lyrics, sung passionately and breathlessly by Annabella, virtually guaranteed that Bowwowwow would make a splash on both sides of the Atlantic, which they soon did.
Bowwowwow had the good fortune of hitting their stride as MTV was becoming a launch pad for new artists. The band's savage looks, and Annabella's irresistible, sexy charm served them well on their smash-hit video "I Want Candy," which featured a Mohawked Annabella sauntering on a candy cane laden beach in a wet t-shirt. The video and song got enormous play in the US and gave Bowwowwow their one and only US hit. The band had success in the UK as well, with several songs hitting the UK charts. Despite several albums and concert tours, Bowwowwow decided to call it quits in 1983 after their last album, "When the going gets tough, the tough get going," failed to sell well. The members of Bowwowwow went their own way, with Annabella starting a solo career. In 1998 Annabella and one other member reformed to do a reunion tour, which was quite popular and well received by new and old fans alike.