Missy Elliott’s 2015 resurgence into the mainstream is quite a frankly, a strange event.
There is no doubt in my mind that Missy is a legendary Hip Hop artist, an emcee who flipped the script on what fans expected would come from a female on the mic. Where contemporaries like Lil’ Kim had some semblance of sex appeal to thank for winning over male listeners, Missy was strictly concerned with being a dope rapper. Missy’s refusal to compromise or bend to music industry execs seasoned her music with a heavy serving of rebelliousness.
I have to say I’m not really that into this track. It’s definitely solid, but my expectations for Missy are much higher than a catchy hit song. Having gotten that out of the way, my beef is not with Missy but with the weird worship new fans have for this track. I’ve seen many a post regarding her as a savior sliding back into a male dominated genre. Mind you, these posts are from the same people who don’t know who Jean Grae is, have never heard an MC Lyte song, probably think Rah Digga is some kind of slang term, and only know Rapsody from her verse on Kendrick’s “Complexion”.
What I’m getting at, is there’s a lack in actual support for female emcees. If Missy came through over a Preemo beat trading bars with Jean Grae, the amount of, “yaass Missy Queen” comments would be pitifully low. Hip Hop still has a gender problem, but I’m not that sure that people freaking out over Missy are at all invested in actually solving it.
Regardless, the video is rad and I hope Missy comes through with some more stripped back tracks where she can do what she does best. Spit.
art by your homie, Arthur Banach
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