The first time I saw Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott, she was rapping in an inflated bin-bag onesie, short black hair gelled down in curlicues, black lipstick on, and dancing jerkily into a fisheye lens. This was the video for The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly); I had to keep watching, mouth agape.
Missy, 43, is a musician, but she is so much more: a songwriter with superb talent and exquisite wordplay, and a rapper whose smart flow is of a style entirely her own. She is also a producer with verve, a champion of female musicians (Ciara and Tweet, to name just two) and an animated live performer. There is no music she could make that I would not listen to, because even if I did not like it, I would find it interesting. Missy has me by the heart, as well as the wallet.
After years of chart and critical success – collaborating with, among several others, childhood friend Timbaland – she slid into gentle semi-retirement, following a diagnosis of Graves’ disease, an autoimmune disorder that attacks the thyroid gland.
Last month, Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign used her 2001 anthem, Get Ur Freak On, as the soundtrack to their hit TV ad. It underlined Missy’s influence all these years later – even when she’s not putting out new music, she is still exciting, and classic.
Last weekend, she performed at the Super Bowl half-time show, effortlessly stealing the show from headliner Katy Perry.
There are rumours and reports she’s back in the studio, making new music. I’ll be here, wallet and heart open, waiting for Missy.
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