Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott has cemented herself as hip-hop royalty. After dedicating 30 years to the game, Missy has an extensive catalog of hit singles, classic albums,and iconic music videos with hit production and songwriting credits. Elliot with close friend and collaborator Timbaland led an entire era of popular hip-hop and R&B with their eccentric sound and style. Years later, Elliot would be recognized as one of Hip-Hop's most influential acts of all time.
From her raunchy sexually explicit lyrics to her adamant position on body positivity, Missy Elliott was a standout female rapper from the beginning of her career. She is known for her animated performances and unceasing creativity.
In honor of Missy’s 50th birthday (June 1), we reminisce on Elliotts most memorable verses, iconic one liners, and most memorable song lyrics. The Virginia MC is known for her tongue and cheek song lyrics, sexually explicit bars, and experimental instrumentals. Here are 50 of Missy Elliot’s most memorable lyrics from her career!
Get Ur Freak On
“Quiet !!!
Shh, hush yo mouth
Silence when I, spit it out
In yo face
Open yo mouth, Give you a taste
(Holla) Aint no stoppin me
Copywritten so, don’t copy me”
Released as the first single on Missy’s third studio album, Miss E… So Addictive, “Get Ur Freak On”, encompasses all of the elements that make Missy Elliot one of the most creative and innovative artists of her generation. Missy raps brash lyrics over Timbaland’s bhangra-inspired instrumental, based on the cultural music and dance that originated from the Punjab state of India.
The record is one of Missy’s biggest hits songs to date, peaking at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The song is paired with the iconic music video, directed by Dave Meyers, featuring play for play shots of Missy’s vivid lyrics and cameos from Ludacris, LL Cool J, Ja Rule, Busta Rhymes, and Eve. The song is a quintessential part of Missy’s catalog, with farcical lyrics, an infectious flow, and Timbaland’s signature production, “Get Ur Freak On,” remains Elliot’s magnum opus.
Work It
“Boy, lift it up, let's make a toast-a
Let's get drunk, that's gonna bring us closer
Don't I look like a Halle Berry poster?
See the Belvedere playin' tricks on you”
Acting as the lead single from Missy’s 2002 album, Under Construction, “Work It” is an ode to classic hip-hop. The song samples old school hits, Run D.M.C.’s “Peter Piper” and Rock Master Scott & the Dynamic Three’s “Request Line.” The song would age to become a classic of its own, featuring the now-iconic reversed lyrics. With the popularization of the slang term "badonkadonk,” the single has become a timeless classic in its own right.
In her second verse, Missy flirts with a man at a bar, convincing him to get drunk until the beer goggles start to kick in. Never shy to poke fun of herself and her figure, Missy was an early spokesperson for woman’s body positivity in the early 2000s.
The Dave Meyers-directed music video won Video of the Year at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards, making it one of the most influential videos of all time.
The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)
“Yeah..
Beep beep, who got the keys to the Jeep? V-r-rrrrrrrooooom!
(uh-huh) I'm drivin to the beach
Top down, loud sounds, see my peeps (uhh)
Give them pounds, now look who it be (who it be)
It be me me me and Timothy (me me!)
Look like it's bout to rain, what a shame (uh-huh)
I got the Armor-All to shine up the stain”
Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliot came out of the gates blazing with her debut single, “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly).” With production from her partner in crime, Timbaland, the song works as the perfect introduction to the Virginia Beach natives. With Timbo’s spacy instrumental and Missy’s witty wordplay, the lead single to her 1997 debut album, Supa Dupa Fly, laid out the blueprint for the duo’s undeniable chemistry.
The Hype Williams-directed music video was released on June 3, 1997. The video was the first of Missy’s career, notable for its wide-angle cinematography, Missy’s shiny leather suit with fisheye goggles. The video was a testament to Elliot’s left-field character and fearlessness.
Monica (So Gone)
“Drive pass your house every night
In an unmarked car
Wondering what she had on me
To make you break my heart, yeah”
Although Missy takes a backseat on vocals on Monica’s 2003, “So Gone”, she handles all lead production and songwriting credits on the song. The lyrics are classy Missy, reminiscent of her more vulnerable tracks like “You Don’t Know” or “Friendly Skies”.
The single was Monica’s biggest commercial hit since her early years as a then teen star. The record would reach number 10 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts, proving that Missy was an undeniable hitmaker on or off the track.
Sock It 2 Me
“I was lookin for affection
So I decided to go, swing that dick in my direction
I'll be out of control
Let's take it to perfection
Just you and me
Let's see if you can bring the nasty out of me
Now now now now sock it”
The classic Delfonics’ sample on Missy and Da Brats, “Sock It 2 Me”, makes the single a standout on Missy’s debut album, Supa Dupa Fly. The song is led with horns taken from the classic soul hit, “Ready or Not Here I Come(Can’t Hide From Love)”, with a signature Timbaland breakbeat.
Ragtime Interlude/I’m Really Hot
This interlude is a classic Missy and Timbaland club banger. With Timbland’s infectios drum pattern and synths make it impossible not to move to this track. The track is a callback to classic hip-hop with scratching and a sample of DJ, Fatman Scoop ad-libbing fills the background of the track.
Beep Me 911
“Why you cheatin' on me?
Can you tell me what I've done
I thought you was the one
But you just a hit and run”
Missy’s 1998 single, “Beep Me 911” from her classic debut album “Supa Dupa Fly” featuring R&B trio 702 and a verse from Magoo. Missy uses a seductive tone throughout the song as she croons her man that intends to leave her to call her before he goes.
Missy was never shy to get sexy on her tracks, with songs covering themes of fellatio, premature ejaculation, and relationships all while sporting a puggy jumpsuit in her music videos. Elliot has expressed the importance of her being a figure for young women to be themselves. She was an early symbol of body positivity in hip-hop, becoming one of the most iconic women in hip-hop of all time.
Friendly Skies
“I'm stewardess of the plane
Feel the turbulence and maintain
Please refrain stay in your seats
Until we reach the game”
Missy Elliot displays early signs of her undeniable versatility on the slow jam “Friendly Skies”, featuring R&B crooner, Ginuwine. The song plays off the metaphor that Missy is a flight attendant on her partner’s plane. “Feel the turbulence in your seats until we reach the game,” Missy sings on the infectious refrain.
Twenty years later, Billboard’s Artist of the decade, Drake, would use the sample in his song, “Bria’s Interlude”, to recreate the sensual aura of Missy’s 1997 record.
Beat Biters
"Huh, like spaghetti
Half of y'all MCs be stinkin' like boobetti
So your record label cut you off like confetti
They you wanna call Missy and beg me, (who) ooh beg me beg me"
“She’s a...bitch.” Missy kicks off the first track of her sophomore album, “Da Real World”, calling out all of the artists attempting to imitate the sound she and Timbaland popularized with their debut album. The song kicked off the album with a dark and experimental theme, starting a new era for the duo.
Busa Rhyme
“Y'all better call the police ‘fore I kill this track
Dont shoot, Missy! Get Back
Uh, Imma put you all in the line, uh Imma watch you MCs die
Yo Mommy Mommy, Missy done lost her mind
I think someone done pissed her off this time”
In “Busa Rhyme,” we get an early collaboration between Elliot and then-newcomer, Eminem. As Em gives us his signature cynical lyricism as his evil alter-ego, Slim Shady, we get similar energy from Elliot, as she seems to adopt the spirit of Slim Shady herself and goes complete psychopath. Elliot proves she can hold her own bar for bar with a hungry Eminem in “Busa Rhyme”.
Dangerous Mouths Ft Redman
“I'm from the south you better watch your mouth, Its the M.I
The S.I, if you try then you die, I don't take no mercy on you suckers so
Would you still be in love baby, if I cut your throat, cut the jokes
I ain't got no love for yo, no friends with those, who imitate me ya bold
My style I own, I'ma have to steal your flow, you know me Joe
I gotta say no more, BITCH!”
The hard-hitting, “Dangerous Mouths”, is a duet between Elliott and Newark, New Jersey’s own, Redman. The track finds Missy rapping aggressive raunchy lyrics keeping up with the lyrical mastermind, Reggie Noble, over Timbaland’s bass-heavy instrumental.
Hot Boyz
“What's your name, cause I'm impressed
Can you treat me good, I won't settle for less
You a hot boy, a rock boy
A fun toy, tote a glock boy
Where you live, is it by yourself
Can I move wit' you, do you need some help
I cook boy, I'll give you more
I'mma fly girl, and I like those”
“This is for my ghetto motherfuckers” Missy says in the intro to track six on her sophomore effort, Da Real World. “Hot Boyz” is Elliot’s timeless love letter to dope dealers. She pours her heart out on the track to the glock toting, Jaguar driving, ice wearing “Hot Boyz” that she wants to spend it all on her.
You Don’t Know
"You been suckin' his dick
Tastin' my clit
Just a side chick, on the side bitch
I'm the prize bitch, keep it silent
Don't make me violent
You be dialin' 911 to tell the family"
Missy and frequent colloborattor, Lil’ Mo, find out they are sleeping with the same man on this hip-hop duet. The track is framed out as a phone call, as the two artists argue with eachother over the line until the beat switches, from the mid-tempo R&B tune to the hard hitting diss record as things get heated on the call.
One Minute Man
"Tonight I'ma give it to you, throw it to you
I want you to come prepared, ohhh yeah (oh yes)
Boy it's been a long time, a crazy long time
And I don't want no minute man, and that's real
Give it to me some more"
Missy Elliots 2001 anti premature climax anthem, “One Minute Man,” off her third studio album, “Miss E...So Addictive”, features verses from Ludacris and Miami rapper, Trina. The three trade verses about their distaste for the premature-pop with a memorable verse from “Da Baddest B*tch” herself.
“You know lil mama ain’t with the quik shit, you better break me off stiff tongoue or stiff dick.” Trina started off her verse with this immediate call out to all minute men. The verse was vulgar and in your face, her answer to the misogynistic lyrics and sexist culture of hip-hop. Both Missy Elliott and Trina are no strangers to sexually charged lyrics that are set to empower black women the way hip-hop has always been a vessel for black men.
Lick Shots
"Stop sweatin' me
Flip it on the black hand side
Look it here boy, don't you even try it
Make me dislocate your spine
My rings put your shine like turpentine
What you comin' around hang out fo?
Baby him know, you just want my dough
Get cha black ass on the flo
Fool touch me, that's a no no
Raaah!"
“For those of you who hated, you only made us more creative!” Missy exclaims at the beginning of the infectious party anthem, “Lick Shots”. Missy and Timberland put a stamp on their eccentric sound with this intergalactic instrumental and Missys dynamic energy.
Scream
"I met him in the Bahamas, I love that nigga persona
Smoke that nigga marijuana, get freaky call me Madonna
Lay on the bed he follow, bone him until to-morrah
Make him sing high sopran-ah, AHHHHHHHH!!
Fifty-fo'-fifty-fifty, Mr. Act-Super-Kinky
Baby what you gon' get me, is some rings for my lil' pinkie
Money will multiply, 'fore you run up inside
Make me all weak and tired, mmhmmm."
Step Off
"What part don't you get?
(hey hey)
Even though I'm not your girl anymore
And you don't want me no more
I deserve to know who you sleepin' wit
(ooooh yeah)
Is she better than me? (me me)
Do she cook, do she clean?
Do she sew, do she sting?
Can she do these things?"
“Step Off” works as the counterpart to her single, “You Don’t Know”, as Missy now takes on the role as the sidepiece.
Slap!Slap!Slap!
“Yall wack MC's , yall never never
Talkin hard as a cock but is light as a feather
Yall suspect hoe's yall suspect hoe's
Takin off your clothe yall reject hoe's
Fell the rhythm, I'm bout to kill em”
Missy comes with villainous energy on her track “Slap!Slap!Slap!”, featuring Da Brat and Jade, both serving us with unapologetic and riveting verses. The song is a no holds barred classic rap track as the three hip-hop starlets trade their most gangsta bars. “Takin’ off your clothes, y’all reject hoes,” Missy flexes that she does not have to get naked to sell records some of her female counterparts in hip-hop.
Bring the Pain
“And I came to bring the pain, hardcore to the brain
Ooh baby, what's your name? {HA?}
I love the way you're spittin the game
You made me change from thinkin all guys the same
You the type of guy I wanna marry in months”
A call back to Method Man’s classic track of the same name, Missy Elliott’s, “Bring the Pain” is a modern spin to the 1994 single from Meth’s solo debut, Tical. Missy sings a soulful hook on this funky spin of the original sample. “You made me change from thinking all guys the same,” Missy diverts from her usual “niggas ain’t shit” attitude.
Gossip Folks
"When I walk up in the piece
I ain't gotta even speak
I'm a bad mamajama goddammit motherfucker you ain't gotta like me
How you studying these hoes
Need to talk what you know
And stop talking bout who I'm sticking and licking jus mad it ain't yours
I know ya'll poor ya'll broke"
“Gossip Folks” is a middle finger to the haters. The track comes off of Missy’s fourth studio album, Under Construction. Timbaland samples Frankie Smith’s “Double Dutch Bus” on the refrain of the song. Ludacris kills the second verse of the song, Elliot and Luda are peanut butter and jelly, with their animated personalities complimenting each other on the track.
Back in The Day
“Remember when we used to battle? (uh-huh)
On the block {HA?} before the lights came on
Ohh! Mama said we would be straight A kids (c'mon)
If we did our homework, like we knew those songs
Salt-N-Pepa, Rakim, and P.E. {HA?}
D.M.C, and Heavy D
Yes! Daddy Kane, Slick Rick too (oh-OOH!)
MC Lyte ("Paper Thin") opened, doors for you and me, c'mon”
“Back in The Day” continues the classic hip-hop theme of Under Construction as Missy and Jay-Z reminisce on the early days of hip-hop. The song has a steady groove, with heavy bass and classic breakbeat the song is a cookout anthem. Missy and Jay make references to hip-hop greats such as Big Daddy Kane, Ice Cube, Slick Rick, and MC Lyte.
Funk Fresh Dressed
“It's very necessary, on the contrary
No you do not scare me, is you drinkin' Bloody Mary?
But shit, you betta hurry, before I have to bury
My attitude is bitchy, cuz my period is heavy”
Missy Elliott practices lyrical exercise on the Run-DMC-inspired track, “Funky Fresh Dressed”, where she spits one line after another boasting about her bars and dissing all wack Mcs that dare to battle her. The beat switches to Beastie Boys’ “Paul Revere” on frequent collaborators, Jade’s verse.
Ain't That Funny
"I remember when yo a** was broke, so in love wit me
You were always at home, always talkin' 'bout
'Loan me this, loan me that, now gimme gimme'
And then ya got doe, and decide ya want to leave"
On this track Missy plays a confused girlfriend. After taking care of her boyfriends wants and needs, he finally gets his own money and leaves her. "Loan me this, loan me that, now gimme gimme," sings Missy as she describes her relationship with her gold-digging ex. The song is performed over Timbos classic synths and claps. Missy gives a lively vocal performance on the hook with her classic tongue and cheek lyrics.
Irresistible Delicious
“Excuse me sir, oh gosh you look young
But old enough to get it to get yo' head sprung
Sit down relax, it's soft here on my couch
Or give me hands strictly you might get turned out”
Off of Missys’ 2005 album, The Cookout, “Irresistible Delicious” features a duo with the legend, Slick Rick. Missy and Rick trade verses telling the story of Missy seducing Rick into making this song with her. Missy smoothly goes from raunchy rap lyrics to flirtatious singing throughout the track making this a standout song on this album.
Lose Control
“I've got a cute face
Chubby waist
Thick legs in shape
Rump shaking both ways
Make you do a double take
Planet Rocka show stopper
Flo froppa head knocker
Beat stalla tail dropper
Do my thang motherfuckers”
In this party anthem, Elliott teams up with R&B star, Ciara, making this one of the biggest hits in 2005. Fatman Scoop sprinkles his energetic club ad-libs throughout the track making the song an undeniable club banger.
The song was a charting hit, peaking at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and a top 10 hit in 4 different countries.
My Struggles
“When I was young my pops, throw rocks
Always shit talk to my moms and call the cops
Couldn't wait 'til I was nice and grown
Sick of daddy mouth 'til six in the morn'
On and on and on 'til the record scratch
And if I made a few scraps I would never come back (YES!)
Take moms with me and a few ADAT's
And make a song about dad and tell pops he's a rat”
We get a rare form of Missy on “My Struggles”, where Missy gives us a look into her upbringing. In the opening track, she tells the story of her tumultuous relationship with her father as she saw him sell drugs as a child. “Y’all don’t really know my life. Y’all don’t really know my struggle,” Missy raps on the hook. Easily one of Missy’s most personal tracks, this deep cut is a gem.
Joy
“Since ninety-two I came to win and never lose
They try to stop a chubby chick from comin through
My belly out and sellin out these venues
My skills, will fulfill, those who drink booze”
On the opening track of Missy’s 2005 album, The Cookout, Missy looks back on her 13 years of success in the industry. With her beginnings as a writer and producer in the early 90s, Missy has beaten all odds, becoming hip-hop royalty in her own right. “They try to stop the chubby chick from comin’ through,” Missy raps.
Meltdown
"I think I'm in love like Beyonce be with Jigga
It's not his major figure that want him to be my nigga
He got that magic stick that make my little pussy quiver
Juices runnin like a river slowly down my kitty litter"
Missy Elliot has never been shy to be sexually explicit and makes no exceptions with her song “Meltdown”. Miss sings the raunchy slow jam describing how she left her man for someone who can please her better. “I broke up with my ex I couldn’t take his sarcasm, every time we bone I had to fake an orgasm. TheIn classic Missy fashion, the song is crude but oddly charming in classic Missy fashion, making this a Missy Elliott sleeper.
WTF(Where They From)
“The dance you doing is dumb
How they do where you from
Stickin' out your tongue girl
But you know you're too young
A bunch of girls do it and the shit looks fun
That's how they do it where we from
You know it don't start till one
That's how they do it where they from”
After not dropping music in 7 years, Missy drops her 2016 stand-alone single, “WTF(Where They From), with long-time friend and Virginia native Pharell Williams. Missy gives us a classic quirky verse over Pharell’s classic production, popularized in his work with Chad Hugo in the Neptunes.
The track peaked at 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 and eight on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Charts. The song was a great comeback for Missy and left fans hungry for more.
We Run This
“My style can’t be duplicated or recycled
This Chick is a sick individual”
Missy samples the Sugarhill Gang’s “Apache”, which holds one of the most iconic breakbeats of all time. Missy, a true fan of hip-hop, gives the sample new life in her song, “We Run This”. The track is a modern take on a hip-hop classic, much like she did on her 2002 album, Under Construction.
Can We
"We high and we blunted
Take me if you want it
To the Ho-Jo, up all... night
Like No-Doz, yes I got the feelin
Feel me-blow, don't ask me if I'm nasty
Freaky deaky see y'all can't see me
Me Timbaland and S-W-V"
Missy Elliot and Timbaland takeover production and songwriting on SWV’s 1997 hit, “Can We”. Missy writes the lyrics on the hook, “can we get kinky tonight, I got so many things on my mind, I never seen a guy so fine, I like it when you do me.” In classic Missy fashion, the song is catchy and horny while keeping its charm.
Let it Go Keisha Cole
"When this song come on in the club
They gonna be like
Damn that's hot
And when they play it in they car
They gonna drop they tops like
Damn that's hot
They gonna mix it wit Biggie "It was all a dream" like
Damn that's hot
Me and Keyshia won't stop
Till the tick don't tock like
Damn that's hot”
Missy Elliot takes over on production in Kiesha Cole’s 2007 hit, “Let it Go”, the beat contains samples of “Juicy Fruit” by Mtume and “Don’t Stop the Music by Yarbrough and Peoples. Cole, Elliot, and Lil Kim ride the beat effortlessly making this an empowering breakup song for the ladies.
Missy gives us two bridge verses on the track, interpolating Notorious B.I.G’s “Juicy” in the second verse, the song was an instant classic and hit number 1 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts.
Monica (So Gone)
“Drive pass your house every night
In an unmarked car
Wondering what she had on me
To make you break my heart, yeah”
Although Missy takes a backseat on vocals on Monica’s 2003, “So Gone”, she handles all lead production and songwriting credits on the song. The lyrics are classy Missy, reminiscent of her more vulnerable tracks like “You Don’t Know” or “Friendly Skies”.
Is That Your Chick
“Oh is that your chick
Why she all in his six?
With her hand on his dick
Keep licking her lips
Is that your chick?
Why she all in his ride”
Missy Elliot gives us the hook in Memphis Bleek’s classic 2000 hit, “Is That Yo’ Chick”. Jay-Z recruits Timbaland and Missy to bring their effervescent energy to the rough and rugged bars of Memphis Bleek, and Jay. Missy kills the chorus on the track as she yells over Timbos beat asking the listener, ‘is that yo’ chick?”
Need U Bad Jasmine Sullivan
“ Boy I need you bad as my heartbeat
(Bad like the food I eat)
Bad as the air I breath
(Baby, I want you bad)
I need you bad I can't take this pain
(Bad I can't take this pain)
Boy I'm 'bout to go insane
(Baby, I need you bad)
I need you
I need you
What I gotta do”
Yet another example of Missy’s illustrious songwriting. Missy Elliot pens Jasmine Sullivans love ballad, “Need U Bad.” Jasmine Sullivan gives us a spirited performance over Elliot’s reggae-inspired composition, with steel drums, leading horns and, a steady bass groove, Missy gives us another undeniable R&B classic. The record spent four weeks straight at the top of the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop charts making this one of Elliots biggest hits.
Signs (Beyonce)
“ I was in love with a Sagittarius, he blew my mind
He also had a flip side too much like a Gemini
He was freaky like a Taurus, the way he handled me, yeah
Flirtatious like an Aries
Which sign is best for me?”
Missy lays down production and background vocals on this Beyonce. Missy has solidified herself as an R&B producer and songwriter. In “Signs”, Beyonce sings about her past lovers from all types of astrological signs. The song has classic Missy sprinkled all over it, from the reversed vocals to the slow jam sample, “Signs” is a quintessential Missy R&B song.
Can U Hear Me
"I been checkin on your moms and dad
And your brother since the day you left
Passed on and went away with God
But for your mom its been
So damn hard
I hate to even hear her cry
Aaliyah she asked me why”
Missy Elliott wrote and produced “Can U Hear Me” song in memory of her friend and frequent collaborator Aaliyah Dana Haughton, who passed away in a tragic plane crash on August 25, 2001. TLC joins Missy on the dedication track for thier passed member, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez.
The song is a beautiful ballad in honor of all fallen loved ones. Missy is at her most vulnerable in this track and it is a breath of fresh air to catch Missy in this personal of a track.
Want What I Got
“My fake ass friends wanna hang out tonight
I tell em follow me them I’l ditch em at the light
I see em at the club, they wanna know Why I’m whilin
Cause I smoke weed now I’m high like a pilot
Spending more cheese than throw on a salad “
Missy features on MC Lytes “Want What I Got”, from her 1998 album, Seven & Seven. Missy gives us two quick but memorable verses with her funny quick-witted one-liners. “I treat niggas like they my ho, blaze ‘em then I go, straight to the Nikko, meet another Puerto Rico,” Missy raps on the track.
Nobody’s Perfect
“We rollin', we ridin'
He like to go inside and
I love to go all night and
We rock the boat, Poseidon
I love to call your name, name, name
Baby I love to call your name, name, name"
Cole recruits Missy Elliott on “Nobody’s Perfect” from his 2012 debut studio album, Cole World: The Sideline Story. The song deals with a man’s insecurities about a woman’s “body count”. Who else better to have on the track than Missy Elliot, a prominent voice in hip-hop who is adamant about a woman’s right to her own body.
Ching-A-Ling
“Look at my watch, cost a whole lot,
So iced out, you can't see it tick-tock,
Yeah I'm so hot, and I can't be topped,
Artist drop down like Michael Jackson socks,
Got the game locked, make your body rock”
As a part of the soundtrack to the film “Step Up 2: The Streets”, Missy gives us a “Ching-A-Ling.” The track is reminiscent of her album, Miss E...So Addictive, with its hyperenergetic beat and satirical lyrics. Appropriately, “Ching-A-Ling” is a fun danceable club anthem, perfect for the hip-hop dance flick.
Shake Your Pom Pom
“Look at it, look at it
Slow motion, freeze
Stop for the camera
Paparazzi wanna see
Cheese
Hello, hey how you doin'?
I shake it like this
Now let me see if you can do it”
Continuing from the previous entry. “Shake Your Pom Pom” is the second single from the soundtrack of Step Up 2: The Streets. The film follows a group of art school students who start a hip-hop dance crew to compete in street competitions. Missy was the perfect candidate for this soundtrack; as an advocate for all things classic hip-hop culture, Missy had to make an anthem for the breakdancers.
Bomb Intro/Pass That Dutch
"Misdemeanor on the floor, pretty boy here I come
Pumps in the bunk make you wanna hurt something
I can take your man I don't have to sex 'em'
Hang 'em out the window call me Micheal JacksonThe lead single from her 2003 album, This Is Not A Test!, “Pass That Dutch”, has a clap-heavy and 808 smothered track produced by Timbaland. Commercially, This Is Not A Test!, did not live up to the standards of its predecessor. However, the albums first full song and lead single is a classic Missy banger.
Borderline
"Not tryna cuff you or crowd your space
I'm tryna find you words just to say
'Dang, you fine, and look at that face'
At the borderline, beside me, you lay"
Missy features on Ariana Grande’s song “Borderline”, from her 2018 album, Sweetener. The track is produced by Pharell, littered with cowbells and Williams spacy synthesizers. With Ariana Grande’s falsetto vocals, this is a pop masterpiece. Missy adds her flair in her short and sweet verse to her lover.
Bad Man
“What dem do dem rude badman (Badman)
Dem nuh want mi shoot badman (Badman)
Tell dem, dem be one dead man (Badman)
If dem batty boy play badman”
Missy Elliot brings out her Jamaican roots and links up with notorious dancehall legend Vybez Kartel and M.I.A, in “Bad Man.” The carnival smash is led by a ferocious horn, a drumline, and audacious verses from Vybez Kartel and Missy Elliot. M.I.A gives us a lively performance making this one of Missy’s hidden gems.
Let it Bump
“Shantay was live on stage
Let me back that shit up
For ya for ya no hip-hoppers
I'm Missy on the microphone
I'm stupid fresh that's the shit I'm on
Sucka MC's come new in the game
Swear ya hip-hop but don't know Daddy Kane”
Off the heels of her 2002 album, Under Construction, Missy releases her fifth studio album, This Is Not A Test!. On the song 10th song on the album,” Let It Bump”, Missy, shouts out some of her favorite classic hip-hop artists from Big Daddy Kane to MC Lyte. Missy has had the habit throughout her career to wear her sleeves and never shy away from giving the artists that came before her their flowers.
Heartbreaker
“I’m Jinglin’ Baby, Go head Mami
Don’t I look charming, put your lips on me
Kiss it touch it good Yes I wish you would
You like to see me dip, baby dip
Don’t it look like I got Beyonce Hips”
On Mariah Carey’s remix to Heartbreaker, Missy and Da Brat give some fun light-hearted verses on the pop classic. The three go back and forth on verses over Snoop Dogg’s 1993 song, “Aint No Fun(If The Homies Can’t Have None)”, from his debut album, Doggy Style. Snoop Dogg appears in the remixes music video along with Mariah, Missy, and Da Brat.
She’s a Bitch
“To the M-I prrrr, cat like a semi
Nigga stole my car, won't you get my
Give yo' ass a black eye
Oh, say bye-bye
I'ma give your body to the sky
Run through your clique
Nigga, you pissed, don't trip
I'ma have to bust you in your lips
And the whips better have a whole lotta chips
'Cause I ain't for no nigga givin' tips”
“She’s a Bitch” is the lead single from Missy’s sophomore album, Da Real World. With Timbalands booming bass and bongos leading the track with the percussion and wacky synths “She’s a Bitch’’ is Missy’s talent on full display for the first time.
Wake Up( Feat Jay- Z)
"Motherfuckers better wake up
Stop sellin' crack to the black
Hope you bought a spare for your flat
Can't accept me talkin' real facts
Down the hill like Janet Jack
I speak what yeah weak mind lacks
Yah heard that"
Jay-Z and Missy link up again on “Wake Up”. Missy tells black people and hip-hop fans alike to wake up, referencing the responsibilities rappers have as public figures. Missy has never been know to rap about social issues but encourages hip-hop artist and fans to be more socially aware.
Best Friends
"My best friend say
I can stay with her
At her house no doubt any time I like
My best friend say
Don't let you ruin my life
Cuz you don't do for me
And you don't act right
My best friend say
If she was me she would let you go long long time ago"
“Best Friends” is a duet between late R&B star Aaliyah and Missy Elliot from her debut album, Supa Dup Fly. The song explores female solidarity and friendship between two close friends in which one is having trouble in paradise.
This is one of the first instances where we see Missy’s R&B writing chops at work. This slow groove produced by Timbaland is a perfect example of the duo’s extensive range and versatility.
Bounce
“Hold up! Hell naw! Like Britney Spears I wear no draws
In the club I drink it up, gulp gulp drink it up
Got Patron sippin' in my cup, that's ya man I bet I can make him look
When he see the jugs he wanna rush and get a quick touch of the big ol' butt
Mmhmm big ol' butt, thick legs, big ol' jugs, legs stick like rims on the truck”
2008’s “Bounce” is the lead single from Timbaland’s second studio album, Shock Value. The single was also used in the soundtrack to Step Up 2: The Streets, where Missy appears twice on songs “Shake Your Pom Pom” and “Ching-a-ling”.
Missy drops some comedic bars referencing an early 2000s pop culture moment when Brittney Spears flashed the paparazzi without any underwear, as well as the regularly scheduled reference to her voluptuous curves.