Overdue: Missy Elliott's 2019 MTV VMA Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
On Monday August 26, at approximately 9:20pm ET (I remember because I rushed home from work around midnight to catch the re-air), one of my generation's greatest female hip-hop/rap lyricists and visual artists of all-time, Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, shut down the stage at the 2019 MTV VMA's!
Missy, as she is affectionately called, performed a medley of her hits, with the likes of "Lose Control" (2005), which features Ciara, who was not there to perform (I know, I know, cue real tears); "Pass that Dutch" (2003); "Get Ur Freak On" (2001); "Hot Boyz" (1999); and "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" (1997), bubble suit and all.
Although the VMA's most coveted award is Video of the Year, which went to Taylor Swift for her single, #YouNeedToCalmDown, artists and viewers alike also anticipate the recipient of the #MichaelJacksonVideoVanguardAward. This year, the Vanguard went to Missy, and while I, and probably most of my peers, think it was loooooong overdue, timing is everything, and this award could not have been better received than in 2019.
From she burst onto the scene in 1997 with her single, "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" off her debut album with the same name (Supa Dupa Fly) which was solely produced by Timbaland, Missy changed the music video game forever. Donning the famous #bubblesuit (an inflated black trash bag), goggles, finger wave hairstyle and loud coloured lipsticks while leaning into a fish lens which made her head appear 10x larger than the rest of her body, Missy quickly established herself as a "supa dupa fly" futuristic female hip hop/rap artist.
What women artists had doper audio and visual effects than Missy? People crawling up walls, sticking to ceilings, floating in the air, spinning upside down then back around again, novel camera angles and some of the tightest choreography you have ever seen, you name it! And let us not forget the incredible and off-the-wall costumes and wardrobe! Missy was definitely ahead of her time and I believe that she was so good at what she did because she kept her focus on what matters the most: the music.
It's already bad enough that the music industry and the internet constantly pit women against each other from head to toe, inside and out, but music should be what brings people together not what tears them apart. There will aways be people who did it before, people who paved the way; give them their accolades while also adding your name to the list. Do what Missy Elliott, Lil' Kim, Foxy Brown, Remy Ma, Eve and Rah Digga did. Focus on the music. Lil' Kim won the I Am Hip Hop Award at the 2019 BET Hip Hop Honors, yet another pioneer in female rap and hip hop who definitely paved the way and who also showed that it's all about the music. Female rap needs to get back to that.
Missy has always been about inclusion, female empowerment, the dance community, new ideas, kids as the future, and constantly pushing the envelope to see just what could be done with this gift she has been given. I mean, she brought out Alyson Stoner for heaven's sake, the then-9-year-old now 26-year-old star of Step Up, who held her own as the only white and kid dancer in the #WorkIt video. But it all works. It always works.
Although Missy's newest music might not have gotten the attention she expected or that she thinks she deserves, not every artist is going to have a perfect run. But, in this case, that's O.K. because Missy already made her mark during one of the best eras of music that can last the rest of her lifetime without ever again making new music (if she doesn't want to). If you missed that era, all I can say is sorry, kid! Or, better yet, log onto Youtube, grab some pompoms and sneakers and get ready to go to work while enjoying all of her hits!
