Women in Music: Artists Who Paved The Way - Missy Elliott
Note: The following article contains discussion of domestic violence, which some readers may find upsetting.
Missy Elliott paved the way for female/non-binary artists in a genre of music usually dominated by men. Even today, being a female rapper is no small feat and Missy Elliott’s ‘Misdemeanour’ played a huge role in carving out a space in rap music for female artists.
Missy Elliott’s rise alongside Queen Latifah and Lauryn Hill in the 90s enabled artists of today (Nicky Minaj, Meghan Thee Stallion and Cardi B to name a few) to flourish.
A Brief History
Missy Elliott, real name Melissa Arnett Elliot, grew up in North Carolina and Virginia. In school, Eliott was a grade A student and class clown. Despite being moved two years ahead in High School, Elliott purposely failed her exams to be back with her former classmates.
Although at school Elliott excelled, at home she lived in fear, due to the domestic abuse her mother endured at the hands of her father. After years of abuse Elliott's mother, Patricia, fled their family home with Missy to take refuge in a friend’s home.
In an interview with The Guardian, Missy Elliott recounts: "When we left, my mother realized how strong she was on her own, and it made me strong. It took her leaving her home to be able to realize that."
Elliott realised her love of songwriting when she was a teenager, and in 1991 created Sista, an all-women R&B group. Sista included three of Elliotts friends and producer Timbaland, a close friend from her neighbourhood who produced the group’s demo tracks including First Move.
After moving to New York they were signed to Elektra Records and began building a following. In 1996 Elliott left the group and worked with Timbaland as a production and songwriting duo, writing tracks for other artists with songs including One in A Million, Hot Like Fire and If Your Girl Only Knew.
As her success grew Elliott was increasingly sought after by record labels.
However, as a self-sufficient go-getter used to writing and producing independently, she chose to continue this narrative - instead of signing an established label, she founded her own Record Label The Goldmind Inc. in 1997.
Missy Elliott and Feminism
Missy Elliott established a career in an era where the word feminist was misunderstood by mainstream media. Compared to today, there were far fewer conversations around gender equality, particularly in the music industry - as the recent MeToo movement has highlighted, sexual discrimination was commonplace, and seldom combated.
True to form - despite these obstacles, Elliott pioneered for her career, produced empowering feminist songs and asserted herself in front of the camera as a Black female rapper at a time where misogyny in hip-hop was at an all-time high.
Elliott rooted for gender equality before it was mainstream. She dared to create her own individual style, singing empowering lyrics of loving herself and simply refusing to conform to the male gaze or beauty standards. She championed body positivity, lyrically embracing her curves, promoting self-love and reclaiming the female body in rap.
This narrative was incorporated into Elliott's music videos, where she sported androgynous outfits and trademarked the infamous bodysuit and fisheye lens in the iconic music video for ‘The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)’. She inspired multiple artists to follow suit, including Harry Styles and Ariana Grande.
Throughout her career, Elliott pioneered not just for her own career, but for the success of other women, putting into action her belief that women have everything to gain from supporting one another, rather than competing. She gave us ‘We Run This’ - a female anthem predating Beyonce’s ‘Run the World.’
Through Elliott’s collaborations and support, many female artists, especially artist Ciara, came into their own - it’s fair to say that many owe their career and success to her. She provided roles in her videos and parts in her songs to female artists such as Lil Kim, Eve and Aaliyah, using her limelight to champion women’s talent in a male-dominated industry.
Missy Elliott’s career has seen her release 6 successful studio albums, be the first female rapper to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and won 5 Grammys for her songwriting and music videos. Missy Elliott paved the way for artists of today through her feminist tracks, an iconic figure in rap who has influenced incredible artists of today.
We would encourage anyone affected by the issues raised in this article to contact Refuge (www.refuge.org.uk) or Women’s Aid (www.womensaid.org.uk). Both charities run the freephone National Domestic Violence Helpline (0808 2000 247).
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Written by Bronwen Latham
