Flip It And Reverse It: The True Story of Missy Elliott's 'Work It'

Disclaimer: This Episode contains discussions of physical and sexual abuse. To skip past these discussions skip to (4:54)

There is no shortage of innovators in Hip-Hop, though for the most part the genre has been a world dominated by male artists. But from her mind-bending, award-winning music videos to her experimental approach to producing, Missy Elliott has changed the game. She has been one of the most forward-thinking minds in hip-hop since she first made her debut in 1997 - regardless of gender.

In her early days as an artist, Missy would form a R&B group called Fayze with friends La'Shawn Shellman, Chonita Coleman, and Radiah Scott. Through her friend Melvin Barcliff, who rapped under the name Magoo, she met Timothy Mosley, a local DJ producer operating as Timmy Tim. He would produce some demos for Fayze, including a single called “First Move.” 

Fayze would impress DeVante Swing, a producer, songwriter and singer for the rising R&B group Jodeci, after singing a cappella for him following a concert. Swing invited the group to record in New York City, along with their producer Tim, who Swing renamed “Timbaland” after the popular Timberland construction boots that were taking over hip-hop fashion.

Missy got her first gig as a songwriter, producer and rapper on a song called “That's What Little Girls Are Made Of,” the debut single by Raven-Symoné, the eight-year-old star of The Cosby Show. But Missy quickly learned the hard way that the music biz wasn’t ready to welcome her with arms wide open. Missy was blindsided though when they cast a smaller, lighter-skinned actress to lip-sync to her lines in the song’s music video. At that point, she realized that she would have to work even harder to be taken seriously as an artist.

Eventually Missy and Timbaland would become their own as a songwriting/production team. They co-wrote songs for artists like 702, Busta Rhymes and the debut album by Ginuwine, which Timbaland produced in full. But it was their work on One In A Million, the second album by teenage R&B sensation Aaliyah, that really opened the door for Missy as an artist. 

Timbaland’s flickering, clap/snap sounds on One In A Million set Aaliyah apart from the rest of R&B, introducing a fresh and futuristic style that no one had ever heard before. And the duo would hit it big when the album’s lead single "If Your Girl Only Knew" topped Billboard’s US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, while peaking at #11 on the Hot 100. One in A Million would end up going triple platinum in the US, selling more than eight million copies worldwide, but the impact was immediate. Overnight, labels were scouring to offer Missy a record deal, but she was quick to see right through them.

Through her own label, distributed by Elektra records - Missy Elliot would release the albums Supa Dupa Fly and Miss E... So Addictive - which gave her mainstream exposure as an artist - with her and Timbaland pushing their production into new territory.

By 2001, Missy would release the seminal Miss E... So Addictive which not only included lead single "Get Ur Freak On", but her most popular song of all time...

This is the story of Missy Elliot's "Work It" with newly unearthed audio from Missy Elliott herself!