Missy Elliott is already the first female rapper to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and now, the veteran artist can add another first to the list.
On Sunday (January 30), Chart Data tweeted, “All six of @MissyElliott’s studio albums are now certified platinum or higher, the most among female rappers.” Miss Misdemeanor quickly hopped on Twitter to express her excitement, writing, “This is a HUGE MILESTONE! No matter how long it took to get here I am here & I AM HUMBLY GRATEFUL. To all my SISTERS in HIP HOP y’all keep doing y’all thang & SHINING.”
Missy Elliott’s debut album, Supa Dupa Fly, arrived in 1997. Anchored by the single “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly),” the album debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and topped the US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in September 1997 and has sold over 1.2 million copies.
Elliott’s sophomore album, Da Real World, was released just two years later with features from B.G., Juvenile, Lil’ Mo, Nicole, Beyoncé, Eve, Eminem, Lady Saw, Da Brat, Aaliyah, Big Boi of Outkast, Lil’ Kim, MC Solaar and Redman. Although it peaked at just No. 10 on the Billboard 200, it eventually went on to sell over a million copies as well.
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Subsequent albums Miss E… So Addictive (2001), Under Construction (2002), This Is Not a Test! (2003) and The Cookbook (2005) have all hit the magic number over the years. Her most recent EP, Iconology, arrived in August 2019 and served as her first official project since The Cookbook. The five-track effort peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard 200.
Missy Elliott Inducted Into Songwriters Hall Of Fame: "This Is Big For Hip Hop"
In between solo albums, Elliott was busy crafting hits for everyone from Aaliyah and Ciara to Monica and Whitney Houston, making her very much worthy of the Songwriters Hall of Fame induction. During the 2019 ceremony, the 50-year-old broke down in tears as Queen Latifah presented her with the honor.
“Every time I come up to a podium … even with all the work that I’ve done, I don’t know, and I’m assuming it’s just God, I don’t know why I am here,” she said. “I want to say one thing to the writers, to the upcoming writers, ‘Do not give up.’ We all go through writer’s block. Sometimes you just have to walk away from a record and come back to it. But don’t give up because I’m standing here. And this is big for Hip Hop, too.”
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Timbaland, Elliott’s longtime musical partner, teased more “Supa Dupa Fly” magic in December 2021 when he tweeted, “Who ready for that @missyelliott Timbo album?????” However, the prospect of a collaborative album hasn’t been mentioned since.
