Destination Jam: A heavy dose of nostalgia with the most fiercest tracks from hip-hop icon Missy Elliot
Missy Elliot seems to be back in the music game this year and has been busy with new projects of late. After the rapper's recent act of kindness for an unsuspecting Twitter user, we're experiencing heavy Missy Elliot fever again and remember some of her best works. If you're a longtime Missy Elliot fan or even a new listener, this Destination Jam playlist is just for you. Check out our top five most memorable songs by the legendary rapper below.
'Get Ur Freak On'
We're listing track number one on today's playlist with this quintessential Missy Elliot track. Her freakylicious music coupled with her kickass party-mode attitude, stage presence and hip-hop vocal prowess led to Missy Elliot becoming a cultural and hip-hop icon and her 2001 smash 'Get Ur Freak On' is a perfect example. This song became her first solo top ten hit and impacted charts across the globe. 'Get Ur Freak On' also featured in films such as 'The Rundown' (2003) starring Dwayne Johnson (remixed with AC/DC's 'Back in Black') and 'The 40-Year-Old Virgin' (2005) starring Steve Carell. With Missy Elliot's music, it is a near mandate to pump up the bass and volume, so we make the suggestion before you click play on the below music video.
'4 My People' (feat. Eve)
Another worldwide hit, '4 My People', which features rapper, singer-songwriter Eve Jeffers, released in 2002. This fiery Missy Elliot track is her second highest-charting single in the UK to date and also impacted charts in countries such as Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, France and Sweden. '4 My People' is an electro-hop track dedicated to "club heads" with a thumping beat, distorted bass, synth stabs, a cheeky pizzicato melody on the strings, and more.
'Work It'
A track that has a musical style heavily inspired by old school hip hop from the early 1980s, 'Work It' samples Run-D.M.C.'s 'Peter Piper' and Rock Master Scott & the Dynamic Three's 'Request Line'. In the official music video, Missy Elliot's producer Timbaland and singer-songwriter Tweet make cameos while the video also pays tribute to late contemporary R&B star Aaliyah and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, who both died at the time. The video for 'Work It' currently has the most views for Missy Elliot, at 95 million views.
'Lose Control'
Yet another highly infectious Missy Elliot track with an epic music video, 'Lose Control' released in 2005. The song itself peaked at No 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States, number two in New Zealand and in the top thirty in various countries, while the official visual was the most played video on BET and MTV2 and second most played video in the United States. You'll certainly "lose control" and get itching to dance to this track the moment you hit play on the below music video.
'One Minute Man' (feat. Ludacris)
Missy Elliot has a humorous side and it's probably most evident in 'One Minute Man'. You may have guessed by the suggestive title that the song is all about premature ejaculation, while sonically adopting elements of oriental music. What's additionally humorous is that after guest-featured rapper Ludacris advises listeners on how to make sex last, he raps lyrics like, "I'm big dog, havin women seein stripes and thangs. They go to sleep, start snorin, countin sheep and shit. They so wet, that they body start to leak and shit. Just cause I'm an ALL-nighter, shoot ALL fire. Ludacris, balance and rotate ALL tires."
Destination Jam is a daily list of songs that will keep you entertained and grooving up top in lieu of feeling drained and losing the plot. Look out for a fresh selection of great tunes from MEAWW to refresh your mood every day.