Missy Elliott has been on a roll recently. The icon’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was a historic moment. As such, she celebrated it with her fans friends, and fellow artists. On May 3, she expressed her excitement about this prestigious honor on social media. In a tweet, Missy acknowledged the criticism she faced in the past. However, she credited her perseverance and decades of hard work for speaking for themselves. The legendary MC seemed humbled and grateful for the support she has received.
Reflecting on her impact on the hip-hop world, Missy Elliott previously addressed the criticism she received. In particular, she spoke about the hate she got for her Barbie-inspired music video for “Beep Me 911.” In an Instagram post, she now recognized that she was ahead of her time. When a new trailer for the Barbie movie was released in early April, generating excitement from many, Missy had a more nuanced reaction. She recalled how people made fun of her and her collaborators, Timbaland and Magoo. At the time, they did not like the Barbie-style video and unconventional hairstyles. It’s become increasingly clear, however, that Missy has always been years ahead of the game.
Missy Elliott is dropping some new information about her 2002 hit, “Work It.” The iconic rapper surprised some of her younger fans with a hidden revelation about the hip-hop classic. In a Twitter post on Sunday, May 14, Missy posted a series of images with a lyric from the song. “!it esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup I,” read the caption on the tweet. It may look like gibberish at first glance, but upon closer inspection, it’s simply the hook of the song backwards. Many young fans were shocked, as they realized that the backwards lyric actually appears in the song.
For hip-hop fans that have been around for a while, this isn’t news. However, many on Twitter reacted to the post above with shock. “I was today years old when I found out that part of this song is just the prior bar literally in reverse lol I feel shame,” tweeted a fan. “Sh*t went over my head for 20 years and I consider myself a hip-hop/r&b connoisseur.” Did you know that the “gibberish” as simple the previous bar repeated backwards?
NEWS
Music photographer Jill Furmanovsky said she wasn’t taken aback by the overwhelming excitement surrounding the Oasis reunion tour.
The photographer has been capturing the Wonderwall hitmakers for more than thirty years and shared that the Oasis Live '25 Tour, which brought Noel and Liam Gallagher back on stage together for the first time in 16 years, worked so well because the concerts have always been “about the audience”.
Jill, who first crossed paths with Oasis at one of their early shows at the Cambridge Corn Exchange in 1994, explained to NME: “It didn’t catch us off guard, because Oasis have always been about the crowd. Always. There was never much to shoot on stage.
“Even at the Cambridge Corn Exchange, the performance itself was simple, but the people in the crowd knew every word and were completely swept up in it.
“And that hasn’t really changed over time. They just bring out that songbook and deliver it. Liam is still magnetic and captivating, even when he keeps it minimal. It remains incredibly powerful. That’s the essence of their show.”
Furmanovsky, who has photographed icons like Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin over the course of her fifty-year career, added: “What they’ve done with this new tour, the production, and the visuals… it’s something special.
“The mix of generations in the crowd is also striking. I went with my 13-year-old granddaughter, and there were plenty of kids her age singing along word for word. It’s incredible.
“‘Biblical’ is the term people throw around. It sounds almost silly, but when two brothers who’ve been at odds for years come together again, there really is something biblical about that alone. Combine it with what they’re putting on stage… it’s unlike anything else.”
Jill’s latest book Trying To Find A Way Out Of Nowhere reflects her years documenting Oasis, and she shared that no current act matches what the Supersonic band represents. She was also able to photograph them once again at one of their massive Wembley Stadium shows during the reunion tour.
She said: “There aren’t many artists today who can step into the space Oasis occupies and actually live up to it.
“We’re in a different time now, a kind of in-between phase. It feels like the closing of a rock ‘n’ roll chapter. That doesn’t mean talent or creativity is gone. It’s like with painting — we still have great impressionists, but we’re no longer living in the impressionist era.”
