The Atlantic

Escape to the Future With Missy Elliott and Jamiroquai

Two legends of music-video history are back with sci-fi visions.
Source: Missy Elliott

Two icons of the music-video format have returned this Friday with light-up headpieces and underground post-apocalypse vibes and pretty catchy music. Do not call Missy Elliott and Jamiroquai nostalgia acts—they’re offering colorful and imaginative escape to the future.

From the garbage-bag onesie of “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” to the bee facial of goop of “She’s a Bitch” to the boogying marionettes of 2015’s “WTF (Where They From),” Missy Elliott’s knack for memorable music has been equalled by her knack for insane images. Today brings not only a visual smorgasbord in the video for the new song “I’m Better,” but for a forthcoming documentary about the rapper that confirms her televisual excellence hasn’t happened by accident. It opens with her saying, “It’s never just making a hot record—I can do that in my sleep. But visually I have to see what I’m going to do with that record when I perform it.”

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