"Hip-hop's queen bee Missy Elliott was one of the first and undoubtedly the best female urban rapper to ever emerge on scene, and with quick, witty lyrics and an in-your-face attitude she has defied typical pop-infused female artists, instead focusing on her creativity and entirely sexual subject matter to propel the rap prodigy into full-blown success in the hip-hop realm.Elliott was born Melissa Elliott in Portsmouth, Virginia, and after a childhood spent pining after music, her professional career began when DeVante Swing, a producer and member of urban boy band Jodeci, signed Elliott's group Sista to his Swing Mob record label. Before releasing any hits, however, Swing Mob fell through, leaving Elliott to connect with acquaintance Timbaland to score her next career move. Before breaking out into a sizzling solo rap career, Elliott provided backup for the late R&B princess Aaliyah on tracks like ""One in a Million"" and ""If Your Girl Only Knew,""""The Rain"" helped the album go platinum, while other singles like ""Sock It 2 Me,"" ""Beep Me 911"" and ""Hit ‘Em Wit da Hee"" scored major airtime for the emerging rapper.Collaborating with unlikely artists such as Eminem, Mary J. Blige and Ciara, Elliott continued to shock, thrill and stun her way through the ‘90s and 2000s with supa fly megahits like ""She's a Bitch,"" ""Work It,"" ""Gossip Folks"" and ""Get Ur Freak On."" Getting hotter on the rap scene as the years go by, Elliott's decade full of hit songs and albums are accompanied by four Grammy Awards, three of which are for Best Female Rap Solo Performance."
