On this present day in Hip Hop historical past, the world was formally launched to one of many style’s most trailblazing voices as Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott dropped her debut album Supa Dupa Fly on The Goldmind/Elektra Data.

Heralded as one of the influential debut albums ever launched by a feminine MC—and arguably in all of Hip Hop—Supa Dupa Fly didn’t simply mark the arrival of Missy Elliott, it signaled a seismic shift in what rap and R&B might sound like heading into the brand new millennium. Arriving throughout a transitional interval in late ’90s Hip Hop, the album fused experimental manufacturing, space-age sounds, and unorthodox flows right into a sound that will turn into the blueprint for mainstream Black pop effectively into the 2000s.

The album’s artistic engine was the unstoppable Virginia duo of Missy and Timbaland. Timbaland’s futuristic, chopped-and-clicked beats laid the right basis for Missy’s elastic flows, sultry vocals, and razor-sharp lyricism. Her voice—playful and commanding—moved from romantic to raunchy to ridiculous with ease, giving the mission its signature wild, unpredictable taste.

Tracks like “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” turned immediate classics, with its Hype Williams-directed video and finger-snapping beat redefining the visible and sonic panorama of Hip Hop. From begin to end, Missy introduced unmatched swagger, creativeness, and originality—paving the way in which for the genre-bending artistry we see right this moment.

Commercially, Supa Dupa Fly was a smash. It debuted at #3 on the Billboard 200, topped the R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart, and went platinum within the U.S. inside the yr. Abroad, it earned a silver certification within the UK and charted in nations like New Zealand and the Netherlands. Extra importantly, it solidified Missy Elliott as a power who would proceed to push boundaries for many years.

Salute to Missy Elliott and Timbaland for making a masterpiece that also feels forward of its time, practically three a long time later.