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"Missy has always infused hip-hop with a fresh, fun, head-banging, sexy dance-floor sound. This time, she’s imbued it with an old-school flavor, while at the same time creating an entirely new sound. The album will take her to a new level of celebrity, catapulting Missy from superstar to icon."
——Elektra Chairman/CEO Sylvia Rhone

ELEKTRA SURE MISSY CAN’T MISS

Hip-Hop Star Under Construction to Become Household Name
She’s an accomplished songwriter, producer, singer, video star, talent scout and label head.

Missy Elliott is already a star. Elektra now intends to make her a household name.

"Work It," the first single from her fourth album, Under Construction (which comes out 11/12), is one of the hottest records at Rap, Rhythm, Crossover and Mix. After going to Top 40 two weeks ago with 1,000 spins, Elliott is ready to cross over to a whole new audience.

"Missy has always infused hip-hop with a fresh, fun, head-banging, sexy dance-floor sound," said Elektra Entertainment Chairman/CEO Sylvia Rhone after we pretended to be her stock broker. "This time, she’s imbued it with an old-school flavor, while at the same time creating an entirely new sound. The album will take her to a new level of celebrity, catapulting Missy from superstar to icon."

The Portsmouth, VA, native has written and produced hits for everyone from Whitney Houston, Destiny’s Child and Janet Jackson to NSYNC’s Justin Timberlake, many with her longtime collaborator and partner Timbaland, won a pair of Grammys and just this year led all MTV Video Awards candidates with six nominations. Her last album, Miss E… So Addictive, has sold more than 1.6 million to date, while her Goldmind imprint produced hit artist Tweet.

The new track attracted an audience of 75 million listeners before even going to Top 40, where the impressions are expected to bring the total to 130-140 million. Pop radio has previously experienced success with such Elliott hits as "One Minute Man" and "Get Ur Freak On."

"It’s time to further enhance Missy’s presence in the mainstream," added label Exec. VP/GM Greg Thompson when we convinced him we were from GQ. "The beautiful thing about Missy is she puts such pressure on herself to deliver that next-level shit. She punches through the ceiling every time. And this time she takes it up a notch. Even I get my freak on when I listen to this new record."

The label will put between 800,000 and a million records on the street for release date.

Sr. VP Urban Promotion Richard Nash feels Missy has "taken her style of music and really fine-tuned it."

As for the promotional strategy, Nash says it’s important to "super-serve her core… that’s why we didn’t take the record to Top 40 until after it was proven at Rhythmic, Crossover and Urban. We wanted to take care of those who were instrumental in the beginning of her career."

Other marketing/promotional initiatives surrounding the release include:

* "Work It" premieres on MTV’s Making the Video (10/10), TRL (10/11).

* Video premieres on BET’s 106 & Park (10/14), Blueprint series (11/13).

* December Artist of the Month on AOL, Internet video debut (10/11), performance on AOL Sessions.

* Performance on David Letterman (11/11).

Concluded Rhone: "Missy rose to the occasion, delivering a brilliant new project that is destined to break her own personal best. Now, when did you say this would appear in the Wall Street Journal?"

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