Missy Elliott says it was watching her mother struggle that gave her the motivation she needed to succeed in her career.
On Sunday, Elliot responded to a fan on Twitter who wanted to know what first inspired her to persevere in a male-dominated industry and even shared her secrets to success.
“I wanna know like what inspired her and what was her drive to remain persistent in a male dominated industry at the time,” the fan tweeted.
“I seen many strong women in the industry be4 me that made it through,” Elliott replied. “My mom was in an abusive relationship so I told her I would make it so I could get her out of that situation & I would make sure she’d never have to work again that’s what really kept me going.”
“Sometimes you gotta take a chance. I never felt like I fit in, period. I don’t think there was a lane for the music that we did,” Elliott told Interview magazine in 2020. “The only reason they found a lane is because I was rapping over the tracks. But at first, I don’t think people understood the music.”
