Missy Elliott Is An Example Of How Powerful The Tongue Is
What if I told you that the universe is conspiring to help you achieve all of your heart's desires? What if that vision that you had was more than just a dream? What if everything that has happened in your life up until this point has been so that you can make that dream a reality? The truth is, that's exactly what I'm telling you, sis. Issa fact.
When we're little, we dream of becoming astronauts, firefighters, and in Missy Elliott's case, a world-renowned superstar. In a recent interview with Marie Claire, Missy opened up about how she manifested the life of her dreams by simply speaking it into existence and letting God handle the rest.
As a grade school student in Virginia, her classmates would have never believed that Melissa Arnette Elliott would one day win six Grammys, two AMAs, and become the first female rap artist to be inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, but she did. In fact, Missy said that she saw herself as a legend long before anyone else could. Missy explained that in elementary school, every week, the teacher would ask the students what they wanted to be when they grew up, and Missy's answer was always the same:
"'I'm going to be a superstar,' and the whole class would bust out laughing."
While some may have felt discouraged, to Missy, the giggles of her classmates acted as motivation to become the icon that she was born to be. Instead of feeling crushed by the pessimism of others, she began to speak the life of her dreams into existence:
Erika Goldring/Getty Images
"It's funny because I was just telling somebody that everything I spoke, I've done. And that's how powerful the tongue is...I used to sit in the house and act like I was having conversations with Janet and Michael and Madonna and whoever. I then would go and say my thank you's for award shows that I hadn't made it to yet. I had speeches, and I would be in the mirror thanking my mama."
Somewhere along the line, we're told that our dreams are too far out of reach and that we should choose a goal that seems more attainable, so instead of chasing that dream to become an entrepreneur and open your own storefront, you took a gig managing someone else's; or instead of auditioning for that part in that movie, you played a part in your own unhappiness and accepted a job that you knew would never satisfy you in the first place. Playing it safe can be one hell of a drug, but according to Missy Elliott, you have to ignore the non-believers and do it anyway:
"Trust me, I was broke. And my family would be like, 'You better find something to do.' They told me to go in the Army. I'm like, 'I'm too fat to go in the Army. Where I am running to?' Everything just seemed so impossible at the time because we didn't have the technology to be able to reach out and put your stuff online and people get a chance to see it. So you have to be at the right place at the right time."
Missy said that she carried on this spirit of speaking her dreams into existence into adulthood even after securing a bag.
"I told my mother, 'I'm going to buy you a house, and I'm going to buy you an elevator in case your legs start hurting.' And she would laugh and be like, 'All right, okay.' But when I got my first check, I didn't even buy myself a house first. I bought my mother a house. Put a Bible in the soil and built it from the ground up."
We can all take a page out of Missy's book when it comes to manifesting our best lives through our words. The tongue holds the power of life and death so it's important to be selective with what words you allow to be spoken over you. If Missy had listened to her classmates, who by the way were loud and wrong as hell, we would have never been able to "Lose Control" or experience what it truly means to Get Our Freak On.
After battling Graves Disease, domestic abuse, and a brutal, male-dominated entertainment industry, there's nothing Missy can't overcome; and do you know why? Because she said so, damn it.
Read Missy's full interview here!
Featured image by Erika Goldring/Getty Images
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Taylor "Pretty" Honore is a spiritually centered and equally provocative rapper from Baton Rouge, Louisiana with a love for people and storytelling. You can probably find me planting herbs in your local community garden, blasting "Back That Thang Up" from my mini speaker. Let's get to know each other: @prettyhonore.
ItGirl 100 Honors Black Women Who Create Culture & Put On For Their Cities
As they say, create the change you want to see in this world, besties. That’s why xoNecole linked up with Hyundai for the inaugural ItGirl 100 List, a celebration of 100 Genzennial women who aren’t afraid to pull up their own seats to the table. Across regions and industries, these women embody the essence of discovering self-value through purpose, honey! They're fierce, they’re ultra-creative, and we know they make their cities proud.
VIEW THE FULL ITGIRL 100 LIST HERE.
Don’t forget to also check out the ItGirl Directory, featuring 50 Black-woman-owned marketing and branding agencies, photographers and videographers, publicists, and more.
THE ITGIRL MEMO
I. An ItGirl puts on for her city and masters her self-worth through purpose.
II. An ItGirl celebrates all the things that make her unique.
III. An ItGirl empowers others to become the best versions of themselves.
IV. An ItGirl leads by example, inspiring others through her actions and integrity.
V. An ItGirl paves the way for authenticity and diversity in all aspects of life.
VI. An ItGirl uses the power of her voice to advocate for positive change in the world.
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Exclusive: Koryn Hawthorne On Her Miraculous Love Story: ‘I Was Never A Girlfriend’
Gospel singer Koryn Hawthorne has used her voice to let the world know about what God can do, and now the Season 8 finalist of NBC’s The Voice is sharing a miraculous act that led to her engagement.
The Praise This actress shared in an interview with xoNecole that prior to becoming engaged to her partner, Hunter Register, she passed over one particular title on her way to becoming a fiancée.
“I was never a girlfriend,” Hawthorn, 26, tells xoNecole.
“We've known each other since we were kids, so we just kind of always had this distant friendship. We would hit each other up on social media, and [I] slide up under things that he was posting,” she says. “We ended up hanging out together, and when we hung out, it was an instant immediate connection from all fronts. I think we just knew from the first day that I don't want to spend a day apart from you.”
Koryn Hawthorne On Her Miraculous Love Story, New Album, & More
She continued, "And yeah, we probably were boyfriend or girlfriend after — am I delusional? Then we were engaged a few months later.”
The Grammy-nominated singer, who became engaged in November of 2023, went on to share what her experience has been preparing to become a wife, exploring the personal growth, challenges, and emotions experienced throughout the process.
“It's a journey, I'm not gonna lie,” she says. “Relationships, in general, are hard, and whenever you think about marriage, is just different from being boyfriend and girlfriend because if you piss me off, I could just go,” she shared. “But marriage is an actual commitment. It's a partnership. It's a ministry.”
Hawthorne, 26, and Register, 27, were childhood friends growing up in Louisiana and sealed their love during a weekend getaway in New Orleans last fall.
For the gospel star, marriage involves more than lovely-dovey aspects, emphasizing how her relationship has allowed her to grow, mature, and learn valuable lessons through love.
“We were supposed to get married in May, but like for us to be mature enough to be like, ‘You know what? No, let's take the necessary time to make sure that we're fully prepared for this commitment such a beautiful thing,” Hawthorne reflected.
“It's a learning curve for sure, but our preparation for marriage would have been the only thing that brought this out of me. It's hard and it's scary at times, but it's God's purpose and His plan for our lives.”
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Featured image by Dia DipasupilGetty Images