Missy Elliott is one of the hardest working entertainers in the game, but there was a time when it seemed more like the game was working on her, both mentally, physically, and emotionally. On a recent episode of Sway in the Morning, the 48 year-old-artist opened up about why she ultimately had to step away from the industry to continue to effectively walk in her purpose.
To Missy, her time away from the music game acted as a catalyst for self-care in her personal life, and she recommends that no matter what line of work you're in, you take time to take care of you, first, sis:
"Your brain is like a computer, you have to refresh or it's going to crash. I don't [care] how great you are, you have to take a second. For me, peace of mind, it's a lot. A lot of people want to be artists until they understand what comes with it. Because for the people on the outside, they just see the glory of it but they don't see what goes on behind the scenes for many artists."
The entertainer, who just came off of a 14-year hiatus with the release of her EP, Iconology, said that in the past, her struggle with Graves' disease affected her career in a major way, even most recently during her recent performance at the VMAs. The singer recently told Angie Martinez that only hours before her show, she was rushed to the hospital because she couldn't breathe. Despite her condition, Missy says she took some cough syrup and did the damn thing:
"Just gotta fight it and be like, 'What Ima do?' Tell MTV after they spent all that bread? They woulda been like you better take this whatever and get out there. I just had a chance to see it last night on the way to the hospital again. I'm just watching it sick. I saw it last night fully through. I was like, 'Wow.'"
Missy, who's been open about her health struggles in the past, said that it was for this reason that she decided to bring her music career to a halt in the first place. The Virginia-born star first revealed her diagnosis with Graves' in 2011 after she almost crashed a car due to muscle spasms:
"It happened out of nowhere. I've always worked, worked, worked and never stopped. And sometimes your body is like, 'OK, you wildin.' I remember not being able to write. I couldn't even lift up a pen, a cup."
She explained that at one point, her disease got so severe that she couldn't even pick up a pen to do what she loved anymore:
"I remember Monica came to my house one time and was like, 'OK, just tell me the words and I'll write it for you.' It was bad. It went on for a minute, for like a year. Then it's a lot that comes with it. But I got a praying family. My family prays. They pray very hard.
Despite Missy's absence from the game, she's back like she never left, but that didn't come without some well-needed time for self, proving that it pays to take care of you, the world can wait.
Watch the full clip below!
Missy Talks Untold Industry Tales, Marriage, Jay Z Epiphany + New Music www.youtube.com
Featured image by Noam Galai / Getty.
