Supa Dupa Fly

“Supa Dupa Fly” is the debut studio album by Missy Elliott, released on July 15, 1997, through The Goldmind Inc., East West Records and the Elektra Entertainment Group.

The story

Elliott had come up in Portsmouth, Virginia, through the group Sista and DeVante Swing’s Swing Mob camp, and by 1996 she had her own imprint, The Goldmind, set up with East West. For her first album she turned to Timbaland, her longtime Tidewater collaborator. The two recorded at Master Sound Studios in Virginia Beach between October 1996 and 1997, completing the album in slightly more than a week. Guests included Busta Rhymes, Ginuwine, 702, Magoo, Da Brat, Lil’ Kim and Aaliyah.

Sound and production

Timbaland produced every track. His programming leaned on sparse, off-beat drum patterns, open space and unusual sound effects, with Elliott moving between rapping and singing over them. The lead single “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly),” released on July 2, 1997, samples Ann Peebles’ 1973 song “I Can’t Stand the Rain.” Its video, with Elliott in an inflated leather suit, has been described as a landmark of Afrofuturist style. “Sock It 2 Me” followed in September 1997, and “Beep Me 911” and “Hit Em wit da Hee” were issued in spring 1998.

Legacy

The album debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 with 129,000 copies sold in its first week and topped the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The RIAA certified it platinum on September 19, 1997, and it had sold 1.2 million copies in the United States by June 2008. It was nominated for the Grammy for Best Rap Album, and “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” was nominated for Best Rap Solo Performance. AllMusic called it a “boundary-shattering postmodern masterpiece.” Rolling Stone placed it at No. 93 on its 2020 list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time and at No. 53 on its 2022 list of the 100 Best Debut Albums, and Apple Music ranked it No. 75 on its 2024 list of the 100 Best Albums. With Timbaland & Magoo’s “Welcome to Our World” later the same year, it established the Virginia sound that would run through Elliott’s and Timbaland’s work for the next decade.

Released July 15, 1997. More from hip hop in 1997.