Derek Blanks and crowdMGMT
“I’m just warming up, baby!” Timbaland declared during the opening set (July 12) of the Out of This World Tour – The Missy Elliott Experience, one of the most anticipated tours of 2024 and the rap icon’s first headlining show.
explore
Check out the latest videos, charts and news
Check out the latest videos, charts and news
It was the second of the tour’s two-night Los Angeles stop at Crypto.com Arena, and featuring hit staples from the songwriter/producer, including “The Way I Are,” 50 Cent’s “Ayo Technology” and Justin Timberlake’s “My Love,” Elliott’s longtime musical partner gave the sold-out crowd a tantalizing taste of what’s in store when the legend himself takes to the stage later on.
Guests Ciara and Busta Rhymes also delivered top-notch performances. Ciara appeared in a black leather outfit that expertly caught a Timbaland baton toss, leading the crowd to roars. “I just had my fourth baby,” the singer-songwriter said, demonstrating that she hadn’t lost any of her impressive dancing skills, as she swayed, twirled and effortlessly danced to crowd-pleasers like “Goodies,” “Ride,” “Like a Boy,” “Promise,” “Level Up,” and of course, “1, 2 Step,” accompanied by her super-flexible dance crew.
Missy Elliott performs at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles on Friday, July 12, 2024.
Rap legend Rimes then took the excitement level up a notch with her favorite hype man, Spliff Star, performing songs like Chris Brown’s “Look at Me Now” (featuring Rimes’ signature high-velocity flow; “We don’t use special effects. We are the special effects,” Rimes noted), “Turn It Up,” “I Know What You Want” and “Pass the Courvoisier.” Rimes also brought out Ty Dolla $ign and 310 Babii onstage. “We hype the artists up. That’s what we do,” Rimes said.
Then it’s Missy’s time.
The 90-minute show that followed was split into four acts with an introduction by dancer and host Kanek. The first act began with a giant image of a spaceship landing on the stage. Then a portal door with a giant M painted on it rose, revealing the woman they had come to see, cheering heartily. After “Throw It Back” began, Elliott, donning a silver helmet, got right to work, performing an exhilarating eight-song set with his 20-person dance crew, including “We Run This,” “Sock It to Me” and “I’m Really Hot.”
Elliott pulled out all the stops (“Let’s see who the real Missy fans are”) and delighted the crowd with her next two eight-song shows, which ranged from “The Rain,” “She’s a B—-” (at one point wearing a puffy bubble coat) and the rollicking “Get Ur Freak On” to classics “One-Minute Man,” “Drip Demeanor” and “Coochie Don’t Fail Me Now.” To give the audience an equal and up-close view of the show, four circular screens above the arena showed the energetic redhead dancing opposite a troupe of male and female dancers; at one point, to get even closer to the fans in the second act, she hopped onto a small circular platform that was extended above them on the floor.
For the fourth act, “Last Stop on Earth,” Elliott (wearing a big pink faux fur hat) and crew donned graffiti-spattered outfits (as did the bracelets given out upon entering the crypt) that lit up the stage in kaleidoscopes of neon colors. After a mashup of “WTF (Where They From),” followed by “Bring the Pain” and another fan favorite, “Work It,” Elliott surprised everyone by walking offstage and around the perimeter of the venue. It was a victory lap as she smiled and clapped as she passed the rowdy fans. Returning to the stage, Elliott closed out her love fest with “Pass Dat Dutch” and “Dance with Me,” before rocking out with Timbaland’s “Up Jumps the Boogie,” Rimes’ “Touch It,” and Ciara’s “Lose Control.”
“I say this everywhere I go,” the Rock and Roll Hall of Famer said toward the end of the show, “I never take it for granted that you all spent your hard-earned money. It means so much. I thank every single one of you. Amen!” And as the packed crowd filed out of Crypto.com, their comments echoed a line Rimes had said earlier on her show: “Missy, thank you for bringing us all together.”
The 30-date North American tour, “Out of This Word Tour – The Missy Elliott Experience,” will arrive in Las Vegas on Saturday (July 13), before stopping off in Denver (July 16), Houston (July 20), Washington DC (August 8) and wrapping up in Rosemont, Illinois on August 23. The remaining tour dates can be found on the official website here.