MUSIC HISTORY AND ANALYSIS
A Thorough and Thoughtful Analysis of the Lyrics of the Song “Work It” by Missy Elliott
A contemporary and fresh take and synopsis of one of the more popular hip-hop songs from the early-2000s, the renaissance of the genre
Content Warning: The lyrics to this song can be offensive and profane to some. Yeah, the people I call prudes, that is. Lol, but for real. If you don’t want to look at such smut, turn away now.
This song has inspired a new generation of hip-hop artists who’ve tried to emulate hers and Nicki Minaj’s style and flow but have fallen short. Artists like Megan tha Stallion and Cardi B just don’t have the same vibe to me as the original female rapper/hip-hopper.
I know that I’d previously read that Ginger Cook was in fact in the industry at one point around this time and era. Maybe she can offer some further insights into the industry at the time in the comments. Without further ado, Missy Elliott is about to Drop Some Lines, er Drop A Line (Pub), well, you get it.
DJ please, pick up your phone
I’m on the request lineThis is a Missy Elliott one time exclusive
Okay, so the takeaway from this first part is that Missy Elliott is calling in to let the DJ know that she’s going to try to get this all in one take and if the DJ misses it, they won’t have it.
Come on
Is it worth it? Let me work it
I put my thang down, flip it and reverse it
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Is anything worth it? This is a very existential question that all of us should be asking ourselves every once in a while. Also, she is asking that you let her work it because she put something down and flipped and reversed it, which sounds quite impressive. Then she seems to transition herself either into a different language or some enchantment in that last part, for some reason. Hmm!! Interesting start.
If you got a big, let me search ya
To find out how hard I gotta work ya
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Come on
Okay, so it looks like she’s looking for something big and wondering if the other person has what she’s looking for. And again with this enchantment. Maybe, it’s going to have something to do with things later in the song. I’ll wait to find out…
I’d like to get to know ya, so I could show you
Put the pussy on ya, like I told ya
Gimme all your numbers so I can phone ya
Your girl acting stank then call me over
In this part, she’s met a new friend, it looks like. She has a cat that she’s brought over and she’s put that cat on them. I guess she’s working in reverse, though, as she’s asking for the phone number after she’s already interacted with this person. Also, apparently, she’s looking to help this person out with their girl and she’s going to come over for that.
Not on the bed, lay me on your sofa
Call before you come, I need to shave my chocha
You do or you don’t or you will or you won’t ya
Go downtown and eat it like a vulture
Whoa, okay!! I guess that I was wrong about her intentions with her new friend. Apparently, she wants to hang out on their sofa for some reason. I’m also guessing that “Chocha” isn't the name of her cat, although that would be a pretty clever name given that that’s the word for a pussy in Spanish. Now it sounds like she’s tempting her friend with some sort of wordplay and game of some sort. Oh, my, going downtown, eating it like a vulture, this isn’t PG rated anymore, is it?
See my hips and my tips, don’t ya?
See my ass and my lips, don’t ya?
Lost a few pounds in my waist for ya
This the kinda beat that go ra-ta-ta
Ra-ta-ta-ta, ta-ta-ta-ta-ta
Sex me so good I say, blah-blah-blah
Work it! I need a glass of water
Boy, oh boy, it’s good to know ya
Oh, yeah, this probably wasn’t about a cat, to begin with. Her hips, ass, and waist? it sounds like she’s trying to get some. Yep, the machine gun/vibrator sounds she’s making, and then the word sex appears.
Oh, yeah, she’s made it clear at this point what she wants to do in this situation. And now we find out the person in the story is a boy. I don’t know how to feel about that, exactly. Hopefully, she’s talking about legal, consensual sex here.
I also love her plug for hydration in here too. It’s a very important concept to spread. You can face serious consequences if you don’t drink water.
Is it worth it? Let me work it
I put my thing down, flip it and reverse it
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup iIf you got a big, let me search ya
To find out how hard I gotta work ya
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Come on
Okay, now this part makes a little bit more sense on repeat after what we had discovered in the last stanza of this work of art. I still don’t get the enchantment though. Maybe she needs it to get this boy to cheat on his girl with her because he wouldn’t do it otherwise? Who knows? I guess that part is open to interpretation at this point.
If you’re a fly gal, get your nails done
Get a pedicure, get your hair did
Boy lift it up, let’s make a toast, ah
Let’s get drunk, it’s gon’ bring us closer
Don’t I look like a Halle Berry poster?
See the Belvedere playin’ tricks on ya
I think I remember from the 90s-2000s lingo that “fly” means nice looking or cool so she’s describing what a girl should do to look nice and cool here. She wants you to get a pedicure, get your “hair did”, and just so she can get drunk with this boy and get closer to him.
Maybe that’s what that enchantment was for after all. And I’ve seen Halle Berry and Missy Elliott next to each other. I’m not fully convinced that they’re the same person. I have watched Swordfish after all and if those breasts are hiding behind Missy Elliott’s clearly bigger ones, then I’d be shocked.
Girlfriend wanna be like me never
You won’t find a bitch that’s even better
I make it hot as Las Vegas weather
Listen up close while I take you backwards
Sdrawkcab ti ekat ot ekil yssiM yaw eht hctaw
It actually sounds like she’s using sarcasm or irony here saying that the boy’s girlfriend doesn’t want to be like her never because it sounds like she has an inflated sense of self. She even thinks that she can control the weather in Las Vegas, interesting. Then, she goes back to more ominous enchantments. Maybe, that’s part of the way she can control the weather, as well.
I’m not a prostitute but I can give you what you want
I love your braids and your mouth full of fonts
Love the way my ass go ba-bump, ba-bump-bump
Keep your eyes on my ba-bump, ba-bump-bumpYou think you can handle this badonka-donk-donk
Take my thong off and my ass go boom
Cut the lights off so you see what I can do (Come on)
I mean, I’d take her word on this. But I have recently written a story about a girl who pretended to be interested and had sex with me but I only found out after the fact that she actually WAS a prostitute, so I’d take that statement with a grain of salt. She loves his braids, that’s cool. And his mouth full of fonts.
Do her enchantments actually make Arial and Times New Roman appear in someone’s mouth when they talk? I’d like to explore that phenomenon more in a later piece. Then she challenges him to handle her honky tonk badonkadonk. Trace Adkins had found his inspiration from this song, I’m sure. She’s doing some X-rated stuff with him in this next part. That’s probably why she’s turning off the lights at this point. But I don’t think he’ll be able to see anything she does at that point, come on.
Is it worth it? Let me work it
I put my thing down, flip it and reverse it
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup iIf you got a big, let me search ya
To find out how hard I gotta work ya
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i (Come on)
I might have to stop writing this analysis soon. It seems that her enchantments have started getting to me a bit. I’m wanting to become a prostitute who can change the weather and attract people with significant others to me while I work it, flip it, and reverse it. I’m scared to even say these words out loud for fear that I’ll consume Mike with them too.
Boys, boys, all type of boys
Black, White, Puerto Rican, Chinese boys
Why-thai, thai-o-toy-o-thai-thai
Rock-thai, thai-o-toy-o-thai-thai (C’mon)
Girls, girls, get the cash
If it’s nine to five or shakin’ you ass
I feel like this section should’ve been longer if she was describing boys, all types of boys. She only named four of them and not even the four best ones. Is she also trying to impersonate an Asian accent here? Huh, suspicious. Although, getting cash is never a bad thing. I think this confirms that she’s a prostitute though because she’s talking about it in the context of a job and shaking your ass for it.
Ain’t no shame ladies, do your thing
Just make sure you ahead of the game
Just ’cause I got a lot of fame super
Prince couldn’t get me change my name papa
Kunta Kinte, a slave again, no sir
Picture blacks sayin’, oh yes’a massa
Okay, so she’s saying that there’s no shame in it even though she had previously said that that wasn’t her line of work. I know she’s a rapper but I’d respect her just the same if she was also a sex worker as a side gig. Sex work is real work too. She’s famous and cool, and she’s met Prince.
Why did Prince try to get her to change her name, though? That’s weird. Yeah, I’m not touching those last couple of lyrics there. I’m in no place to comment on the historical strife of the African American community as Missy Elliott is.
Picture Lil’ Kim dating a pastor
Minute Man, Big Red can outlast ya
Who is the best? I don’t have to ask you
When I come out, you won’t even matterWhy you act dumb like ugh, duh
So you act dumb like ugh, duh
And the drummer boy go pa-rum, pa-pom-pom
Give you some-some-some of this Cinnabon (Come on)
Lil’ Kim dating a pastor would probably be the opposite imagery of what I’d have when picturing her partner. I don’t know the Minute Man and Big Red people, but I’ll take Missy’s word on this. Missy’s song is supposed to be better than all of these people though.
I guess that makes sense. We’re still talking about it around 20 years later. It’s not politically correct to make fun of dumb people so she shouldn’t be doing that. Now she’s throwing in a random Christmas song reference and something about the delicious and sweet food from Cinnabon. Nice.
Is it worth it? Let me work it
I put my thing down, flip it and reverse it
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup iIf you got a big, let me search ya
To find out how hard I gotta work ya
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i
Ti esrever dna ti pilf nwod gnaht ym tup i (Come on)
To my fellas (Ooh, good god)
I like the way you work that
To my ladies (Woo)
You sure know how to work that (Good god)
So now that I think about it as the song lyrics conclude, she’s bragging in some parts of this song about her talent and the way she can put her thang down, which when I looked it up on Urban Dictionary, wasn’t what I was expecting.
The enchantment wasn’t meant for the guy, apparently, it was meant for us to be tricked into thinking that this was a good, coherent song as I had originally thought going into this analysis. She wants to work a guy’s big “yeah, you know what she’s talking about now.”
She ends the song by getting us all enchanted in her ritual of sex with partnered men and the usual name-dropping that most rappers are known for these days. She definitely inspired millions of people, women, and rappers with her innovative style and enchantments of nonsense to get people to buy her music.
For that reason, I think that this song stands the test of time because sex sells and Missy tells and shows us she’s the best female rapper from that era. Also, a little magic never hurt to get what you want.
When I look at this song as a whole, I can see how one can get confused by the lyrics at times, but at the end of the day, she just wants us to know that if you believe in yourself enough, you can sleep with who you want, flip and reverse your thang and drop it like it’s hot.
This has been the Sturg with a thoughtful and in-depth analysis of the Missy Elliott song “Work It” in the publication “Drop a Line.” Thank you.
