Even 27 years later, Missy Elliott is still living in the future with her new tour

Missy Elliott has lived up to expectations. The hip-hop legend, often praised and recognized for her creativity and innovation within the genre, is on her first-ever headlining arena tour of the United States, and it has lived up to all the high expectations.

Elliott is a figure who has built her image through abstract music videos and clothing, a true image of an artist through her production and rapping style. All of that comes to the fore on the Out of This World tour. Missy arrives and leaves the stage on a spaceship. Each fan is given a wristband that lights up simultaneously around the arena to highlight each hit of every song. Her longtime hypeman, CO, engages each side of the large venue throughout the night, giving them challenges like hand waving and call-and-response chants. The energy and stamina Elliott displays at 53 years old is astonishing. Over the course of an hour and 15 minutes, she performs multiple wardrobe changes, choreographs routines and even runs around the entire lower bowl of the venue, high-fiving fans during “Work It.”

The graphics and stage design alone make it a must-see for music lovers aged 18 to 80. You’ll be dancing, clapping and singing along to Missy Elliott’s show, even if the only song you know is “Lose Control.”

Elliott became emotional at the end of her July 27 show in Atlanta. She said that none of the thousands of fans who stood up and cheered her on had to leave their homes to support her and that she wasn’t taking the moment for granted. While the spotlight was on Elliott, who begged fans not to capture the vulnerable moment and have it go viral online, fans in Atlanta watched a modern-day legend reflect on her long-awaited arena headliner debut 27 years after her career breakthrough. The huge applause that followed was a celebration of flowers for one of hip-hop’s greats who is often underappreciated for not following trends and being a woman in a historically male-dominated space.

Well, Elliott is no longer underrated after the Out of This World experience. Every night she hears the appreciation of thousands of fans for her art and contributions to culture as a rapper, singer, dancer and producer.

The tour’s Atlanta stop on July 27 featured surprise performances from Bossman Dlow and Monica, an equally energetic set from Busta Rhymes and a friendly reminder from her local hero Ciara of her illustrious career over the past two decades.