Missy also talked about how she developed her sound alongside her longtime musical partner and fellow Virginia native, Timbaland. “When me and Timbaland came in, we weren’t watching other people’s videos, we weren’t listening to the radio like that,” she said. “Because if you don’t see, or you don’t hear, then you end up creating your own sound. But if you begin to watch and listen, then a lot of times you end up catering to what’s happening right now.”
She said writing for other artists (her credits include work for Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey, Tweet, Monica, Beyoncé, Jazmine Sullivan, Fantasia, and Keyshia Cole, among others, ) is easier than writing music for herself. “Writing for other people is easiest for me," she said. "Writing for myself is very hard because I’m very hard on myself as an artist; and because I’m very different. So, when I’m doing songs for other people, they kind of say: ‘Hey, we want a Missy record,’ and they’re excited to have that. But when I’m writing for myself, I’m constantly saying: ‘I gotta do better than that,’ or ‘nah, that ain’t hot enough.’ So, it’s much harder writing for me because I’m extremely critical of my art and my projects.”
Missy also spoke about Virginia's influence and the wave of talent that's come out of her state of years. “When you talk about game-changing states, Virginia has to be on the top of that list,” she said, listing folks like Ella Fitzgerald, Allen Iverson, D’Angelo, and Booker T. Washington. “We have so much talent that has gone on to become successful. It’s not just Missy, Timbaland and Pharrell – there’s Pusha T, and so many others. We always say there’s something in the water; that’s our big saying. It isn’t just artists, but legendary artists. Whether it’s sports, entertainment or otherwise, I just feel honored that I’m able to properly represent that.”
