Missy Elliott wanted to 'push the envelope' with tour costumes
Missy Elliott wanted to "push the envelope" with her stage costumes for her first-ever headlining tour.
The Work It rapper kicked off her Out of This World tour at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, Canada, alongside Busta Rhymes, Ciara and Timbaland on Thursday night.
She worked closely with her longtime collaborator, celebrity stylist June Ambrose, to bring her vision to life.
"June and I go way, way, waaay back and we created my most iconic looks together, so who better to collaborate with for this tour?" Elliott told WWD via email. "She knows me and knows what I expect when it comes to costuming. She understands the way I think and sees fashion through my same lens."
Ambrose created almost 250 costumes for the Get Ur Freak On rapper and her dancers to fit four visually distinct acts, with the looks involving oversized puffer coats, overalls, baseball jerseys and lots of bejewelled garments.
Elliott explained to WWD that she wanted to push the envelope while being comfortable in her stage clothes.
"On stage I have to be comfortable as I want to focus on my performance and not have to worry about my clothing, but I definitely always push the envelope when it comes to my show looks to come up with costumes that reflect my persona and complement the visuals of the show," she shared. "I also like to do a lot of costume changes during my shows, so I wear a lot of jumpsuits because they're easy to get on and off."
Once the tour wraps up in August, the hip-hop legend will keep her costumes in her personal archives and potentially loan pieces to museums for exhibitions.