Missy Elliott Punches Up Skrillex and Diplo’s New Jack U Remix
Last September, EDM all-stars Diplo and Skrillex shared “Take Ü There,” the first official recording from their collaborative side project, Jack Ü. Now the funky, pulsating track has even more star power thanks to Missy Elliott, who adds scene-stealing rhymes in a new remix. “I’m the main chick, not a substitute,” the rapper flows with trademark bravado over the track’s reggae drum breaks, woozy synths and frenetic programming.
The Missy-naissance is nigh. Earlier this month, the reclusive rap icon delivered a “surprise” performance of her signature track “Work It” during Katy Perry’s decadent Super Bowl Halftime Show. While it’s been nearly a decade since Elliott released her last solo LP, 2005’s The Cookbook, the rapper released two new Timbaland-produced songs, “9th Inning” and “Triple Threat,” in 2012.
Since then, she’s only made occasional feature appearances, but Timbaland told Rolling Stone last July that a new Elliott album might be in the works. “It’s coming,” he said. “It’s on her. She got the first single; it’s just a matter of when she wants to do it. We got the hollow-tip bullet in the gun. We have the game-changer right there.”
As for Jack Ü, the duo have been sporadically active ever since their September 2013 debut performance at the Mad Decent Block Party in San Diego. The project remained dormant until a reunion gig at Miami’s Ultra Music Festival in March 2014, which was followed by a series of live dates throughout the year. During a spot last year on BBC Radio 1Xtra, Diplo and Skrillex played a handful of unreleased songs, including “Jungle Bae,” “Cumbia Maluca,” “Beats Steady Knockin” and “Febreze” featuring 2 Chainz.
Though they hinted last summer at the possibility of dropping a mixtape, the project hasn’t come to fruition. Last December, the duo came together for a frenzied remix of Beyoncé’s “7/11,” which was released on the Platinum Edition of the singer’s self-titled 2013 LP. That same month, Jack Ü uploaded a collection of seven “Take Ü There” remixes, including a reworked take from Zeds Dead.