Missy Elliott has received her second doctorate in only three years after Norfolk State University presented the Virginian hip hop artist with an award for her contributions.
This follows her first honorary doctorate which was awarded to Dr Elliott back in 2019 by the Berklee College of Music. On that occasion, she appeared alongside Justin Timberlake and Alex Lacamoire.
“I’m looking around and I see innovators, visionaries, leaders created in here. I want to see these same faces years from now saying ‘I became famous, I became president, I became a lawyer.’ All of those things,” she said in her Norfolk State acceptance speech.
Adding: “I am proud of you all, and you all should be proud of yourself. I want you to look at each other and say, ‘You already won.’ Let them know. Ain’t no winning, you already the one.”
Concluding: “Because you all could have been doing anything else the last few years, y’all could have been wilding out, but y’all decided to finish the course. And that is major.”
In a later tweet, Elliott shared her gratitude, stating: “I am so grateful. Thank you, Norfolk State, for having me today. To the class of 2022: May your journey be successful, fearless, determined to be the best! Behold the green & gold!”