Veteran producer Timbaland has teased a new studio album from Missy Elliott on social media.

The long-time Missy Elliott collaborator tweeted earlier today (December 2), asking his followers if they were “ready” for a new record from the Virginia-born rap star, real name Melissa Arnette Elliott. The 'Work It' artist retweeted it, seemingly confirming the two had been working together again.

Who ready for that @MissyElliott Timbo album??????👀👀👀👀

— Timbaland (@Timbaland) December 1, 2021

The album would be Elliott’s seventh, and first since 2005’s The Cookbook. Following the release of her 2006 greatest-hits album Respect M.E., Elliott’s significantly reduced her public appearances. She returned in 2015 with the Pharrell-assisted ‘W.T.F. (Where They From)’, and later released her ‘Iconology’ EP in 2019.

More recently, she added a guest verse to a remix of Dua Lipa‘s single ‘Levitating’ and collaborated with Bree Runway on the song ‘ATM’. She was also honoured with a star on the Hollywood Hall of Fame last month, with ‘Tempo’ collaborator Lizzo singing her praises at the podium on the special day.

Timbaland has not produced a full album since Justin Timberlake‘s two 2013 albums, The 20/20 Experience Parts 1 and 2. His production work featured on several tracks from Kanye West‘s 2019 album Jesus is King, as well as recent tracks from Megan Thee Stallion and Ludacris. In 2020, he and Swizz Beatz kickstarted the Verzuz series, which sees two iconic artists go head to head in a music battle.

Elliott and Timbaland’s collaborations date back to 1993, when the former featured on a track by Jodeci - produced by the latter. The two co-produced Elliott’s debut album, 1997’s Supa Dupa Fly, and would go on to largely co-produce and co-write the majority of Elliott’s music up to 2005. The album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, the highest charting debut for a female rapper at the time. Unusually, The Cookbook saw Timbaland only work on only two of the album’s 16 songs.

Elliott embarked on her music career with R&B girl group Sista in the early-mid 1990s and later became a member of the Swing Mob collective with childhood friend Timbaland. The duo worked on projects for American R&B acts Aaliyah, 702, Total, and SWV. Following several collaborations and guest appearances, she launched her solo career in 1997 with top 20 single 'Sock It 2 Me'.

Elliott's second album, Da Real World, was released in 1999 and spawned the singles 'She's a Bitch', 'All n My Grill', and 'Hot Boyz'. With the release of Miss E... So Addictive (2001), Under Construction (2002), and This Is Not a Test (2003), Elliott established an international career that led to hits like 'Get Ur Freak On', 'One Minute Man', '4 My People', 'Gossip Folks', and 'Work It'. The latter won her a Grammy Award for Best Female Rap Solo Performance.

Elliott went on to win four Grammy Awards and sell over 30 million records in the US.