Missy Elliott’s “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” Becomes First Hip-Hop Song Beamed Into Space

Missy Elliott’s music has officially gone out of this world.

NASA announced that its Deep Space Network (DSN) transmitted the 53-year-old rapper’s “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” to Venus, marking the first hip-hop song ever beamed into space by the government agency.

The transmission was sent on Friday from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, using the DSN’s powerful radio antennas, according to a statement from NASA published on Monday.

The song traveled 158 million miles from Earth to Venus and took 14 minutes at the speed of light to reach its destination.

Elliott’s 1997 hit is the second song overall to be beamed into deep space, following “Across the Universe” by the Beatles in February 2008.

“I still can’t believe I’m going out of this world with NASA through the Deep Space Network when ‘The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)’ becomes the first ever hip-hop song to transmit to space!” Elliott said in a statement. “I chose Venus because it symbolizes strength, beauty, and empowerment and I am so humbled to have the opportunity to share my art and my message with the universe!”

“Both space exploration and Missy Elliott’s art have been about pushing boundaries,” said Brittany Brown from NASA’s Office of Communications in Washington. “Missy has a track record of infusing space-centric storytelling and futuristic visuals in her music videos so the opportunity to collaborate on something out of this world is truly fitting.”

Brown was responsible for pitching ideas to Elliott’s team to collaborate with NASA.

The transmission coincides with NASA’s ongoing and upcoming missions to Venus, DAVINCI and VERITAS, which are set to launch no earlier than 2029 and 2031 respectively.

Both missions will explore the planet and send data back to Earth using the DSN, which has been operational since 1963 and supports these missions from ground stations in Goldstone, California, Madrid, Spain, and Canberra, Australia.

However, you don't have to launch yourself into space to catch Elliott. The rapper's Out of This World Tour, with guests Ciara, Busta Rhymes, and Timbaland began on July 4 in Vancouver. The 24-city trek will visit Houston, Atlanta, Baltimore, New York, Philadelphia, and more before wrapping up in Chicago on Aug. 23.