When the Hype Williams-directed video for Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott’s debut single “The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)” hit MTV in 1997, it felt like a transmission from deep space. Now, that song is a transmission into deep space. Last Friday, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory beamed “The Rain” to Venus via the agency’s Deep Space Network. It’s only the second song ever to be transmitted into deep space. (The first was the Beatles’ “Across The Universe” — a pretty on-the-nose selection — in 2008.)

In a press release, NASA Digital And Technology Division director Brittany Brown says, “Both space exploration and Missy Elliott’s art have been about pushing boundaries. 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.”

Missy Elliott herself chose Venus as the destination for “The Rain,” calling it her favorite planet: “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!” The temperature on Venus is too high for water to exist there, but it does rain on Venus. Google tells me that the planet’s rain is mostly made up of sulfur and carbon dioxide. You really wouldn’t be able to stand that rain.

Supa-flying to Venus!

For the first time, a hip-hop song was transmitted #OutOfThisWorld. @MissyElliott's "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" traveled 158 million miles to Venus through NASA's Deep Space Network from @NASAJPL's Deep Space Station 13 in California: https://t.co/Gg5ibm80hb pic.twitter.com/BwsdTNNqCv

— NASA (@NASA) July 15, 2024

YOOO this is crazy! We just went #OutOfThisWorld with @NASA and sent the FIRST hip hop song into space through the Deep Space Network. My song “The Rain” has officially been transmitted all the way to Venus, the planet that symbolizes strength, beauty and empowerment. The sky is… pic.twitter.com/g6HofNQSt1

— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) July 15, 2024

Missy Elliott is currently headlining her first-ever North American tour alongside Busta Rhymes, Ciara, and Timbaland. She plays Denver’s Ball Arena tonight.