Business

Mona Scott-Young says she spent the summer “bouncing back-and-forth” between two popular, concurrent tours that she produced with Live Nation: the 30-city Queens of R&B, co-starring SWV and Xscape, and the highly anticipated, 24-city Out of This World: The Missy Elliott Experience — the rap icon’s first-ever headlining gig featuring Ciara, Busta Rhymes and Timbaland.
Both tours wrapped in August, and the founder and CEO of Monami Entertainment and Monami Productions says she’s currently focusing on another co-production: the Sept. 27 theatrical release of The Lost Holliday, starring Vivica A. Fox and the film’s director, Jussie Smollett.

“We have one life, right?” Scott-Young says. “So we’ve got to get it while the getting’s good. With these tours now under our belt, we have other film and TV projects under development. Once we get those up and running, I definitely have other ideas I’m going to develop.” And that’s not counting the multimedia mogul’s earlier business endeavors such as producing the VH1 reality flagship Love & Hip Hop, which led to Atlanta and Miami spinoffs that are in their 12th and fifth seasons, respectively. (Scott-Young is not actively involved with these shows.) She also co-owns MYX Fusions wine beverages.

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Scott-Young began her entrepreneurial evolution in 1996 when she and late music executive Chris Lighty co-founded the company Violator. Comprising various divisions including management, a record label and a marketing group, Violator boasted such marquee R&B/hip-hop talent as Busta Rhymes, LL COOL J, 50 Cent, Mariah Carey, Fantasia and Elliott. (Scott-Young still manages Rock & Roll Hall of Famer Elliott under Monami Entertainment.)

“I never felt like the little woman in the equation,” she says of her co-venture with Lighty. “It was a true partnership. He supported me, but I also made sure that I showed up, showed out and delivered at every turn.”

This bedazzled bottle “is a reminder to celebrate my achievements — better yet, to always be the bling!”

Michael Buckner

The New York native, wife and mother of two first staked her claim in TV with the 2005 UPN reality competition series The Road to Stardom With Missy Elliott, produced by her then-newly minted Monami Productions. Six years later, she launched the original Love & Hip Hop series. Since then, Scott-Young has executive-­produced a host of subsequent TV programs, among them the History Channel’s Cocaine: History Between the Lines, WE tv’s Tamar Braxton: Get Ya Life! and Bravo’s The New Atlanta and SWV and Xscape: Queens of R&B, which spawned the tour.

Scott-Young isn’t one to look back. “I’m lucky and blessed every time I get the chance to tap another skill set, another part of what I’m capable of. I haven’t pulled my hair out yet,” she says with a laugh, “so we’ll see what’s next. I have no idea, but I’m here — and I’m ready.”

What took so long for Missy Elliott to embark on her first-ever headlining tour?

It wasn’t for the lack of opportunity or fan requests. Over the years, she’s gotten offers. But it’s all about her feeling the timing is right for anything. She’s popped her head up every now and then when given an opportunity like Lovers & Friends [in 2023]. She did that concert and a few others because they afforded her the scale and budgetary perspective to put together the kind of show that she wants to deliver for her fans. Then she woke up one morning and was like, “We should go out on tour.” We sat down at the top of the year, and it came together very quickly as we jammed through every detail from set design to wardrobe, choreography and everything in between. There is no simple “I’m just going to jump onstage” for Missy Elliott. This was a full-on, spectacular production.

Elliott has talked about having Graves disease. How has she dealt with that on tour?

We’ve been keeping her safe. The good thing is she has adopted a very healthy lifestyle. She walks constantly to maintain her weight and stamina level. So other than the normal wear and tear of performing every night, we’ve tried to keep her in good shape healthwise, which is why we didn’t do many meet-and-greets, although Missy went into the audience every night.

Scott-Young wore this headpiece when New Orleans’ historic 6th Ward Treme Sidewalk Steppers “crowned me She-King — my preference to being crowned Queen.”

Michael Buckner

What does the Queens of R&B tour say about the impact of those veteran groups and the popularity of R&B?

There are probably more R&B core artists out there now than ever before, and not just in the U.S.: It’s resonating internationally. Couple that with what’s happening with females in music. Look at hip-hop: We have more female artists out now than in a very long time. When you put those elements together, you have all of the emotional attachments that fans have for these two ’90s groups. Watching Xscape and SWV on Verzuz, seeing them on their TV show trying to put their differences aside and pull [the tour] together. It’s the music, the sisterhood, the female empowerment of it all. And it’s a testament to the staying power of these ladies and their careers.

Why are nostalgia tours like these so popular and profitable right now?

Missy talked about this while on the road, her seeing the grandmas — and the grandkids — out there in the audience. A lot of these kids — even her dancers — weren’t even born when her music was first released. And there definitely has been a resurgence, especially for ’90s music across both hip-hop and R&B. We’re seeing a lot of new artists who are tapping into that era of music and the emotions it evokes. It holds a special place for both artists and fans. It also goes back to everything I believe: that you’re definitely as old as you allow yourself to be. And art is art. You mentioned Mick Jagger at 81. As long as you’re still able to get out there, do what you love and execute your passion with a level of delivery that’s going to make fans walk away feeling satisfied and entertained, then God bless. Rock out.

Aren’t women artists subjected to a harsher standard when it comes to age?

As women in business, we’ve dealt with ageism for as long as I can remember. I don’t subscribe to that. When you look at what Missy managed to put on that stage, and SWV and Xscape and their years of experience, musicality and performanceship, you can’t put an age on that. And audiences are turning out.

The New Orleans City Council presented Scott-Young with this proclamation for hosting a parade there. “It’s my favorite city in the world,” she says. “And the airport code, MSY, is my initials.”

Michael Buckner

Will Missy or the Queens extend their tours?

They’re both doing extremely well, so there have been conversations. We have an international opportunity that we’re looking at [for Elliott]. But you know, that tour is such a megillah that I’m just focused on successfully getting through this first round. Missy’s excited about touring. She’s loving the experience, so we’re definitely having discussions about how we keep this thing going.

You have managed Elliott for 20-plus years — a rarity in this business. What’s your secret?

I understand her. At our first official meeting, I saw this incredible, larger-than-life talent. But beyond that, I saw a human being who has been through things in life that contributed to her brilliance — but also created this introverted person who felt the need to protect herself from being hurt. So part of me understood that she needed someone to block for her — clear the path — so that she could reach her maximum potential.

Sounds like you two are close.

I think the relationship has worked to where we’re simultaneously friends, colleagues and sisters. We’ve cried together, laughed together, won together, seen dark days together.

What other artists do you manage?

I have more recently been getting pulled back into management, specifically on the music side. I work very closely with a company called Artist Collective Entertainment. Nick Roses, Brian Sher, Eric Tomosunas and myself are the founding partners. We’ve brought our respective experience and talent to the table to see how we can better serve artists across the board. There’ll be an announcement soon about the company, but we’ve got a growing roster of talent from music artists to actors.

This clapboard reminds Scott-Young that she’s “very proud to have built one of the few Black female-owned physical production companies in film and television.”

Michael Buckner

What’s your advice for women navigating an industry that remains male-dominated?

I don’t want to say it hasn’t been difficult. I’m the kind of person that believes we control our destinies. We cannot allow ourselves to be held back, pigeonholed or marginalized by other people, society or the restrictions that we know exist. Our job every single day is to realize our potential and fight to push ourselves to our limits. I understand what my gifts and talents are. So I just push through every day — push myself further to go to places where we are told we should not be and doing things we are told we can’t do. It’s all about proving them wrong.

You often say that you are determined to create pop culture moments. How do you define those moments?

It’s about doing things that are going to stay with people, providing them with an experience that resonates — one they can hang on to, look back on and talk about as a pivotal moment, whether it’s a piece of music, a memory, an experience. So whether it’s a TV show like Love & Hip Hop, which became part of the zeitgeist and redefined the way we saw a particular genre of television; producing Missy Elliott’s first headlining tour and being a part of that moment in music; or taking a brand like Queens of R&B, doing it as a TV show and then leveraging it as a tour. That is a pop culture moment.