VMAs 2019: Alyson Stoner dances for Missy Elliott 17 years after appearing in 'Work It' music video

Gibson Johns
Updated ·2 min read
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Missy Elliott's greatest hits medley at the 2019 MTV VMAs featured a familiar face that you may not have noticed.

The rap legend was honored with the Video Vanguard Award at the show, which gave her the opportunity to perform a slew of her most memorable songs like "Get Ur Freak On," "Lose Control" and "Work It," during her first performance at the awards show since 2003.

It was during "Work It" that Elliott brought out a standout dancer from the massive 2002 hit's music video: Alyson Stoner.

Stoner was one of the child dancers featured in the "Work It" music video, at the age of 9, which coincided with her fame as a child star on the Disney Channel on "Super Short Show," as well as notable credits in the "Cheaper by the Dozen" movies, and fans were excited to see her still dancing at the age of 26.

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Clad in a full yellow sweatsuit straight out of 2002 with her name, "ALYSON," in giant block letters on the back, the actress proved that she hasn't lost a beat in the years since her breakout, breakdancing like a total pro as the crowd went wild.

Predictably, viewers watching at home shared their reactions to the special throwback moment on Twitter, calling the move "legendary," "iconic" and "epic," among other things.

Back in 2017, Stoner reflected in an interview with Vibe on her experience of working with Elliott on the "Work It" music video and what she learned from the experience.

"She created an atmosphere of easy-going, good-natured fun, and I think it allowed us to not even consider that we were performing in front of a camera that’s gonna be syndicated to the world. It really kept us, in a very palpable way, engaged with each other and focused on the dance," she said. "That’s something that I think the best artists retain -- the ability to invite you into their small, intimate inner space, and let that be what radiates."

Watch Missy Elliott's full 2019 VMAs performance below: