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— CH. 1 · INTRODUCTION —

Aaliyah

~15 min read · Ch. 1 of 8
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  • Aaliyah Dana Haughton was 22 years old when a twin-engine Cessna 402 lifted off a runway in the Bahamas on the evening of the 25th of August 2001, and then plunged nose-down into a marsh about 200 feet from the end of the strip. She had just finished filming the video for "Rock the Boat" and was eager to get home early. She did not make it. The pilot, Luis Morales III, had cocaine and alcohol in his system and was not qualified to fly the aircraft. The plane was carrying more than 900 pounds beyond its certified weight limit. Nine people died.

    By the time of that crash, Aaliyah had already released three studio albums, starred in two films, and been credited with helping reshape the sound of contemporary R&B. She had grown up on stage, signed her first record deal at twelve, survived a deeply damaging relationship with an older man she worked with, rebuilt her career with a new label and new collaborators, and earned the kind of critical respect that most artists spend decades chasing. She was just getting started.

    How did a girl from Detroit become, in the words of one New York Times critic, "a digital diva who wove a spell with ones and zeroes"? What was the sound she and her collaborators invented, and why did it matter so much? And what happened in those final hours in the Bahamas, and in the years since, as her music refuses to stay still? Those are the questions this documentary will answer.

  • Aaliyah's name comes from the feminine form of the Arabic word "Ali", meaning "highest, most exalted one, the best." She was born on the 16th of January 1979, in Brooklyn, New York, to Diane and Michael "Miguel" Haughton. When she was five, the family moved to Detroit, Michigan, where she was raised alongside her older brother, Rashad.

    Music was the family's native language. Her mother was a vocalist who enrolled Aaliyah in voice lessons at an early age. Her uncle, Barry Hankerson, was an entertainment lawyer who had been married to Gladys Knight. As a child, Aaliyah traveled with Knight, worked with a New York agent to audition for commercials and television programs, and performed at weddings, church choir events, and charity concerts. In 1989, at age ten, she appeared on Star Search and sang "My Funny Valentine".

    At age eleven she appeared in concerts alongside Gladys Knight. At one such concert, rapper Tupac Shakur was in the audience and reportedly wanted to sign her to a record deal. She also auditioned for the television show Family Matters but failed to land a role. Aaliyah kept going, continuing her acting work through her school's theater program, the Gesu Players. In first grade at Gesu Elementary, a Catholic school, she had been cast in the stage play Annie, and she later told interviewers it was that production that first inspired her to pursue entertainment as a career.

    She was teased for her short stature in school, but by age fifteen she had come to love it. Her own words on the subject are direct: "You always have to deal with people who are jealous, but there were so few it didn't even matter. The majority of kids supported me, which was wonderful." During her audition for the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, she sang "Ave Maria" in Latin. She graduated with a 4.0 grade-point average and was vocal about not wanting young fans to think education was optional: "I wanted to keep that 4.0. Being in the industry, you know, I don't want kids to think, 'I can just sing and forget about school.'"

  • After Hankerson signed a distribution deal with Jive Records, he brought twelve-year-old Aaliyah onto his Blackground Records label. He then introduced her to recording artist and producer R. Kelly, who became her mentor and the lead songwriter and producer of her debut album, recorded when she was fourteen.

    Age Ain't Nothing but a Number was released on the 24th of May 1994, debuting at number 24 on the Billboard 200 and selling 38,000 copies in its first week. It would eventually sell over three million copies in the United States and earn a double-Platinum certification from the RIAA. Her debut single, "Back & Forth", peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for three weeks. Critics at the time praised what one writer for Time magazine, Christopher John Farley, called "a beautifully restrained work", noting that her "girlish, breathy vocals rode calmly on R. Kelly's rough beats."

    Behind the scenes, something else was happening. A marriage certificate later revealed by Vibe magazine listed Aaliyah and Kelly as having married on the 31st of August 1994, at the Sheraton Gateway Suites in Rosemont, Illinois. Aaliyah, then fifteen, was listed as eighteen on the certificate. Kelly was twenty-seven. The marriage was annulled by her parents in February 1995. Both parties denied the certificate was genuine, calling it a forgery.

    Accounts that emerged years later told a more disturbing story. In his 2011 book, Kelly's former tour manager Demetrius Smith Sr. wrote that Kelly married Aaliyah after she told him she was pregnant and that Smith himself helped Aaliyah forge documents showing she was of legal age. Smith said he was "not proud" of his role. In the 2019 documentary Surviving R. Kelly, additional witnesses described what they claimed to have seen.

    Aaliyah cut off all professional and personal contact with Kelly after the annulment. She refused to speak his name publicly. When journalist Damon Dash later tried to bring up the subject with her in private, she would only say Kelly was a "bad man." On the 27th of September 2021, a federal jury found Kelly guilty of nine counts including racketeering, sexual exploitation of a child, and sex trafficking. On the 29th of June 2022, he was sentenced to thirty years in prison. Aaliyah's illegal marriage to him was heavily featured in the court case. Her mother, Diane Haughton, reflected that everything "that went wrong in her life" began with her relationship with Kelly.

  • After severing ties with Jive Records, Aaliyah signed with Atlantic Records and began working with a pair of producers who were, at that point, still at the beginning of their own careers: Timbaland and Missy Elliott. Missy Elliott later recalled that she and Timbaland were nervous to work with Aaliyah, given that Aaliyah had already released a successful album while the two of them were just starting out. Elliott admitted she had feared Aaliyah would be difficult, but said Aaliyah "came in and was so warming; she made us immediately feel like family."

    The album they made together, One in a Million, released in 1996, sold three million copies in the United States and more than eight million worldwide. Its lead single, "If Your Girl Only Knew", peaked at number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for two weeks. The album itself peaked at number eighteen on the Billboard 200 and earned a double-Platinum RIAA certification on the 16th of June 1997.

    What Timbaland and Missy Elliott brought to Aaliyah's sound was something critics struggled at first to categorize. They mixed what one account described as "choppy, nervous rhythms over loops of computer-generated backing tracks" and created a "freeze-and-stop style of singing on top of bass-heavy instrumentals" that became Aaliyah's signature. Critic Kelefah Sanneh of The New York Times later put it plainly: Timbaland's "computer-programmed beats fitted perfectly with her cool, breathy voice to create a new kind of electronic music."

    The year after the album's release, Aaliyah graduated from the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts with a 4.0 GPA, majoring in drama. She also became a spokesperson for the Tommy Hilfiger Corporation that year. During the campaign, the company sold over 2,400 pairs of the red, white, and blue baggy jeans she wore in their advertisements. In 1997 she also performed a cover version of "Journey to the Past" at the Academy Awards ceremony, becoming the youngest singer ever to perform at the event. The song earned its songwriters Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

  • In 1999, Aaliyah landed her first big-screen acting role in Romeo Must Die, starring opposite martial artist Jet Li. Released on the 24th of March 2000, the film grossed US$18.6 million in its opening weekend, ranking number two at the box office. She served as an executive producer of its soundtrack and contributed four songs. One of those songs, "Try Again", became the first song to top the Billboard Hot 100 solely on the basis of airplay, without commercial retail sales counting toward its chart position. The achievement led to the song being released on vinyl.

    "Try Again" won the Best Female Video and Best Video from a Film awards at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards and earned Aaliyah a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocalist. The soundtrack itself sold 1.5 million copies in the United States.

    Some critics noted there was limited chemistry between Aaliyah and Jet Li on screen. Elvis Mitchell of The New York Times wrote that while Aaliyah was "a natural" and the film was conceived as a spotlight for both her and Li, "they have so little chemistry together you'd think they're putting out a fire instead of shooting off sparks." Aaliyah, for her part, deliberately avoided reading reviews.

    Her work on the Romeo Must Die soundtrack delayed her third album, which she had hoped to deliver sooner after One in a Million. She explained: "I wanted to take a break after One in a Million to just relax, think about how I wanted to approach the next album. Then, when I was ready to start back up, 'Romeo' happened, and so I had to take another break and do that film and then do the soundtrack, then promote it. The break turned into a longer break than I anticipated." She ended up filming Queen of the Damned and recording her third album simultaneously so both could be released in 2001. Her third album, Aaliyah, debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 on the 17th of July 2001, selling 187,000 copies in its first week. It topped the chart the week after her death.

  • Aaliyah had the vocal range of a soprano, though her signature approach was almost the opposite of what that label implies. Her own description was precise: "My signature style is breathy, tone-y, airy. It's simple but I can ride a crazy track." She did not rely on the kind of vocal acrobatics that defined many of her contemporaries. As critic Sian Pattenden of Mixmag observed, "She doesn't try to toss the caber with vocal athleticism. There's no shouting, screeching, wailing or jazz-style noodling. Everything is underplayed."

    Producer Daryl Simmons recalled Aaliyah doing opera vocal warm-up exercises before recording "The One I Gave My Heart To" in 1997. Simmons said it "was the furthest thing I would have ever thought that she could do. It just blew my mind." Songwriter Diane Warren, who wrote the song, was less surprised: "It showed her vocal range, and I know a couple of people thought she wouldn't be able to do that song. I thought, 'No, she'll be able to do that.'" Rolling Stone noted that "the most remarkable thing about Aaliyah's voice, besides its flexibility and crisp range, was its almost preternatural poise - she always seemed to be holding her power in reserve."

    Aaliyah rarely wrote her own lyrics; she was trained as an interpreter rather than a composer. The one co-writing credit she carried was on "Death of a Playa", a track she wrote with her brother Rashad Haughton from the 1997 "Hot Like Fire" single, described as reflecting her "dark perspective on romance." She was explicit about her philosophy: "I like to have the final say but I was trained as a singer, actress and dancer, the interpreter, bringing other people's words to life. I need the songs to reflect me in one way or another."

    As her career progressed, her musical range widened across R&B, pop, hip hop, funk, soul, and dance-pop. She called her sound in 2001 "street but sweet." In The New Rolling Stone Album Guide, published in 2004, critic Keith Harris placed her lyrical stance somewhere between En Vogue's defiance and a more openly sensual register. AllMusic's Stephen Thomas Erlewine called her third album "a statement of maturity and a stunning artistic leap forward" and placed it among the strongest urban soul records of its time.

  • At 6:50 pm on the 25th of August 2001, Aaliyah and members of her record company boarded a twin-engine Cessna 402 at the Marsh Harbour Airport in the Abaco Islands, the Bahamas. They had originally arrived on a larger Cessna 404 but were switching to the smaller plane to leave early after completing filming. Another charter pilot present at the airport, Lewis Key, said he overheard Aaliyah's group arguing with their pilot, Luis Morales III, before takeoff. According to Key, Morales warned them the plane was overloaded but the passengers insisted they had chartered the aircraft and needed to leave. Key said Morales gave in and also had trouble starting one of the engines.

    The plane crashed and caught fire shortly after takeoff, about 200 feet from the end of the runway. All nine people on board died: Aaliyah, Morales, hair stylist Eric Forman, Anthony Dodd, security guard Scott Gallin, family friend Keith Wallace, make-up stylist Christopher Maldonado, and Blackground Records employees Douglas Kratz and Gina Smith. According to the Bahamian coroner, Aaliyah suffered severe burns, a blow to the head, severe shock, and a weak heart; the coroner theorized that even had she survived the crash, her recovery would have been nearly impossible.

    Subsequent investigation found the aircraft overloaded by more than 900 pounds and carrying one more passenger than it was certified for. The National Transportation Safety Board reported the plane lifted off and then went "nose down, impacting in a marsh on the south side of the departure end of runway 27." Morales, it was found, had falsely obtained his FAA license by claiming flight hours he had never logged. Toxicology tests revealed traces of cocaine and alcohol in his system. Aaliyah's family filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the aircraft's operator, which was settled out of court.

    Aaliyah's private funeral Mass was held on the 31st of August 2001, at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in Manhattan. An estimated 800 mourners attended. After the service, 22 white doves were released, one for each year of her life. Her brother Rashad delivered the eulogy, saying: "Aaliyah, you left, but I'll see you always next to me and I can see you smiling through the sunshine." As mourners left, they sang her song "One in a Million."

  • In the week after Aaliyah's death, her third album rose from number 19 to number 1 on the Billboard 200. Promotional posters in New York and Los Angeles became makeshift memorials. "Rock the Boat", released as a posthumous single, became the most viewed and highest rated episode in the history of BET's Access Granted. "More than a Woman" reached number one on the UK singles chart, making Aaliyah the first female deceased artist to reach the top of that chart. It was replaced by George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord", the only time in the chart's history when one dead artist replaced another at number one.

    The compilation album I Care 4 U, released in December 2002, debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, selling 280,000 copies in its first week. Its lead single, "Miss You", topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for three weeks. A portion of the proceeds was donated to charities Aaliyah had supported, including programs at the Revlon UCLA Women's Cancer Research Program and Harlem's Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

    Beyond sales, the critical case for her importance only grew stronger in the years that followed. Critic Simon Reynolds cited "Are You That Somebody?" as "the most radical pop single" of 1998. AllMusic's Steve Huey ranked her among the "elite" artists of the R&B genre for popularizing what he called "the stuttering, futuristic production style that consumed hip-hop and urban soul in the late 1990s." Billboard ranked her at number ten on its list of the most successful female R&B artists of the previous 25 years, and Rolling Stone placed her at number 40 on their 200 Best Singers of All Time list. In September 2023, she was inducted into the National Rhythm and Blues Hall of Fame.

    Her catalog remained caught in a dispute between her estate and Blackground Records for years. When the label finally reissued One in a Million in August 2021, it re-entered the Billboard 200 top ten for the first time, selling 26,000 album-equivalent units in a single week. On the 16th of January 2025, Mattel released an Aaliyah Barbie Doll modeled on her appearance in the "One in a Million" music video. A posthumous single, "Gone", released in May 2025 with former collaborator Tank, peaked at number one on the Adult R&B Airplay Chart. The album Unstoppable, announced by Barry Hankerson in August 2021, had not been released as of early 2025, with Blackground Records only hinting on social media that it was "coming."

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Common questions

How did Aaliyah die and what caused the plane crash?

Aaliyah died on the 25th of August 2001, when a twin-engine Cessna 402 crashed shortly after takeoff from the Marsh Harbour Airport in the Abaco Islands, the Bahamas. The aircraft was overloaded by more than 900 pounds and carrying one more passenger than it was certified for. The pilot, Luis Morales III, was not qualified to fly the designated aircraft, had falsely obtained his FAA license, and had traces of cocaine and alcohol in his system.

What was Aaliyah's relationship with R. Kelly?

Aaliyah worked with R. Kelly as her mentor, lead songwriter, and producer on her 1994 debut album, recorded when she was fourteen. A marriage certificate later revealed by Vibe magazine showed the two had married on the 31st of August 1994, in Rosemont, Illinois, with Aaliyah listed as eighteen when she was actually fifteen. The marriage was annulled by her parents in February 1995. Aaliyah severed all professional and personal ties with Kelly after the annulment. Kelly was convicted on the 27th of September 2021, of nine federal criminal counts including racketeering and sex trafficking, and was sentenced to thirty years in prison on the 29th of June 2022.

What was Aaliyah's vocal style and how did critics describe it?

Aaliyah had the vocal range of a soprano but favored a soft, breathy, understated approach she described as "breathy, tone-y, airy." Rolling Stone noted that the most remarkable quality of her voice was "its almost preternatural poise - she always seemed to be holding her power in reserve." She worked with producer Timbaland, whose computer-programmed beats critic Kelefah Sanneh of The New York Times said "fitted perfectly with her cool, breathy voice to create a new kind of electronic music."

How many albums did Aaliyah sell in her career?

Aaliyah sold 8.1 million albums in the United States and an estimated 24 to 32 million albums worldwide across her career. Her 1994 debut Age Ain't Nothing but a Number sold over three million copies in the US. Her 1996 album One in a Million sold three million copies in the US and more than eight million worldwide.

What was special about Aaliyah's single "Try Again"?

"Try Again" was the first song to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 solely on the basis of airplay, without commercial retail sales factoring into its chart position. Released from the Romeo Must Die soundtrack in 2000, the song also won the Best Female Video and Best Video from a Film awards at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards and earned Aaliyah a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocalist.

What films did Aaliyah appear in before her death?

Aaliyah starred in Romeo Must Die, released on the 24th of March 2000, opposite martial artist Jet Li, which grossed US$18.6 million in its opening weekend. She also filmed Queen of the Damned, in which she played the ancient vampire Queen Akasha; that film was released posthumously in February 2002 and grossed US$15.2 million in its first weekend, ranking number one at the box office. She had also filmed scenes for The Matrix Reloaded before her death, playing the character Zee.

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  124. 125newsDid R. Kelly impregnate Aaliyah?S2SMagazine.com — May 25, 2011
  125. 126newsFormer R. Kelly tour manager reluctantly testifies about the singer's marriage to AaliyahSonia Moghe — August 21, 2021
  126. 127web'Surviving R. Kelly' Shares Disturbing New Details About His Reported Marriage To AaliyahOctober 23, 2020
  127. 128magazineAaliyah's 'One In a Million' Turns 20: How Her Second Album Predicted R&B's FutureKenneth Partridge — August 27, 2016
  128. 129newsWhy Has the Public Forgiven R. Kelly for His Sordid, Predatory Past?December 9, 2013
  129. 130newsR. Kelly Gets Painfully Candid About Bill Cosby, Aaliyah, and Rape AccusationsVulture — January 20, 2016
  130. 131webAaliyah's Ex Boyfriend Says She Wouldn't Talk About R. Kelly: 'It Was So Much Hurt for Her'Maura Hohman — January 10, 2019
  131. 132web'Surviving R. Kelly, Part II': Aaliyah was a 'sacrificial lamb' in alleged abuse 'cover-up'Patrick Ryan — January 2, 2020
  132. 133webSexual misconduct allegations against R. Kelly spanning 25 years, in one timelineConstance Grady — April 25, 2018
  133. 134newsR. Kelly: When The Gavel DropsJennifer Vineyard — MTV News — May 13, 2004
  134. 135newsR. Kelly Addresses Relationship With Aaliyah, Allegations in Child Pornography CaseNBC Chicago — January 22, 2016
  135. 136webR. Kelly Dropped by Sony MusicJem Aswad — January 18, 2019
  136. 137newsR Kelly: Singer charged with sexual abuse in ChicagoFebruary 22, 2019
  137. 138inline"R. Kelly arrested in Chicago after being indicted by federal grand jury on new sex crime charges" , Chicago Tribune, July 11, 2019.
  138. 139webNew York Federal Prosecutors File New Charges Against R. KellyAnastasia Tsioulcas — March 13, 2020
  139. 140news27 years later, R. Kelly's illegal marriage to Aaliyah is at the center of the case against him.Rebecca Davis O'Brien — September 22, 2021
  140. 141webR Kelly found guilty on racketeering and sex trafficking chargesSeptember 27, 2021
  141. 142webR. Kelly given 30 years in jail for sex abuseJune 29, 2022
  142. 143webR Kelly sentenced to 30 years on sexual abuse charges- The R&B singer, 55, had been found guilty of sex trafficking and racketeering involving women, girls and boysEram Salam — June 29, 2022
  143. 144webDamon Dash Says Every Day with Aaliyah Was SpecialSway Calloway — MTV News — August 28, 2001
  144. 145bookAaliyah: A BiographyJennifer Warner — BookCaps Study Guides — 2014
  145. 146magazineDamon Dash Talks Losing Aaliyah: 'Nothing Prepares You for That'Erika Ramirez — August 24, 2011
  146. 147webJay-Z Tells Aaliyah Dame's Doing Well, Missy Misses Her On New RemixShaheem Reid — March 13, 2003
  147. 148webDamon Dash Reflects on Aaliyah's Legacy on the Anniversary of Her Death (Exclusive)Mekishana Pierre — August 25, 2021
  148. 149webAaliyah Killed in Plane CrashEric Schumacher-Rasmussen — MTV News — August 26, 2001
  149. 150newsAaliyah – Haste, Errors and a Fallen StarSeptember 8, 2001
  150. 151newsPilot in crash 'warned soul singer's group that plane was overloaded'Independent — August 28, 2001
  151. 152newsMore Questions Emerge in Aaliyah CrashAugust 29, 2001
  152. 153webCoroner Delivers Verdict Over Aaliyah Death CrashNovember 20, 2003
  153. 154webBahamas Coroner delivers verdict in Aaliyah death crashCaribbean Net News — November 21, 2003
  154. 155newsSinger Aaliyah dies in Bahamas plane crashBill Hirschman — August 27, 2001
  155. 156webAccident Cessna 402B N8097W, Saturday 25 August 2001
  156. 157webCocaine, Alcohol Found in Pilot of Aaliyah's PlaneCorey Moss — MTV News — July 16, 2002
  157. 158reportNTSB Identification: MIA01RA225National Transportation Safety Board
  158. 159harvnbSimmonds (2008) p. 455Simmonds — 2008
  159. 160newsAaliyah Crash Pilot Was on CocaineJaime Holguín — November 11, 2003
  160. 161webFans, celebrities gather for Aaliyah's Cinderella funeral forNekesa Mumbi Moody — September 1, 2001
  161. 162newsHundreds Say Good-Bye to AaliyahAugust 26, 2001
  162. 164newsIn Pictures: Adieu to AaliyahAugust 31, 2001
  163. 165webFans, Artists Pay Last Respects To AaliyahShaheem Reid — MTV News — August 31, 2001
  164. 166newsFUNERAL AWASH WITH TEARS & PINK ROSESSeptember 1, 2001
  165. 167newsTimbaland, P. Diddy, Other Artists React To Aaliyah's DeathEric Schumacher-Rasumeen — MTV — August 27, 2001
  166. 168webAlicia Keys, Destiny's Child, Aaliyah Excel at AMAsJoe D'Angelo — MTV News — January 10, 2002
  167. 169webNona Gaye to Fill in for AaliyahStephen M. Silverman — April 11, 2002
  168. 170newsAaliyah film tops US box officeFebruary 25, 2002
  169. 171journalYoung Legends Who Live on Through Their MusicSeptember 9, 2002
  170. 172magazineUnreleased Aaliyah Track Hits The NetJonathan Cohen — October 28, 2002
  171. 173magazineHoliday Sales Keep Shania 'Up' On TopTodd Martens — December 18, 2002
  172. 174webAaliyah Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)Billboard
  173. 175webAaliyah Honoured By DiorAugust 5, 2003
  174. 176webUltimate Aaliyah OverviewAndy Kellman — 2005
  175. 177webPogus Caesar premieres his Aaliyah movie in BirminghamGraham Young — July 22, 2011
  176. 178newsPosthumous Aaliyah Album in the Works: ReportBrennan Williams — AOL — March 7, 2012
  177. 179magazineAaliyah Featuring Drake, 'Enough Said': ListenErika Ramirez — August 5, 2012
  178. 180webTimbaland & Missy Elliott Will Not Work on Aaliyah Posthumous AlbumXXL News — August 13, 2012
  179. 181webAaliyah tribute album shelvedMSN — January 8, 2014
  180. 182magazineExclusive: Drake, Missy, Timbaland? Blackground Clarifies Rumors Swirling Around Aaliyah Album (Update)Steven J. Horowitz — August 9, 2012
  181. 183magazineChris Brown Pairs With Aaliyah Hologram in 'Don't Think They Know' Video – VideoJune 17, 2013
  182. 184newsTimbaland Apologizes To Chris Brown For Aaliyah Collab RemarksRAPFIX — July 26, 2013
  183. 185newsTimbaland Doesn't Approve Of Aaliyah Vocals On Drake, Chris Brown SongsRAPFIX — July 24, 2013
  184. 186newsTink Samples Aaliyah's 'One in a Million'George Chapman Jr. — BET — May 5, 2015
  185. 187webHere's The Story Behind The New Aaliyah FragranceAndres Tardio
  186. 188magazineHear a Previously-Unreleased Aaliyah Song on Timbaland's New MixtapeNatalie Weiner — December 26, 2015
  187. 189webThe "Aaliyah For Mac" collector's box sells out in minutesJune 24, 2018
  188. 190webMAC Just Announced An Aaliyah CollectionAugust 24, 2017
  189. 191webFinally, We Have a Launch Date for M.A.C's Aaliyah CollectionApril 2, 2018
  190. 192webAaliyah's Brother Unveils New Wax Figure of the Late Singer at Madame Tussauds; The unveiling comes days before the 18th anniversary of the plane crash that claimed Aaliyah's lifeJordan Runtagh — August 22, 2019
  191. 193webAaliyah's estate announces her music is coming to streaming servicesRob Copsey — August 26, 2019
  192. 194webFunko: Pop Rocks: Aaliyah The "Princess of R&B" and "Queen of Urban Pop", Aaliyah, is stepping out onto the stage of your music collectionFebruary 2, 2021
  193. 195webAaliyah's Estate Slams 'Unscrupulous' Effort to Release Her Music 'Without Transparency'Tomás Mier — August 5, 2021
  194. 196webAaliyah albums streaming: 'Her influence is absolutely everywhere'BBC — August 20, 2021
  195. 197webStream Aaliyah's 'One in a Million' AlbumAlthea Legaspi — Rolling Stone — August 20, 2021
  196. 198webOfficial Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart Top 40, 27 August 2021 – 2 September 2021August 27, 2021
  197. 199magazineOlivia Rodrigo's 'Sour' Returns to No. 1 on Billboard 200 Albums Chart After Vinyl Release
  198. 200webAaliyah's Chart-Topping Final Album Arrives on Streaming Platforms: ListenLars Brandle — Billboard — September 10, 2021
  199. 201webOfficial Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart Top 40, 17 September 2021 to 23 September 2021September 17, 2021
  200. 202magazineBillboard 200 Chart – Week of September 25, 2021September 20, 2021
  201. 203webAaliyah Album Commercial (2021) – "It's Been A Long Time"September 10, 2021
  202. 204magazineStream Aaliyah's 'I Care 4 U' and 'Ultimate Aaliyah' Compilation AlbumsAlthea Legaspi — October 8, 2021
  203. 205webOfficial Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart Top 40 15 October 2021 – 21 October 2021October 15, 2021
  204. 206magazineBillboard 200 – Week of October 23, 2021
  205. 207webBarry Hankerson answers every burning question on Aaliyah, the wait to get her music on streaming and moreRadio.com — August 25, 2021
  206. 208magazineAaliyah's First Posthumous Song in Nearly a Decade, 'Poison' Featuring The Weeknd,' Has ArrivedJon Blistein — December 17, 2021
  207. 209webThe Weeknd Will Reportedly Feature on a Posthumous Aaliyah AlbumSarah Kearns — December 14, 2021
  208. 210webAaliyah's uncle confirms posthumous album 'Unstoppable' is coming this monthDamian Jones — January 4, 2022
  209. 211webBlackground Records Shares Update on Aaliyah's Posthumous AlbumKeithan Samuels — January 16, 2024
  210. 212webOpinion: Aaliyah's Legacy Deserves More Than a Posthumous Album
  211. 213newsAaliyah gets her own Barbie on what would have been her 46th birthdayAdam Graham — January 16, 2025
  212. 214webBlackground Records 2.0 releases new Aaliyah and Tank collab "Gone"Angelina Velasquez — May 2, 2025
  213. 215webNew Music This Week: Ciara Drops "This Right Here" With Latto & Jazze Pha, Saweetie Releases "Superstars," Aaliyah's "Gone," And MoreOkla Jones — August 1, 2025
  214. 216webAaliyah's 'Gone,' but her legacy lives on in new songJuly 31, 2025
  215. 217magazineAaliyah - Adult R&B Airplay
  216. 218magazineAaliyah Lands Her First Adult R&B Airplay No. 1 With 'Gone,' Featuring TankTrevor Anderson — September 23, 2025
  217. 220webAaliyah's Posthumous Single Earns The Singer Her First New Radio Hit In A DecadeHugh McIntyre — May 18, 2025
  218. 221webAaliyah & Tank - Official 2D Video "Gone"August 1, 2025
  219. 222webAaliyah And Tank's New Song 'Gone' Is Now Available As A Virtual Concert On Meta QuestAaron Williams — August 1, 2025
  220. 223magazineAaliyah (1979–2001)Sal Cinquemani et al.
  221. 224web'Aaliyah': The Legacy Of The Perfect R&B/Pop RecordPeter Piatkowski — July 21, 2022
  222. 226webI Care 4 U – OverviewJohn Bush
  223. 227magazineAaliyah: One in a MillionSal Cinquemani — 2001
  224. 228newsAaliyah, Whose Soaring Career Was Cut Short by a TragedyAugust 25, 2016
  225. 229newsAaliyah, Unlikely Queen of the UndergroundAugust 25, 2011
  226. 230webHive Five: Exploring Aaliyah's Modern Day Influence
  227. 231news13 years later, Aaliyah is still R&B's 'Princess'Patrick Ryan — November 13, 2014
  228. 232newsIN DEATH, ENTERTAINER'S STORY GOES ONAugust 31, 2001
  229. 233webAaliyah biopic: Alexandra Shipp to play late R&B star in Lifetime movieJuly 18, 2014
  230. 234webZendaya Fires Back at Critics Over Aaliyah Casting BacklashLinda Ge — The Wrap — June 18, 2014
  231. 235newsFamily of Aaliyah reportedly plan to block a TV biopic about the late singerSean Michaels — June 19, 2014
  232. 236newsZendaya Coleman Explains Exit from Aaliyah BiopicLuchina Fisher — July 21, 2014
  233. 237newsAaliyah's family wants big screen biopic with A-list star portraying late singer, not low-budget Lifetime TV movieCorky Siemaszko — June 24, 2014
  234. 238magazineAaliyah Biopic Adds Missy Elliott and Timbaland Roles: ReportJocelyn Vena — August 9, 2014
  235. 239webMissy Elliott, Timbaland Casting in Aaliyah Biopic Causes UproarEvelyn Diaz — August 14, 2014
  236. 240web'Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B': TV ReviewAllison Keene — November 15, 2014
  237. 241magazineLifetime's Aaliyah movie was a hit despite backlashJames Hibberd — November 17, 2014
  238. 242magazineHere's When 'Baby Girl: Better Known as Aaliyah' Book Will Be ReleasedCarl Lamarre — Billboard — October 23, 2020
  239. 243magazineNew details of late R&B star Aaliyah's life revealed in 'Baby Girl: Better Known as Aaliyah'Hayley FitzPatrick — ABC News
  240. 244webHere Are All the Shout-Outs on Beyoncé's 'Break My Soul (The Queens Remix)'Michael Calcagno, Kyle Denis — Billboard.com — August 16, 2022
  241. 245webMadonna Joins Beyoncé on New "Break My Soul" Remix: ListenPitchfork — August 5, 2022
  242. 246magazine'Superstar: Aaliyah': How to Watch the ABC Tribute SpecialRylee Johnston — June 14, 2023
  243. 247webABC to honor the life and impact of Aaliyah in exclusive one-hour specialAngel Saunders — June 14, 2023
  244. 248magazineAsk Billboard: How Popular Is Country Music?
  245. 249magazineAsk Billboard: 'Titanic,' Mid-'90s Singers, Tori AmosKeith Caulfield — December 12, 2008
  246. 250bookSong of Brooklyn: An Oral History of America's Favorite BoroughMarc Eliot — Random House — 2008
  247. 251webCanadian RandB Singer Keisha Chante to Play Aaliyah in 2009 BiopicBET — December 18, 2008
  248. 252webAaliyah's 35th Birthday: Drake, Missy Elliott, Stars Remember SingerJanuary 16, 2014
  249. 253harvnbSutherland (2005) p. 21Sutherland — 2005
  250. 254magazineReviews and Previews – SinglesLarry Flick — March 14, 1998
  251. 255webEp. 166 | Episode Summary, Highlights, and RecapsVH1
  252. 256magazineI Care 4 UCraig Seymour — December 13, 2002
  253. 257newsJanet Jackson New Album: Janet Jackson First Album: People.com
  254. 258webLifetime's Aaliyah Biopic Should Never Have Been Made – VH1
  255. 259webJanet, Missy, Others Honor Aaliyah During VMAsJoe D'Angelo — MTV News — September 6, 2001
  256. 260bookThe New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely Revised and Updated 4th EditionNathan Brackett — Simon & Schuster — 2004
  257. 261webThe Greatest – Ep. 71 '50 Greatest Women of the Video Era'VH1
  258. 262webTop 25 DancersBET — February 1, 2008
  259. 263magazineBest of the 2000s – Artists of the Decade
  260. 264magazineDecade End Charts – Billboard 200 Albums2009
  261. 265magazineThe Top 50 R&B / Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 YearsGary Trust et al. — November 18, 2010
  262. 266magazine50 Most Influential RnB Stars
  263. 267webVH1's 100 Greatest Women in MusicVH1
  264. 268webNME's 100 Most Influential Artists: 50 – 1July 30, 2014
  265. 269webHot 100 Turns 60! The Top 60 Female Artists of All-Time, From Madonna to Mariah Carey & MoreXander Zellner — August 2, 2018
  266. 270magazineThe 100 Greatest Music Video Artists of All Time: Staff ListAugust 27, 2020
  267. 271magazineThe 200 Greatest Singers of All TimeJanuary 1, 2023
  268. 272magazineAaliyah, New Edition & More Headed for National Rhythm & Blues Hall of FamePaul Grein — May 19, 2023
  269. 273magazineBillboard's Top 100 Women Artists of the 21st Century Chart, Nos. 100-1March 19, 2025
  270. 274magazineThe 75 Best R&B Artists of All TimeJune 18, 2025