Talented. Beautiful. Modest. These three words described R&B; singer-turned-actress Aaliyah perfectly. Born in Brooklyn, New York but raised in Detroit, Aaliyah got her first major exposure appearing on the syndicated television series _"Star Search" (1983)_ (qv) where she awed the audience with her amazing voice and talent. Withdrawing from the celebrity scene for a few years, Aaliyah lived the life of a normal teenage girl, attending Detroit's Performing Arts High School where she majored in dance. It was around this same time that Aaliyah met singer/composer 'R. Kelly' (qv). Kelly assisted Aaliyah with the production of her debut album "Age Ain't Nothing But A number" which scored several number hits, specifically "Back and Forth." The album's title was a brief reference to her short-lived marriage to 'R. Kelly' (qv) (she was 15 years of age at the time, and he was in his 20s). Thir marriage was annulled due to her status as a minor. During her senior year, Aaliyah went on to record "One In A Million" which featured the songwriting talents of major R&B; producers/writers 'Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliott' (qv) and 'Tim Mosley (I)' (qv). That album was a major success and sealed Aaliyah's fame forever. After seeing her at an awards show and in the video for her hit song "Are You that Somebody?" (from the 'Eddie Murphy (I)' (qv) film _Doctor Dolittle (1998)_ (qv)), film producer 'Joel Silver (I)' (qv) (producer of _The Matrix (1999)_ (qv) and other major actor films) asked Aaliyah to audition for a role in an upcoming romance/action film called _Romeo Must Die (2000)_ (qv). With her determination and sex appeal, Aaliyah won Silver over and was cast in her first major film role. _Romeo Must Die (2000)_ (qv) was a hit at the box office. This film led to her being cast as one of the stars of the film based on 'Anne Rice (I)' (qv)'s _Queen of the Damned (2002)_ (qv) and in the two sequels to the major box office hit, _The Matrix (1999)_ (qv). During the busy schedule of her film career, Aaliyah took time to record her third album, the self-titled "Aaliyah". July 2001 was a busy time for Aaliyah. After the sucess of her song "Try Again" for which she was nominated for a Grammy Award and won several MTV Video Awards, Aaliyah finally released her "Aaliyah" album. Debuting at number two on the Billboard charts, "Aaliyah" was a sales success despite many lack-lustre reviews it received. In August 2001, Aaliyah took time off from her busy album promotional tour to fly to the Bahamas to film a video for the song "Rock the Boat". The video, filmed on Abaco Island, was directed by 'Hype Williams' (qv), a major music video director known for his style and wit. On August 25, 2001, after filming the video, Aaliyah and about 9-11 of her entourage took off from Marsh Harbour airport at 6:50pm EDT in a small Cessna 404 en route to Opa-Locka, Florida. A few minutes after take-off, the plane crashed about 200 feet from the runaway killing Aaliyah and many others instantly. Four passnegers were pulled alive from the wreckage, and one later died at a hospital in Nassau. Aaliyah was only 22 years old. Aaliyah's short-lived, but brillant career was a true success story for a young African-American woman who went against all odds to be herself in an industry where originality is scarce. Truly missed by her family, friends, and fans, her music and film contributions will live forever.
name | Aaliyah |
---|---|
alt | Head and upper torso of a young woman with long, black hair and a broad facial expression, wearing an unbuttoned navy blue jacket and a tank top underneath. Glasses hang from the center of her tank top and she holds a brown purse on the left side of her body. |
background | solo_singer |
birth name | Aaliyah Dana Haughton |
alias | |
birth date | January 16, 1979 |
birth place | Brooklyn, New York City, United States |
death date | August 25, 2001 |
death place | Marsh Harbour, Abaco Island, The Bahamas |
origin | Detroit, Michigan, United States |
genre | R&B;, pop, hip hop |
occupation | Singer, dancer, actress, model |
years active | 1991–2001 |
label | Blackground, Jive, Atlantic, Virgin |
website | http://www.aaliyah.com }} |
Aaliyah Dana Haughton (January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001), who performed under the mononym Aaliyah (), was an American R&B; recording artist, actress and model. She was born in Brooklyn, New York, and was raised in Detroit, Michigan. At the age of 10, she appeared on the television show ''Star Search'' and performed in concert alongside Gladys Knight. At age 12, Aaliyah signed with Jive Records and her uncle Barry Hankerson's Blackground Records. Hankerson introduced her to R. Kelly, who became her mentor, as well as lead songwriter and producer of her debut album, ''Age Ain't Nothing but a Number''. The album sold three million copies in the United States and was certified double platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). After facing allegations of an illegal marriage with R.Kelly, Aaliyah ended her contract with Jive and signed with Atlantic Records.
Aaliyah worked with record producers Timbaland and Missy Elliott for her second album, ''One in a Million''; it sold 3.7 million copies in the United States and over eight million copies worldwide. In 2000, Aaliyah appeared in her first major film, ''Romeo Must Die''. She contributed to the film's soundtrack, which spawned the single "Try Again". The song topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 solely on airplay, making Aaliyah the first artist in ''Billboard'' history to achieve this feat. "Try Again" earned Aaliyah a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B; Vocalist.
After completing ''Romeo Must Die'', Aaliyah filmed her part in ''Queen of the Damned''. She released her third and final album, ''Aaliyah'', in July 2001. On August 25, 2001, Aaliyah and eight others were killed in an airplane crash in The Bahamas after filming the music video for the single "Rock the Boat".The pilot, Luis Morales III, was unlicensed at the time of the accident and had traces of cocaine and alcohol in his system. Aaliyah's family later filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Blackhawk International Airways, which was settled out of court. Since then, Aaliyah's music has continued to achieve commercial success with several posthumous releases. Aaliyah recorded several number one R&B; hits and five top ten ''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles. Aaliyah sold 32 million albums worldwide. She has been credited for helping redefine R&B; and hip hop, earning her the nicknames "Princess of R&B;" and "Queen of Urban Pop". She is listed by ''Billboard'' as the tenth most successful female R&B; artist of the past 25 years, and 27th most successful R&B; artist overall.
Aaliyah attended the Detroit High School for the Performing Arts, where she majored in drama and graduated in 1997. ref name="The Independent"/> Aaliyah began her acting career that same year; she played herself in the police drama television series ''New York Undercover''. During this time, Aaliyah participated in the Children's Benefit Concert, a charity concert that took place at the Beacon Theatre in New York. She contributed on the soundtrack album for the Fox Animation Studios animated feature ''Anastasia'', performing a cover version of "Journey to the Past" which earned songwriters Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Original Song. Aaliyah performed the song at the 1998 Academy Awards ceremony and became the youngest singer to perform at the event. Later on that year Tommy Hilfiger gave her an endorsement deal, part of her deal was to model at various Tommy Hilfiger shows. The song "Are You That Somebody?" was featured on the ''Dr. Dolittle'' soundtrack. "Are You That Somebody?" was in the midst of its chart run when Billboard changed its policy to allow airplay-only singles to chart on the Hot 100 and Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop charts. It climbed to number four on the Hot 100 Airplay chart and number one on the Hot R&B;/Hip-Hop Airplay chart. The single peaked at number 21 on the Billboard Hot 100.
After completing ''Romeo Must Die'', Aaliyah began to work on her second film, ''Queen of the Damned''. She played the role of an ancient vampire, Queen Akasha, which she described as a "manipulative, crazy, sexual being". She was scheduled to film for the sequels of ''The Matrix'' as the character Zee. Aaliyah went on to release her eponymous album, ''Aaliyah'', in July 2001. Produced by Timbaland, the album debuted at number two on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 187,000 copies in its first week. The first single from the album, "We Need a Resolution", peaked at number 59 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100.
As an artist, Aaliyah often voiced that she was inspired by a number of performers. These include Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Sade, En Vogue, Nine Inch Nails, Korn, Prince, Naughty by Nature, Johnny Mathis and Janet Jackson. Aaliyah expressed that Michael Jackson's ''Thriller'' was her "favorite album" and that "nothing will ever top ''Thriller''." She stated that she admired Sade because "she stays true to her style no matter what... she's an amazing artist, an amazing performer... and I absolutely love her." Aaliyah expressed she had always desired to work with Janet Jackson—whom she had drawn frequent comparison to over the course of her career, stating "I admire her a great deal. She's a total performer... I'd love to do a duet with Janet Jackson." Jackson reciprocated Aaliyah's affections, commenting "I've loved her from the beginning because she always comes out and does something different, musically." Jackson also stated she would have enjoyed collaborating with Aaliyah.
Aaliyah focused on her public image throughout her career. She often wore baggy clothes and sunglasses, stating that she wanted to be herself. She described her image as being "important… to differentiate yourself from the rest of the pack". She often wore black clothing, starting a trend for similar fashion among women in United States and Japan. Aaliyah participated in fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger's All America Tour and was featured in Tommy Jean ads, which depicted her in boxer shorts, baggy jeans and a tube top. Hilfiger's brother, Andy, called it "a whole new look" that was "classy but sexy". When she changed her hairstyle, Aaliyah took her mother's advice to cover her left eye, much like Veronica Lake. In 1998, she hired a personal trainer to keep in shape, and exercised five days a week and ate diet foods. Aaliyah was praised for her "clean-cut image" and "moral values".
According to findings from an inquest, conducted by the coroner's office in The Bahamas, Aaliyah suffered from "severe burns and a blow to the head", in addition to severe shock and a weak heart. The coroner theorized that, even if Aaliyah had survived the crash, her recovery would have been virtually impossible given the severity of her injuries. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) report stated that "the airplane was seen lifting off the runway, and then nose down, impacting in a marsh on the south side of the departure end of runway 27 and then exploding in flames." It also indicated that the pilot was not approved to pilot the plane he was attempting to fly. Morales falsely obtained his Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) license by showing hundreds of hours never flown, and he may also have falsified how many hours he had flown in order to get a job with his employer, Blackhawk International Airways. Additionally, an autopsy performed on Morales revealed traces of cocaine and alcohol in his system. The NTSB reported that the maximum allowed gross weight of the plane was "substantially exceeded" and that the center of gravity was positioned beyond its rear limit. John Frank of the Cessna Pilots Association stated that the plane was "definitely overloaded".
Aaliyah's funeral was held on August 31, 2001, at the Saint Ignatius Loyola Church in New York. Her body was set in a silver casket, which was carried in a glass hearse and was drawn by horse. An estimated 800 mourners were in attendance of the procession. Among those in attendance to the private ceremony were Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Gladys Knight, Lil' Kim and Sean Combs. After the service, 22 white doves were released to symbolize each year of Aaliyah's life. She was interred in a crypt in a private room in the Rosewood Mausoleum at the Ferncliff Cemetery.
The day of the crash was Morales' first official day with Blackhawk International Airways, an FAA Part 135 single-pilot operation. In addition, Morales was not registered with the FAA to fly for Blackhawk. As a result of the accident, a wrongful death lawsuit was filed by Aaliyah's parents and was later settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. Barry & Sons, Inc., a corporation formed in 1992 to develop, promote and capitalize Aaliyah and to oversee the production and distribution of her records and music videos, brought an unsuccessful lawsuit in the New York Supreme Court against Instinct Productions LLC, the company that was hired in August 2001 to produce the music video for "Rock the Boat". The case was dismissed because of New York's wrongful death statute only permitting certain people to recover damages for wrongful death.
Aaliyah was signed to appear in several future films, including ''Honey'' (recast to Jessica Alba). ''Some Kind of Blue'' and a Whitney Houston-produced remake of the 1976 film ''Sparkle'' were canceled due to Aaliyah's death. Before her death, Aaliyah had filmed part of her role in ''The Matrix Reloaded'' and was scheduled to appear in ''The Matrix Revolutions'' as Zee. The role was later recast to Nona Gaye. Aaliyah's scenes were later included in the tribute section of the ''Matrix Ultimate Collection'' series. In 2005, Aaliyah's second compilation album, ''Ultimate Aaliyah'' was released in the UK by Blackground Records. ''Ultimate Aaliyah'' is a three disc set, which included a greatest hits audio CD and a DVD. Andy Kellman of Allmusic remarked "''Ultimate Aaliyah'' adequately represents the shortened career of a tremendous talent who benefited from some of the best songwriting and production work by Timbaland, Missy Elliott, and R. Kelly."
A documentary movie ''Aaliyah Live In Amsterdam'' was released in 2011. The documentary, by Pogus Caesar, contained previously unseen footage shot at the start of her career in 1995 when the then 16-year-old was appearing in the Netherlands.
Aaliyah was honored at the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards by Janet Jackson, Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Ginuwine and her brother, Rashad, who all paid tribute to her. In the same year, the United States Social Security Administration ranked the name Aaliyah one of the 100 most popular names for newborn girls. Aaliyah was ranked as one of "The Top 40 Women of the Video Era" in VH1's 2003 ''The Greatest'' series. She was also ranked at number 18 on BET's "Top 25 Dancers of All Time". Aaliyah has also appeared on both 2000 and 2001 list of Maxim Hot 100 in position 41 and the latter at 14. In memory of Aaliyah, the Entertainment Industry Foundation created the Aaliyah Memorial Fund to donate money raised to charities she supported. In December 2009, ''Billboard'' magazine ranked Aaliyah at number 70 on its Top Artists of the Decade, while her eponymous album was ranked at number 181 on the magazine's Top 200 Albums of the Decade.
+ Film and television credits | ||||
Title | Year | Medium | Role | Notes |
''New York Undercover'' | 1997 | TV series | Herself | |
''Romeo Must Die'' | 2000 | Feature film | Trish O'Day | |
! scope="row" | 2002 | Feature film | Queen Akasha |
Category:1979 births Category:2001 deaths Category:Actors from Michigan Category:Actors from New York City Category:African American dancers Category:African American female models Category:African American film actors Category:African American singers Category:American child singers Category:American female singers Category:American people of Native American descent Category:American pop singers Category:American rhythm and blues singers Category:American singers of Native American descent Category:American sopranos Category:Atlantic Records artists Category:Burials at Ferncliff Cemetery Category:Hip hop singers Category:Jive Records artists Category:Musicians from Detroit, Michigan Category:People from Brooklyn Category:Singers from New York City Category:Swing Mob artists Category:Universal Records artists Category:Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the Bahamas Category:Virgin Records artists
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