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| Aaliyah |
AALIYAH :: JANUARY 16, 1979 - AUGUST 25, 2001
Aaliyah was one of nine people killed in a plane crash on Saturday, August 25th, 2001. She was leaving the Bahamas and heading back to Florida when the private plane went down moments after take off. Aaliyah was in the Bahamas working on a video. She was 22.
Biography
By the age of 21, Aaliyah had a successful recording career, had established herself as a major motion picture actress and had proven to be an accomplished businesswoman.
Produced by Timbaland, Aaliyah's third album, the self-titled Aaliyah, was released on July 17th, 2001.
Released posthumously, Aaliyah was seen in the Warner Brother's film Queen of the Damned, directed by Michael Rymer. She played Akasha, the title role in the super-natural adventure, which is based on the third novel in Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles. Aaliyah starred along with Stuart Townsend, Vincent Perez and Lena Olin.
Aaliyah made her motion picture debut in Romeo Must Die. Co-starring Jet Li, the film was a box office success and led to Aaliyah's huge hit record, 'Try Again,' which was produced by Timbaland. The Romeo Must Die soundtrack sold in the millions and spent weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard soundtrack chart. Her performance earned her nominations for MTV's 2001 Movie Awards for both 'Best Female Performance' and 'Breakthrough Performance Female' and the song earned nominations for MTV's 2000 Music Awards for both 'Best Female Video' and 'Best Video in a Film.' Aaliyah served as executive producer of the soundtrack and had two other cuts on the record including one with DMX.
In 1998 Aaliyah had a huge hit with 'Are You That Somebody' from the Dr. Dolittle soundtrack. Produced by Timabaland and written by Static, the song is infectious, known for its clever sampling of a baby crying. Later that year, Aaliyah performed the song 'Journey To The Past' from the motion picture Anastasia at the Academy Awards.
In 1996 Aaliyah released her second record, 'One In A Million.' The first single, 'If Your Girl Only Knew,' went double platinum and contains Timbaland's signature syncopated beats and Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliot's poignant lyrics. Jermaine Dupri, Rodney Jerkins, J. Dibbs, Daryl Simmons, Kay-Gee, Vincent 'V.H.' Herbert and Craig King were also involved with producing 'One In A Million.' The album was multi-platinum and an international hit.
In 1994 at the age of 14, Aaliyah released her first album, 'Age Ain't Nothing But A Number.' It was an instant success. The first single, 'Back and Forth,' was a Top 5 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 and a No. 1 R & B song. The follow up single, a remake of the Isley Brother's 'At Your Best (You Are Love)' reached Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was No. 2 at R & B radio.
From an early age, Aaliyah had found satisfaction in her music. When she didn't win the local vocal competition on 'Star Search' as a pre-teen, she did not let it deter her from continuing to sing. At age 11, she landed a five-night stint performing with Gladys Knight's troupe in Las Vegas. Born in Brooklyn, New York, she was raised in Detroit. She graduated from the Detroit Performing Arts High School in 1997 with a 4.0 GPA. She credited her success to the support from her family. She was managed by her parents as well as her brother Rashad.
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