Aaliyah Dana Haughton was born January 16, 1979 and sadly died August 25, 2001, better known simply as her stage name Aaliyah, was an American R&B singer, dancer, fashion model and actress. Introduced to audiences by R&B singer R. Kelly, Aaliyah became famous in her own right during the mid-1990s with several hit records from the songwriting/production team of Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott and Timbaland, and their associate Steve "Static" Garrett.


Aaliyah, Notable for recording several hit records, including five number one R&B hits, one number one pop hit, and seven top 10 singles on the Billboard Hot 100, Aaliyah sold over 24 million records worldwide during her career. The singer also modeled for Tommy Hilfiger and starred in two motion pictures before her death in a plane crash in 2001 at the age of 22.


Aaliyah (Ah-Lee-Yah) was born in Brooklyn, New York to Michael and Diane Haughton. Aaliyah's name is Arabic for the highest, most exalted one, the best. Aaliyah grew up in Detroit, Michigan where she attended various schools including the Detroit High School for Fine and Performing Arts. Aaliyah signed with her uncle Barry Hankerson's Blackground label in 1993 and released her debut album, titled Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, in 1994. The album reached platinum status within months, and featured the gold-selling singles "Back and Forth" (number one U.S. R&B, 3 weeks), and "At Your Best (You Are Love)" (number two U.S. R&, a cover of the 1976 Isley Brothers single. The album went on to reach double platinum status with sales of over two million copies in the U.S. and five million worldwide.

Follow up:

It was revealed that in 1994, when Aaliyah was 15, she was married to R&B singer/songwriter R. Kelly, the producer of Age Ain't Nothing but a Number. VIBE magazine in 1995 published a copy of their marriage certificate and claimed Aaliyah had falsified her age as 18 so Aaliyah and Kelly could be married. Neither confirmed nor denied the accusations. Both parties had the marriage quickly annulled when the press found out about the union. R. Kelly did not work on any of Aaliyah's future recordings.


One in a Million (1996)



One in a Million, Aaliyah's sophomore album, was chiefly written and produced by then unknowns Missy Elliott and Tim "Timbaland" Mosley and released on August 27 1996. The album was a landmark in Aaliyah's career, garnering her mass critical acclaim and introducing Aaliyah's more mature side. It embarked the newfound chemistry of Aaliyah and Timbaland. The album was certified double-platinum within a year, making Aaliyah a major R&B star and igniting the successful careers of Missy Elliott and Timbaland. One in a Million featured the international smash hit "If Your Girl Only Knew" (number one U.S. R&B, 2 weeks), "One in a Million," (number one U.S. R&B airplay, six weeks) and the top 10 U.S. R&B single "The One I Gave My Heart To," a ballad written by Diane Warren. The album also included "4 Page Letter" which also received significant airplay on U.S. pop and R&B radio.


Tommy Hilfiger took notice of Aaliyah's "street but sweet" image and gave Aaliyah her first endorsement deal. He immediately signed Aaliyah onto print campaigns, runway shows, and a commercial. During this period, Aaliyah would also make guest appearances on albums by artists such as Missy Elliott, Timbaland & Magoo, Ginuwine and Playa. Timbaland and Playa's frontman Steve "Static" Garrett would remain Aaliyah's principal collaborators for the duration of her career. To date, One in a Million has sold over 3 million copies in the U.S. and eight million worldwide.


Movie


In 1997, Aaliyah appeared on the soundtrack album for the Fox Animation Studios animated feature Anastasia, singing the pop version of "Journey to the Past". The song was nominated for an Academy Award, and Aaliyah performed the song at the 1997 Academy Awards ceremony, making history. Aaliyah became the youngest female recording artist to perform at the ceremony.


Aaliyah had a huge hit in 1998 with "Are You that Somebody" (number one U.S. R&B airplay, eight weeks), the main single from the Doctor Doolittle soundtrack. Its video was the third most-played on MTV that year, and the song's success helped make Aaliyah a household name. The single was a Top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart.


In 2000, Aaliyah co-starred with Jet Li in the martial-arts film Romeo Must Die, which debuted at number two at the box office. Aaliyah and Timbaland executive produced the film's soundtrack album and Aaliyah contributed four songs: "Are you Feelin' Me?," "I Don't Wanna," "Back in One Piece," a duet with DMX, and the international number one hit "Try Again." Aaliyah made history once again with her hit single "Try Again." It became the first song in history to ever reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100 based solely on the strength of its radio airplay, without any single sales factored. After the huge success of "Try Again" at radio, a 12" maxi single was released for consumer purchase. The radio-only single, "I Don't Wanna", peaked at number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100, and number five on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip Hop Singles & Tracks chart.


In 2001, Aaliyah went to Australia to co-star with Stuart Townsend in the film Queen of the Damned, an adaptation of the Anne Rice novel of the same name. While filming Queen of the Damned, Aaliyah also recorded most of her third studio album, Aaliyah.

"We Need a Resolution," the first single from Aaliyah's highly-anticipated third studio album, was released in April of 2001. The self-titled Aaliyah was released four months later on July 17, 2001. The album was a critical success, introducing a darker and edgier side to Aaliyah's music, and was noted as having showcased her growth as an artist. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, selling over 187,000 copies in its first week, and was certified gold (500,000 copies sold) within four weeks, before her death.


In the summer of 2001, Aaliyah filmed the video for Aaliyah's intended second single, "More than a Woman". After the video was completed, however, it was decided "Rock the Boat" should be the second single instead, and the "More than a Woman" video was temporarily shelved.