Nearly 13 years ago, the music industry suffered the loss of a musical angel and her name was Aaliyah. The R&B songbird manifested on the music scene in 1994 with her multi-platinum debut album “Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number.”
Two years later, the “I’m Down” artist connected with hit-makers Missy Elliott and Timbaland to create her sophomore effort “One in a Million,” which featured successful singles such as “If Your Girl Only Knew,” “4 Page Letter” and “The One I Gave My Heart To.”
After contributing her vocals to film soundtracks like “Anastasia” and “Dr. Dolittle,” she took time pursue an acting career. Her first major role was 2000’s “Romeo Must Die.” Later, she scored a role in “Queen of the Damned” as an ancient vampire named Queen Akasha.
Aaliyah’s released her self-titled album in 2001. The LP marked her third and last album before her untimely death in The Bahamas where she recorded the music video to for the single “Rock the Boat.”
There’s no telling how big Aaliyah’s career would have been if she were still with us today. However, it goes without saying, her influence still makes an impact in the music — especially in current artists like Ciara, Sevyn Streeter, Tiffany Evans and Drake.
As we celebrate her 35th birthday today like many fans, we share ten of our favorite Aaliyah songs.
“I Miss You”
“At Your Best (You Are Love)”
“I Care 4 U”
“If Your Girl Only Knew”
“Come Over”
“Try Again”
“The One I Gave My Heart To”
“One in A Million”
“Are You That Somebody”
“Rock the Boat”
I love Aaliyah and Ciara but I wish ppl stop comparing them. They are completely different. Aaliyah’s music incoporated more Soul and Rock influences while Ciara’s contains more Pop influences. Aaliyah’s dancing was more sleek and smooth while Ciara’s is more intense and hardcore. Aaliyah’s style was very tomboyish while Ciara’s is more feminine. They both are sopranos however, Aaliyah’s range at her death was 3 octaves while Ciara’s is around 2.7 octaves. Had Aaliyah been alive, who knows how successful she’d be. She could’ve been a global superstar or a complete hasbeen. I really when Aaliyah stans try to discredit other artists like Beyoncé, Ciara and Rihanna as copying her style when Aaliyah’s style was heavily influenced by TLC and Janet. Anyways, R.I.P. Baby Girl. You are truly missed