Aaliyah

When she was growing up, Aaliyah attended Detroit schools and believed she was well-liked, but got teased for her short stature. She recalled coming into her own prior to age 15 and grew to love her height. Her mother would tell her to be happy that she was small and compliment her. Other children disliked Aaliyah, but she did not stay focused on them. "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. When it comes to dealing with negative people, I just let it in one ear and out the other. Those people were invisible to me." Even in her adult life, she considered herself small. She had "learned to accept and love" herself and added: "... the most important thing is to think highly of yourself because if you don't, no one else will".[6]

During her audition for acceptance to the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, Aaliyah sang the song "Ave Maria" in its entirety in the Italian language.[17] Aaliyah, who maintained a perfect 4.0 grade-point average when graduating from high school, felt education was important. She saw fit to keep her grades up despite the pressures and time constraints brought on her during the early parts of her career. She labeled herself as a perfectionist and recalled always being a good student. Aaliyah reflected: "I always wanted to maintain that, even in high school when I first started to travel. 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.' I think it's very important to have an education, and even more important to have something to fall back on." She did this in her own life, as she planned to "fall back on" another part of the entertainment industry. She believed that she could teach music history or open her own school to teach that or drama if she did not make a living as a recording artist because, as she reasoned, "when you pick a career it has to be something you love".[6]

R. Kelly was introduced to Aaliyah and became her mentor, as well as lead songwriter and producer on her debut album.

After Hankerson signed a distribution deal with Jive Records, he signed Aaliyah to his Blackground Records label at the age of 12.[18][19] Hankerson later introduced her to recording artist and producer R. Kelly,[14] who became Aaliyah's mentor, as well as lead songwriter and producer of her first album, which was recorded when she was 14.[2][19][20] Aaliyah's debut album, Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, was released under her mononym "Aaliyah", by Jive and Blackground Records on May 24, 1994; the album debut at number 24 on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 74,000 copies in its first week.[21][22] It ultimately peaked at number 18 on the Billboard 200 and sold over three million copies in the United States, where it was certified two times Platinum by the RIAA.[22][23][24] In Canada, the album sold over 50,000 copies and was certified gold by the CRIA.[25] Aaliyah's debut single, "Back & Forth", topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for three weeks and was certified Gold by the RIAA.[24][26] The second single, a cover of The Isley Brothers' "At Your Best (You Are Love)", peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and was also certified Gold by the RIAA.[24][26] The title track, "Age Ain't Nothing but a Number", peaked at number 75 on the Hot 100.[26] Additionally, she released "The Thing I Like" as part of the soundtrack to the 1994 film A Low Down Dirty Shame.[27]

Age Ain't Nothing But a Number received generally favorable reviews from music critics. Some writers noted that Aaliyah's "silky vocals" and "sultry voice" blended with Kelly's new jack swing helped define R&B in the 1990s.[28][29] Her sound was also compared to that of female quartet En Vogue.[28][30] Christopher John Farley of Time magazine described the album as a "beautifully restrained work", noting that Aaliyah's "girlish, breathy vocals rode calmly on R. Kelly's rough beats".[31] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic felt that the album had its "share of filler", but described the singles as "slyly seductive".[2] He also claimed that the songs on the album were "frequently better" than that of Kelly's second studio album, 12 Play.[2] The single "At Your Best (You Are Love)" was criticized by Billboard for being out of place on the album and for its length.[32]

In 1996, Aaliyah left Jive Records and signed with Atlantic Records.[14] She worked with record producers Timbaland and Missy Elliott, who contributed to her second studio album, One in a Million.[10] Missy Elliott recalled Timbaland and herself being nervous to work with Aaliyah, since Aaliyah had already released her successful début album while Missy Elliott and Timbaland were just starting out. Missy Elliott also feared she would be a diva, but reflected that Aaliyah "came in and was so warming; she made us immediately feel like family."[35] The album yielded the single "If Your Girl Only Knew", which topped the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for two weeks.[26] It also generated the singles "Hot Like Fire" and "4 Page Letter". The following year, Aaliyah was featured on Timbaland & Magoo's debut single, "Up Jumps da Boogie".[36] One in a Million peaked at number 18 on the Billboard 200,[23] selling 3 million copies in the United States and over eight million copies worldwide.[37][38] The album was certified double platinum by the RIAA on June 16, 1997, denoting shipments of two million copies.[24] The month prior to One in a Millions release, on May 5, 1997, music publisher Windswept Pacific filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against Aaliyah claiming she had illegally copied Bobby Caldwell's "What You Won't Do for Love" for the single "Age Ain't Nothing but a Number".[39]

Aaliyah attended the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts, where she majored in drama and graduated in 1997 with a 4.0 GPA.[14][40][41] Aaliyah began her acting career that same year; she played herself in the police drama television series New York Undercover.[42] During this time, Aaliyah participated in the Children's Benefit Concert, a charity concert that took place at the Beacon Theatre in New York.[43] Aaliyah also became the spokesperson for Tommy Hilfiger Corporation.[44] During Aaliyah's campaign with Tommy Hilfiger, the company sold over 2,400 pairs of the red, white and blue baggy jeans that she wore in their advertisements which prompted them to restock 5,000 more pairs of those jeans.[45] In 1997, Aaliyah performed the Christmas carol What Child Is This at the annual holiday special Christmas in Washington.[46] 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.[27][38][47] Aaliyah performed the song at the 1998 Academy Awards ceremony and became the youngest singer to perform at the event.[48][49] The song "Are You That Somebody?" was featured on the Dr. Dolittle soundtrack, which earned Aaliyah her first Grammy Award nomination.[50] The song peaked at number 21 on the Hot 100.[51]

In 1999, Aaliyah landed her first film role in Romeo Must Die, released March 22, 2000. Aaliyah starred opposite martial artist Jet Li, playing a couple who fall in love amid their warring families. It grossed US$18.6 million in its first weekend, ranking number two at the box office.[52] Aaliyah purposely stayed away from reviews of the film to "make it easier on" herself, but she heard "that people were able to get into me, which is what I wanted."[53] In contrast, some critics felt there was no chemistry between her and Jet Li, as well as viewing the film was too simplistic.[54] This was echoed by Elvis Mitchell of The New York Times, who 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.[55] Her role was well received by Glen Oliver by IGN who liked that she did not portray her character "as a victimized female" but instead "as a strong female who does not come across as an over-the-top Women's Right Advocate."[56]

Aaliyah in 2000

In addition to acting, Aaliyah served as an executive producer of the film's soundtrack, where she contributed four songs.[57] "Try Again" was released as a single from the soundtrack; the song topped the Billboard Hot 100, making Aaliyah the first artist to top the chart based solely on airplay; this led the song to be released in a 12" vinyl and 7" single.[26][58] The music video won the Best Female Video and Best Video from a Film awards at the 2000 MTV Video Music Awards.[59] It also earned her a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female R&B Vocalist.[60] The soundtrack went on to sell 1.5 million copies in the United States.[61]

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".[19] Filming both Romeo Must Die and Queen of the Damned delayed the release of the album. Aaliyah had not intended for her albums to have such a gap between them. "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."[62] Aaliyah enjoyed balancing her singing and acting careers. Though she called music a "first" for her, she also had been acting since she was young and had wanted to begin acting "at some point in my career," but "wanted it to be the right time and the right vehicle" and felt Romeo Must Die "was it".[61] Connie Johnson of the Los Angeles Times argued that Aaliyah having to focus on her film career may have caused her to not give the album "the attention it merited."[63] Collaborator Timbaland concurred, stating that he was briefly in Australia to work on the album while Aaliyah was filming and did not feel the same production had gone into Aaliyah as One in a Million had. He also said Virgin Records had rushed the album and Aaliyah had specifically requested Missy Elliott and Timbaland work on Aaliyah with her.

During the recording stages for the album, Aaliyah's publicist disclosed that the album's release date was most likely in October 2000.[64] Ultimately she finished recording the album in March 2001; after a year of recording tracks that began in March of the previous year.[65] Aaliyah was released five years after One in a Million on July 17, 2001,[2] and it debuted at number two on the Billboard 200, selling 187,000 copies in its first week.[66] The first single from the album, "We Need a Resolution", peaked at number 59 on the Billboard Hot 100.[26] The week after Aaliyah's death, her third and self-titled studio album, rose from number 19 to number one on the Billboard 200.[67] "Rock the Boat" was released as a posthumous single. The music video premiered on BET's Access Granted; it became the most viewed and highest rated episode in the history of the show.[68] The song peaked at number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.[69] It was also included on the Now That's What I Call Music! 8 compilation series; a portion of the album's profits was donated to the Aaliyah Memorial Fund.[70] Promotional posters for Aaliyah that had been put up in major cities such as New York and Los Angeles became makeshift memorials for grieving fans.[71]

"More than a Woman" and "I Care 4 U" were released as posthumous singles and peaked within the top 25 of the Billboard Hot 100.[69] The album was certified double Platinum by the RIAA and sold 2.6 million copies in the United States.[24][72] "More than a Woman" reached number one on the UK singles chart making Aaliyah the first female deceased artist to reach number one on the UK singles chart.[73][74] "More than a Woman" was replaced by George Harrison's "My Sweet Lord" which is the only time in the UK singles chart's history where a dead artist has replaced another dead artist at number one.[75] In July 2001, she allowed MTV's show Diary behind-the-scenes access to her life and stated: "I am truly blessed to wake up every morning to do something that I love; there is nothing better than that." She continued, "Everything is worth it – the hard work, the times when you're tired, the times when you are a bit sad. In the end, it's all worth it because it really makes me happy. I wouldn't trade it for anything else in the world. I've got good friends, a beautiful family and I've got a career. I thank God for his blessings every single chance I get."[76]

Aaliyah was signed to appear in several future films, including Honey,[77] a romantic film titled Some Kind of Blue,[78] and a Whitney Houston-produced remake of the 1976 film Sparkle.[4] Whitney Houston recalled Aaliyah being "so enthusiastic" about the film and wanting to appear in the film "so badly". Houston also voiced her belief that Aaliyah was more than qualified for the role and the film was shelved after she died, since Aaliyah had "gone to a better place".[79] Studio officials of Warner Brothers stated that Aaliyah and her mother had both read the script for Sparkle. According to them, Aaliyah was passionate about playing the lead role of a young singer in a girl group.[80] The film was released in 2012, eleven years after Aaliyah's death. Before her death Aaliyah was cast in the sequels of The Matrix as the character Zee.[14][81] She had filmed part of her role in The Matrix Reloaded and was scheduled to film and reprise her role in The Matrix Revolutions as Zee.[36] Aaliyah told Access Hollywood that she was "beyond happy" to have landed the role.[82] The role was subsequently recast to Nona Gaye.[81] Aaliyah's scenes were included in the tribute section of the Matrix Ultimate Collection series.[83]

In November 2001, Ronald Isley stated that Aaliyah and the Isley Brothers had discussed a collaboration prior to her death. She had previously covered the Isley Brothers' single "At Your Best (You Are Love)".[84] Prior to her death, she expressed the possibility of recording songs for the Queen of The Damned soundtrack and welcomed the possibility of collaborating with Jonathan Davis.[65] By 2001, Aaliyah had enjoyed her now seven-year career and felt a sense of accomplishment. "This is what I always wanted," she said of her career in Vibe magazine. "I breathe to perform, to entertain, I can't imagine myself doing anything else. I'm just a really happy girl right now. I honestly love every aspect of this business. I really do. I feel very fulfilled and complete."[54]

Aaliyah had the vocal range of a soprano.[14] With the release of her debut album Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, writer Dimitri Ehrlich of Entertainment Weekly compared her style and sound to R&B group En Vogue.[85] Ehrlich also expressed that Aaliyah's "silky vocals are more agile than those of self-proclaimed queen of hip-hop soul Mary J. Blige."[85] In her review for Aaliyah's second studio album One in a Million Vibe magazine, music critic Dream Hampton said that Aaliyah's "deliciously feline" voice has the same "pop appeal" as Janet Jackson's.[86] Aaliyah described her sound as "street but sweet", which featured her "gentle" vocals over a "hard" beat.[87] Though Aaliyah did not write any of her own material,[14] her lyrics were described as in-depth.[88][89] She incorporated R&B, pop and hip hop into her music.[10][90][91][92][93][94][95] Her songs were often uptempo and at the same time often dark, revolving around "matters of the heart".[96] After her R. Kelly-produced debut album, Aaliyah worked with Timbaland and Missy Elliott, whose productions were more electronic.[97] Sasha Frere-Jones of The Wire finds Aaliyah's "Are You That Somebody?" to be Timbaland's "masterpiece" and exemplary of his production's start-stop rhythms, with "big half-second pauses between beats and voices".[98] Keith Harris of Rolling Stone cites "Are You That Somebody?" as "one of '90s R&B's most astounding moments".[30]

Aaliyah's songs have been said to have "crisp production" and "staccato arrangements" that "extend genre boundaries" while containing "old-school" soul music.[99] Kelefah Sanneh of The New York Times called Aaliyah "a digital diva who wove a spell with ones and zeroes", and writes that her songs comprised "simple vocal riffs, repeated and refracted to echo the manipulated loops that create digital rhythm", as Timbaland's "computer-programmed beats fitted perfectly with her cool, breathy voice to create a new kind of electronic music."[100] When she experimented with other genres on Aaliyah, such as Latin pop and heavy metal, Entertainment Weekly's Craig Seymour panned the attempt.[96] While analyzing her eponymous album, British publication NME (New Musical Express) felt that Aaliyah's radical third album was intended to consolidate her position as U.S.R&B's most experimental artist.[101] As her albums progressed, writers felt that Aaliyah matured, calling her progress a "declaration of strength and independence".[89][102] ABC News noted that Aaliyah's music was evolving from the punchy pop influenced Hip hop and R&B to a more mature, introspective sound on her third album.[103] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic described her eponymous album, Aaliyah, as "a statement of maturity and a stunning artistic leap forward" and called it one of the strongest urban soul records of its time.[89] She portrayed "unfamiliar sounds, styles and emotions", but managed to please critics with the contemporary sound it contained.[89] Ernest Hardy of Rolling Stone felt that Aaliyah reflected a stronger technique, where she gave her best vocal performance.[99] Prior to her death, Aaliyah expressed a desire to learn about the burgeoning UK garage scene she had heard about at the time.[97] Altogether, Aaliyah's music can be described as alternative R&B, progressive soul, and neo soul, according to Farley.[104]

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, Janet Jackson[105] and Barbra Streisand.[106] Aaliyah expressed that Michael Jackson's Thriller was her "favorite album" and that "nothing will ever top Thriller."[105] 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."[105] Aaliyah expressed she had always desired to work with Janet Jackson, whom she had drawn a 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."[105][107][108][109] 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.[105]

Aaliyah focused on her public image throughout her career. She often wore baggy clothes and sunglasses, stating that she wanted to be herself.[110] She described her image as being "important ... to differentiate yourself from the rest of the pack".[111] She often wore black clothing, starting a trend for similar fashion among women in United States and Japan.[14][112] Aaliyah's fashionable style has been credited for being an influence on new fashion trends called "Health Goth"[113][114] and "Ghetto Goth" also known as GHE20 GOTH1K[115][116] 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".[112] Carson Daly A former VJ on MTV's Total Request Live commented on Aaliyah's style by saying that she was "cutting edge" ,"always one step ahead of the curve" and that "the TRL audience looks to her to figure out what's hot and what's new".[117]

When she changed her hairstyle, Aaliyah took her mother's advice and covered her left eye, much like Veronica Lake.[118] The look has become known as her signature and been referred to as fusion of "unnerving emotional honesty" and "a sense of mystique".[119] In 1998, she hired a personal trainer to keep in shape, and exercised five days a week and ate diet foods.[120] Aaliyah was praised for her "clean-cut image" and "moral values".[121] Robert Christgau of The Village Voice wrote of Aaliyah's artistry and image, "she was lithe and dulcet in a way that signified neither jailbait nor hottie—an ingenue whose selling point was sincerity, not innocence and the obverse it implies."[122]

Aaliyah was viewed by others as a role model. Emil Wilbekin, described by CNN as "a friend of Aaliyah's" and follower of her career, explained: "Aaliyah is an excellent role model because she started her career in the public eye at age 15 with a gold album,Age Ain't Nothing but a Number. And then her second album, One in a Million went double platinum. She had the leading role in Romeo Must Die, which was a box office success. She's won numerous awards, several MTV music video awards, and aside from her professional successes, many of her lyrics are very inspirational and uplifting. She also carried herself in a very professional manner. She was well-spoken. She was beautiful, but she didn't use her beauty to sell her music. She used her talent. Many young hip-hop fans greatly admire her."[123]

She also was seen by others as a sex symbol. Aaliyah did not have a problem with being considered one. "I know that people think I'm sexy and I am looked at as that, and it is cool with me," she stated. "It's wonderful to have sex appeal. If you embrace it, it can be a very beautiful thing. I am totally cool with that. Definitely. I see myself as sexy. If you are comfortable with it, it can be very classy and it can be very appealing."[124] The single "We Need a Resolution" was argued to have transformed "the once tomboy into a sexy grown woman".[125] Aaliyah mentioned that her mother, during her childhood, would take pictures of her and notice a sex appeal. She reinforced her mother's belief by saying that she did feel "sexy for sure" and that she embraced it and was comfortable with this view of her.[54]

In an interview with Honey Magazine in 1995, she spoke of her spirituality at the time:

I go to church whenever I'm home. I'm Catholic, so I go to my school church and St. Anthony's.[127]

The interview was re-published in Honey's 2001 tribute issue to her after her death.[128]

Aaliyah's family played a major role in the course of her career.[54] Aaliyah's father Michael Haughton served as her personal manager. Her mother assisted her in her career while brother Rashad Haughton and cousin Jomo Hankerson worked with her consistently.[129] Her father's illness ended his co-management of Aaliyah with her mother Diane Haughton. She ran all of her decisions by Rashad.[54]

Aaliyah was known to have usually been accompanied by members of her family and the "Rock the Boat" filming was credited by Rashad Haughton as being the first and only time her family was not present. In October 2001, Rashad stated: "It really boggles everyone [that] from Day One, every single video she ever shot there's always been myself or my mother or my father there. The circumstances surrounding this last video were really strange because my mother had eye surgery and couldn't fly. That really bothered her because she always traveled. My dad had to take care of my mom at that time. And I went to Australia to visit some friends. We really couldn't understand why we weren't there. You ask yourself maybe we could have stopped it. But you can't really answer the question. There's always gonna be that question of why."[130] Her friend Kidada Jones said in the last year of her life her parents had given her more freedom and she had talked about wanting a family. "She wanted to have a family, and we talked about how we couldn't wait to kick back with our babies."[131]

Gladys Knight, who had been married to Aaliyah's uncle Barry Hankerson, was essential to the start of Aaliyah's career as she gave her many of her earlier performances. One of their last conversations concerned Aaliyah having difficulty with "another young artist" that she was trying to work with. Knight felt the argument was "petty" and insisted that she remain being who she was in spite of the conflict.[132]

With the release of Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, rumors circulated of a relationship between Aaliyah and R. Kelly,[14][133] including the allegation that they had secretly married without her parents' knowledge.[134][135][136][137] Vibe later revealed a marriage certificate that listed the couple married on August 31, 1994, in Sheraton Gateway Suites in Rosemont, Illinois.[14][135] Aaliyah, who was 15 at the time, was listed as 18 on the certificate; the illegal marriage was annulled in February 1995 by her parents.[138][135][139] The pair continued to deny marriage allegations, stating that neither was married.[133]

Aaliyah reportedly developed a friendship with Kelly during the recording of her debut album. As she recalled to Vibe magazine in 1994, she and Kelly would "go watch a movie" and "go eat" when she got tired and would then "come back and work". She described the relationship between her and Kelly as being "rather close."[140] In 2016, Kelly said that he was as in love with Aaliyah as he was with "anybody else."[141] In December 1994, Aaliyah told the Sun-Times that whenever she was asked about being married to Kelly, she urged them not to believe "all that mess" and that she and Kelly were "close" and "people took it the wrong way."[142] In his 2011 book The Man Behind the Man: Looking From the Inside Out, Demetrius Smith Sr., a former member of Kelly's entourage, wrote that Kelly told him "in a voice that sounded as if he wanted to burst into tears" that he thought Aaliyah was pregnant.[143]

Jamie Foster Brown in the 1994 issue of Sister 2 Sister wrote that "R. Kelly told me that he and Aaliyah got together and it was just magic." Brown also reported hearing about a relationship between them. "I've been hearing about Robert and Aaliyah for a while—that she was pregnant. Or that she was coming and going in and out of his house. People would see her walking his dog, 12 Play, with her basketball cap and sunglasses on. Every time I asked the label, they said it was platonic. But I kept hearing complaints from people about her being in the studio with all those men." Brown later added "at 15, you have all those hormones and no brains attached to them."[144]

The 2019 documentary Surviving R. Kelly revealed new details about their relationship and marriage. Jovante Cunningham, a former backup dancer, claimed to have witnessed Kelly having sex with Aaliyah on his tour bus[145][146] while Demetrius Smith again recounted the time Kelly feared that he had impregnated her.[145] Smith also described how he helped Aaliyah forge the necessary documents to show she was 18 and that the wedding was short and unceremonious, as neither was dressed up and Aaliyah looked "worried and scared" the whole time.[145] Smith states that he is "not proud" of his role in facilitating their illegal marriage.[145]

Aaliyah admitted in court documents that she had lied about her age. In May 1997, she filed suit in Cook County seeking to have all records of the marriage expunged because she was not old enough under state law to get married without her parents' consent. It was reported that she cut off all professional and personal ties with Kelly after the marriage was annulled and ceased having contact with him.[147] In 2014, Jomo Hankerson stated that Aaliyah "got villainized" over her relationship with Kelly and the scandal over the marriage made it difficult to find producers for her second album. "We were coming off of a multi-platinum debut album and except for a couple of relationships with Jermaine Dupri and Puffy, it was hard for us to get producers on the album." Hankerson also expressed confusion over why "they were upset" with Aaliyah given her age at the time.[148]

Aaliyah was known to avoid answering questions regarding Kelly following the professional split. During an interview with Christopher John Farley, she was asked if she was still in contact with him and if she would ever work with him again. Farley said Aaliyah responded with a "firm, frosty 'no'" to both of the questions.[149] Vibe magazine said Aaliyah changed the subject anytime "you bring up the marriage with her".[150] A spokeswoman for Aaliyah said in 2000 that when "R. Kelly comes up, she doesn't even speak his name, and nobody's allowed to ask about it at all".[151] Kelly later commented that Aaliyah had opportunities to address the pair's relationship after they separated professionally but chose not to.[152] In 2019, Damon Dash revealed to Hip Hop Motivation that Aaliyah didn't even speak of her relationship with Kelly in private; she tried multiple times to discuss it with him, but was only able to find the courage to say that Kelly was a "bad man".[146] She told him that she could only possibly discuss the relationship with a professional counselor.[146] Dash said he was unable to watch Surviving R. Kelly because its interviews with visibly traumatized girls struggling to discuss their encounters with Kelly reminded him of how Aaliyah behaved when trying to recount her relationship with Kelly.[146]

R. Kelly would have other allegations made about him regarding underage girls in the years following her death and his marriage to Aaliyah was used to evidence his involvement with them. He has refused to discuss his relationship with her, citing her death. "Out of respect for her, and her mom and her dad, I will not discuss Aaliyah. That was a whole other situation, a whole other time, it was a whole other thing, and I'm sure that people also know that."[153] Aaliyah's mother, Diane Haughton, reflected that everything "that went wrong in her life" began with her relationship with Kelly.[142] Damon Dash also noted that lasting trauma from her relationship with Kelly negatively affected their relationship.[146] However, the allegations have been said to have done "little to taint Aaliyah's image or prevent her from becoming a reliable '90s hitmaker with viable sidelines in movies and modeling."[32]

Aaliyah was dating co-founder of Roc-A-Fella Records Damon Dash at the time of her death and, though they were not formally engaged, in interviews given after Aaliyah's death, Dash claimed the couple had planned to marry.[154] Aaliyah and Dash met in 2000[155] through his accountant and formed a friendship.[156] Dash has said he is unsure of how he and Aaliyah started dating and that the two just understood each other. "I don't know [how we got involved], just spending time, you know, we just saw things the same and it was new, you know what I mean? Meeting someone that is trying to do the same thing you are doing in the urban market, in the same urban market place but not really being so urban. It was just; her mind was where my mind was. She understood me and she got my jokes. She thought my jokes were funny."[157]

Dash expressed his belief that Aaliyah was the "one" and claimed the pair were not officially engaged, but had spoken about getting married prior to her death.[158] Aaliyah publicly never addressed the relationship between her and Dash as being anything but platonic. In May 2001, she hosted a party for Dash's 30th birthday at a New York City club, where they were spotted together and Dash was seen escorting her to a bathroom. Addressing this, Aaliyah stated that she and Dash were just "very good friends" and chose to "keep it at that" for the time being.[150] Just two weeks before her death, Aaliyah traveled from New Jersey to East Hampton, New York to visit Dash at the summer house he shared with Jay Z.[131]

The couple were separated for long periods at a time, as Dash recalled that Aaliyah continuously shot films and would be gone for months often to come back shortly and continue her schedule. Dash was also committed to "his own thing", which did not make matters any better. Despite this, they were understanding that the time they had together was special. Dash remembered they would "be in a room full of people talking to each other and it felt like everyone was listening but it would be just us. It would be like we were the only ones in the room". Dash always felt their time together was essential and Aaliyah was the person he was interested in being with, which is why, as he claimed, they had begun speaking about engagement.[156] The relationship was mentioned in the lyrics of Jay-Z's remix to her song "Miss You", released after her death.

The main entrance to Ferncliff Cemetery, where Aaliyah is interred

Aaliyah's private funeral Mass was held on August 31, 2001, at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in Manhattan, following a procession from the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel.[172] Her body was set in a silver-plated copper-deposit casket, which was carried in a horse-drawn, glass hearse.[173] An estimated 800 mourners were in attendance at the procession.[138][174]

Among those in attendance at the private ceremony were Missy Elliott, Timbaland, Gladys Knight, Lil' Kim, and Sean Combs.[173][175][176] After the service, 22 white doves were released to symbolize each year of her life.[177]

Aaliyah was initially entombed in a crypt on the third floor of the expansion wing of Ferncliff Cemetery's main mausoleum in Hartsdale, New York. In April 2005, she was moved to a private room at the end of a corridor in the Rosewood Mausoleum.[178] The inscription "BABY GIRL" appears on Aaliyah's crypt. Her father Michael, who died eleven years later in 2012 at age 61, is interred in the crypt directly above her.[179] The inscription at the bottom of Aaliyah's portrait at the funeral read: "We Were Given a Queen, We Were Given an Angel."[180]

Aaliyah's brother Rashad delivered the eulogy and described his sister as giving him strength. "Aaliyah, you left, but I'll see you always next to me and I can see you smiling through the sunshine," he said. "When our life is over, our book is done. I hope God keeps me strong until I see her again." He read the names of the other victims of the crash and concluded by asking mourners to pray for them as well. As Diane Haughton and the mourners left, they sang Aaliyah's song "One in a Million".[181]

• Age Ain't Nothing but a Number (1994)
• One in a Million (1996)
• Aaliyah (2001)