Celebrities Who Still Mourn Her Today
On 25th of August 2021 marked the 20th death anniversary of late singer Aaliyah who was killed alongside eight others in a tragic plane crash in the Bahamas. Yet, despite all the years that have gone back, this music legend remains one of the greatest and most revered artists of the present-day music industry. A singer, an actress, and a model, Aaliyah was undeniably talented and is now regarded as a cultural icon by many.
"Baby girl" as she was fondly called broke into the music scene in 1994 with her first album Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number which was recorded when she was only 14. Her second album One in a Million was released in 1996 and went on to sell about 8 million copies worldwide. The singer would also go on to debut her acting career in the late '90s, appearing in movies like Romeo Must Die and Queen of the Damned. With her fast rise to fame, Aaliyah was set to completely dominate the music industry. This was however cut short by her untimely death. Now, even twenty years after, fans including many A-list celebrities alike still hold on to Aaliyah's legacy and what could have been if she were still here with us.
8 Missy Elliot
Iconic rapper and record producer Missy Elliot was friends with Aaliyah and the pair worked together a few times before the singer's death. It is, therefore, no surprise that even now, twenty years after that tragic plane crash, Elliot still carries Aaliyah in her heart. To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the singer's death, Missy Elliot shared a picture of Aaliyah accompanied by a caption reading “Babygirl All these years your IMPACT is still felt & your INFLUENCE is seen EVERYWHERE!!!...You are MISSED All around the world but NEVER 4GOTTEN We LOVE you & May your SPIRIT LIVE on 4EVER”.
7 Timbaland
In celebration of this year's Women's Day, Timbaland took to his IG page with a video of Aaliyah followed by a heartwarming message describing the late singer as his baby girl. Timbaland who became friends with Aaliyah when he worked on her second album has also made sure to pay tribute whenever he can.
6 Damon Dash
The Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder dated Aaliyah from late 2000 up until she died in 2001. Speaking in an interview with ET, Damon admitted that the singer's death still felt very recent. “I was reflecting [that] there hasn't been one day since she's passed, not one in the 20 years, that I haven't either heard her name, heard her record, or seen a picture of her," Dash said. "Every single day she's present in my life and I feel lucky for that."As a way of honoring her legacy, Damon and Aaliyah's uncle Barry recently collaborated to make her songs available on streaming platforms.
5 Barry Hankerson
Aaliyah’s uncle, Barry Hankerson who is the founder of Black Ground Records managed her career up until 1995 when her father, Michael Haughton took over. In August 2021 Barry revealed his plans to release a Posthumous album comprising of new Aaliyah songs. Though a release date is yet to be confirmed, there will reportedly be features from artists like Drake, Future, Ne-Yo, Snoop Dogg, and Chris Brown. This will be done in commemoration of her 20th death anniversary.
4 Drake
With the late singer's face tattooed on his back, Drake takes his respect for Aaliyah's memory to another level. He also has a long history of preserving Aaliyah's memory in his songs and messages. In December 2016, a track from the rapper featuring unreleased vocals from Aaliyah was leaked and with that, it became evident that Drake carries the late singer around in his heart. It, therefore, came as no surprise that the rapper is set to feature in Aaliyah's posthumous album.
3 Chris Brown
Over the years, it has become a habit for Chris Brown to openly talk about his love and respect for Aaliyah. In 2013, the singer released "Don't Think They Know About Us," a posthumous collaboration with Aaliyah. The video featured a hologram of Aaliyah and a message saying "Dear Aaliyah, we love and miss you. Thank you for inspiring us all."
Additionally, Chris Brown is also set to feature in Aaliyah's posthumous album which will include previously unreleased vocals of the late singer from before her passing. Her uncle, Barry has shared that this will be the end of new music for the late star and added, "I think it's wonderful. It's a very emotional process to do. It's very difficult to hear her sing when she's not here, but we got through it."
2 Justin Skye
For Justin Skye, working with Timbaland was all that was need to remind her how much she adored Aaliyah as a kid. "I think her music and her style is her lasting legacy. That is something people always try to emulate because it is something we all miss, but can never be done like how she did it because it was her authentic self," the 24-year-old once shared in an interview with Crack Magazine.
1 Ciara
During an interview with hip hop blog That Grape Juice, Ciara had nothing but praises for Aaliyah. ‘Aaliyah was true to who she was and didn’t seem to care about it. The core of her art to me is heavily, heavily urban-based," the Level Up singer said. "It wasn’t like she was trying to be anything more than who she was. I really respect that and I appreciate that."
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