Back in January, we noted what would have been Aaliyah’s 30th birthday. Today, however, marks an even sadder anniversary: eight years to the day since the R&B star lost her life (as did the eight others on board) in a Bahamian plane crash at the age of 22.
At the time of her death, the singer and actress seemed to be at the peak of her game; she had just begun filming a role the first of two sequels in the blockbuster Matrix trilogy, and her third, self-titled album showed an impressive sonic leap from her teenage releases Age Ain’t Nothin’ But a Number (1994) and One In A Million (’96); it contains easily some of the best work of her career, including songs like “Try Again” and “More Than A Woman” that still sound impressively fresh today.
Watch “We Need a Resolution” below (one of my personal favorites, but feel free to list yours) and tell us, Music Mixers, how do you remember her? And what could she have accomplished had she lived?
i remember the day she died. i was, still am, a huge fan. she would’ve still been on top if she were around. more than a woman is a great track!! i loved most of the tracks off one in a million…her collaboration with timbaland and missy was amazing.
Actually, “Try Again” was not on her self-titled album. It was part of the Romeo Must Die soundtrack the year before.
I really miss Aaliyah. Her music was great, especially her last album, like Leah pointed out. “We Need a Resolution” was one of my favorites too. As were “Don’t Know What To Tell Ya,” “More Than A Woman,” and one of her older jams “Back & Forth.”
With the direction her final album had taken, I’ve always been curious to know where she would have gone next with her music. I guess I’ll never know. I think I’ll pop that CD into my car tonight and have a listen as a tribute to her memory.
RIP Aaliyah.
The only version of Aalyiah that Try Again wasn’t on was the American version. The author of this article is almost right.
Aaliyah’s passing has always saddened me. Her final album was strong, innovative and showed that she was beginning to fully explore different, more mature aspects to herself & her music all while keeping her very distinct sound. At the time of her death, her potential seemed endless in film, music & in life. I have no doubt that if she lived, she would be still be entertaining us all & continuing to grow as an artist. Truly, Aaliyah is the epitomy of the phrase, “Gone too soon”.
Oh I remember how sad that late night was when the crash was reported. I really liked Aaliyah and still listen to her today and my favorite will always be the song “One in a Million” closely followed by “Rock the Boat.” “Four-page letter” is another great one. I think her songs also had Timbaland at his best, before he got really big.
I’ll never forget the day Aaliyah died. She was just so young and it seemed her career could only go up. Her talent was limitless. She had so much charisma. She was sexy, but it wasn’t too in-you-face like a lot of other R&B divas these days.
Some of my favorite Aaliyah songs are
More than a Woman
We Need a Resolution
Rock The Boat
Read Between The Lines
You Got Nerve
Back & Forth
One in a Million
I Refuse
If Your Girl Only Knew
Miss You
She’d probably be on Dancing With The Stars
Aah, I was JUST going to post the same thing! I liked her, but I could totally see her career at that stage.
Completely stupid comment. Aaliyah was an R&B innovator who had a close working relationship with Timbaland. Remember all those Nelly Furtado songs a few summers ago? Yeah, they would have been Aaliyah’s had she still been here. Her last album sounds as if it could have been released just this year. Were she alive today, she wouldn’t be on reality shows, she’d be making the type of r&b that’s going to be popular in 2013.
If your girl only knew, back and forth, one in a million, 4 page letter, we need a resolution were her best songs.
RIP Aaliyah,
She would be on top of the R&B charts. My favorites are “We need a resolution”, “if your girl only knew”, “one in a million”, “i refuse”, “never no more”, “rock the boat”, “back and forth”, “i care 4 u”, “it’s whatever”, “at your best”, “try again”
Aaliyah’s death was definitely a blow to the music industry. I think she always under-appreciated for the originality and greatness of her music, and I would have loved to see what she could have continued to do. Her last album was incredible; I’m so glad that she got to reach that artistic peak before she died. Every track on that album is solid and it’s one of the throwbacks I still listen to these days (non-single “U Got Nerve” is my jam!).
i agree completely
MY SISTER AND I WERE A HUGE FAN OF HER MUSIC AND IT’S SO SAD THAT SHE DIED SO YOUNG!!!! I REMEMBERED WE WERE 15 WHEN MY MOM TOLD US SHE DIED, WE FROZE!!!!! I’M 23 YEARS OLD NOW AND IT SADDENS ME CAUSE SHE WAS 22. MY SISTER DANCED TO HER MUSIC VIDEOS ALL THE TIME!!! SO AALIYAH BECAME AN IDOL TO MY SISTER!!! AALIYAH WAS A BEAUTIFUL AND TALENTED SINGER AND ACTRESS, AND I CAN’T BELIEVE IT’S BEEN EIGHT YEARS!!!!! SHE WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN!!!!
Still remember that day. I was just getting into her music and I remember loving the “We Need A Resolution” video. She had so much more to give, it really is sad.
Gone too soon, this one.
What a beautiful comment. So perfect. I remember right before she died there was an MTV diary-like special on Aaliyah (that show that went “you think you know, but you have no idea,” remember?) and I remember thinking that she was one to watch, someone that I could really become a fan of (I was 17 at the time). How sad.
She and Selena would have been our rising stars. She came before Beyonce. Had a lot of talent and was pretty too.
I’m glad she’s being remembered. She was one of my favorites when I was in high school and it was very sad when she died. She was gorgeous and talented, and she and Timbaland created a very unique sound. None of the young female R&B artists today even compare to her. She had so many great songs in her short career, aside from “Try Again”, “More Than A Woman” and “We Need A Resolution”: “Are You That Somebody” (love that one), “Rock The Boat”, “4 Page Letter”, “I Care 4 U”, “Back and Forth”, “One in A Million”, “If Your Girl Only Knew”, “Are You Feelin’ Me”, “Hot Like Fire”. (Can you tell I was a fan?) I also thought it was interesting that she chose to start her movie career in grittier movies and sci-fi, rather than going the usual teen movie route. If she were alive today, I’m certain that she would’ve remained very relevant.
I remember being with my one of dear friends when the radio dj announced that she had died. She was so young and had such a bright future ahead of her. Some Timbaland and Missy’s best work was with Aaliyah. Are You That Somebody is still the jam and I loved the dancing in that video. I think that she still would have been very viable in the industry today. Her style is very evident in Rihanna and Ciara.