Aaliyah Remembered By Celebrities On Her Birthday
The influences of Aaliyah, multi-platinum selling singer and actress who was born on Jan. 16, can still be found over 12 years after her death.
Aaliyah died 12 in a plane crash at the age of 22. On her birthday Thursday, a number of entertainers and friends tweeted about the late singer.
Music producer and artist Missy Elliott, who worked with Aaliyah closely in the past, tweeted her recognition of the late singer's birthday and memory.
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"#HappyBirthdayAaliyah we think of u everyday we miss u more than ever! U can never be duplicated," Elliott tweeted. "Your a 1 in a Million! (SIC)"
Solange Knowles, the 27-year-old singer, also tweeted her recognition for the singer's birthday.
"Happy 35th our forever baby girl....," she tweeted. "Our forever magic....#Aaliyah."
Modern day entertainers like Drake and Chris Brown have used the singer's vocals in their music over the past few years, letting the world know that she is not forgotten. Drake, the 27-year-old rapper who has the late singer tattooed on his back let it be known that the late singer's impact on his life still resonates today.
"Happy birthday Aaliyah," Drake tweeted with a drawing of the two entertainers who never met in person. "Never forget you babe. Love you."
Drake was rumored to be executive producing the late singer's second posthumous album, according to HipHopDx.com last year. Producer Noah "40″ Shebib opened up to Vibe magazine about how he and Drake became involved in creating a posthumous album for the superstar.
"Aaliyah's label, Blackground -- the Hankersons, her uncle and cousin -- came to me and said, if she was around, she'd want you to do this [posthumous] project," Shebib told Vibe magazine. "I've been obsessed with Aaliyah forever, and I know Drake has his relationship with her. But that opportunity was mine. Drake said, 'Can I do it with you?' and I was like, 'Of course, we'll do it together.'"
However Shebib revealed why the world may not see an album full of unheard Aaliyah tracks anytime soon.
"The world reacting to Drake's involvement so negatively, I just wanted nothing to do with it. That was a very sad experience for me," the producer told Vibe. "I was naïve to the politics surrounding Aaliyah's legacy and a bit ignorant to Timbaland's relationship and everybody else involved and how they'd feel."
While Timbaland told Shebib to do what he felt, the producer revealed why he ultimately felt like making the album with unreleased Aaliyah music was not the right thing to do.
"..Ultimately, I wasn't comfortable and didn't like the stigma," Shebib told Vibe. "I was seven songs deep. [Aaliyah's] mother saying, 'I don't want this out' was enough for me. I walked away very quickly."
