Aaliyah was an actress, singer, and model from the United States. She was 22 at the time of her death which happened due to an airplane crash while taking off. Before saying goodbye to us, she had already released 3 studio albums. Her third album ‘Aaliyah’ had reached #1 on Billboard 200 chart with over 13 million album sales worldwide. She had also released 2 compilation albums in 2002 and 2005. The Sugar Club had also kept a tribute dinner in Dublin, Ireland in February 2015.
Age
Aaliyah was born on January 16, 1979.
Died
Aaliyah passed away at the age of 22 on August 25, 2001, in an airplane crash at Marsh Harbour, Abaco Islands, The Bahamas.
Sun Sign
Capricorn
Born Place
Brooklyn, New York City, New York, United States
Nationality
Education
Aaliyah went to the Gesu Elementary School, a Catholic school. She later got admission at the Detroit High School for the Fine and Performing Arts after clearing an audition in which she performed Ave Maria. She graduated from the high school with 4.0-grade point average.
Family
- Father – Michael “Miguel” Haughton
- Mother – Diane Haughton
- Siblings – Rashad Haughton (Older Brother) (Actor, Writer, Film Director, and Screenwriter)
- Others – Ernest Hankerson (Maternal Grandfather), Mintis L. Hicks (Maternal Grandmother)
Manager
Aaliyah’s father used to serve as her personal manager, while her mother and brother Rashad also assisted in her work and commercial commitments.
Genre
R&B, hip hop, pop
Instruments
Vocals
Labels
Blackground, Jive, Atlantic, Virgin Records
Boyfriend / Spouse
Aaliyah has dated
- (1994-1995) – Just after the release of her debut studio album, the rumors of Aaliyah dating singer and songwriter R. Kelly started swirling around. The fact that he had written content of her music only made these rumors more persistent. Next came a big bombshell as it was reported that they got secretly married. She was just 15 years old, while he was 27 years old. In the marriage certificate found by the Vibe magazine, it was stated that they had got married on August 31, 1994. She had falsely listed her age as 18. Her parents got her marriage annulled in February 1995. It was rumored that they had no knowledge of their secret marriage. Aaliyah and Kelly continued to deny marriage allegations. The sources close to Kelly later claimed that he might have even got her pregnant. However, soon after the annulment of their marriage, Aaliyah broke all ties from her former mentor. In May 1997, she even applied to get records of their marriage expunged as she was not old enough to get married.
- (1997-1998) – In 1997, Aaliyah started going out with singer and songwriter Ginuwine. He was reported to have written several songs about her. However, he never mentioned her name in any of them and neither he spoke about their relationship while interacting with thGinuwinee media. They dated for about a year.
- (1999) – In 1999, Aaliyah was reported to be dating rapper and music mogul Jay-Z. They partied together on a couple of occasions and were seen getting cozy at a couple of nightclubs.
- Damon Dash (2000-2001) – At the time of her death, Aaliyah was in a relationship with Damon Dash, the co-founder of the Roc-A-Fella Records. Some sources even claimed that they had got engaged. Even, Damon hinted at it, as in interviews given after her death, he claimed that they were planning to get married. However, he later changed his statement and denied reports of them being ever engaged. Aaliyah had first met Dash in 2000 through his accountant and they later became good friends. However, as per some sources, their relationship wasn’t steady as they both had busy work schedules. She used to be away for months and would come back for a brief period, before heading off as she aimed to build her music career.
Race / Ethnicity
Black
She had African American ancestry. She also had traces of Native American ancestry.
Sexual Orientation
Straight
Distinctive Features
- Petite figure
- Plump lips
- Smile
Brand Endorsements
Aaliyah was the company spokesperson for in 1997.
Religion
Aaliyah went to a Catholic school but her religious views as an adult weren’t known.
Best Known For
- The commercial success of her studio album, One in a Million, which sold more than 3 million copies in the US and over 8 million albums all over the world.
- The success of her song, Try Again, which was part of the soundtrack of her movie, Romeo Must Die. The song earned her a Grammy nomination.
- Being considered as one of the most influential artists in the history of pop and R&B music. She is reported to have sold over 24 million copies, with some sources even claiming that sales stand at over 30 million.
First Album
In May 1994, she released her debut studio album, Age Ain’t Nothing but a Number, which has sold over 6 million copies worldwide and has been certified as gold in multiple countries including the US, Canada, and the United Kingdom.
First Film
In 2000, Aaliyah made her theatrical film debut in the action drama movie, Romeo Must Die, which had Jet Li in a leading role opposite her. The movie was a resounding commercial success.
First TV Show
In 1989, Aaliyah made her first TV show appearance on the talent hunt show, Star Search. Her appearance in the show served as the first big breakthrough for her.
Aaliyah Favorite Things
- Music Album – Thriller by
- Music Influences – , Michael Jackson, En Vogue, , Korn, Nine Inch Nails, Naughty by Nature, , , , and
Source –
Aaliyah Facts
- When her song Try Again zoomed to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 charts, it became the first ever song to reach such a position solely based on airplay.
- The Billboard magazine has declared her as the 10th most successful female R&B artist of the last 25 years. They have also listed her as the 27th most successful R&B artist in the history.
- Aaliyah was pretty fond of body art and had got a ‘dove’ tattooed on her lower back and an ‘Egyptian ankh’ inked on her inner wrist. The dove tattoo was her tribute to her grandmother.
- In 2000, the readers of the Black Men magazine placed her on the top spot in the list featuring the 10 Sexiest Women of the Year.
- When her single More Than a Woman surged to the top of music charts in the UK, she became the first female artist to have a single reach such a position after her death.
- At her funeral, her family decided to release 22 white doves from the steps of the church. The 22 doves represented 22 years of her life.
- She was considered for the role of Alex in the action movie, Charlie’s Angels. However, the producers eventually agreed that she was too young and decided to cast instead.
- When she passed away, she was all set to start work on the sequels of the iconic sci-fi movie, The Matrix. She was cast in the role of Zee.
- By the time she passed away, she had 15 songs at the top of music charts in the US, spread across 3 studio albums.
- After having completed the shooting of the music video of Rock the Boat, she and members of her entourage boarded a twin-engine Cessna 402B from an airport in the Bahamas.
- The plane came crashing down just after the takeoff at about 60 meters from the end of the runway strip. Along with Aaliyah, 8 other individuals were killed.
- She was all set to perform in more than 22 countries to promote her new studio album at the time of her death.
- The Arabic translation of her name ‘Aaliyah’ is ‘highest and the most exalted one.’
- She was offered the role of Maggie in the romantic comedy movie, Get Over It. But as she was busy with the shooting of Romeo Must Die, she rejected the offer and was instead cast in the movie.
- The VH1 channel had placed her on the 36th spot in the list featuring “100 Sexiest Artists”.
- Visit her official website @ aaliyah.com.
- She was on social media. Add her on and .
Featured Image by Mika-photography / / CC BY-SA 3.0
Facts of Aaliyah Dana Haughton
- Gender Female
- full nameAaliyah Dana Haughton
- middle nameDana
- nicknamesAaliyah, Liyah, BabyGirl, Wonder Woman, Lee, Li Li, Queen of R&B
- birthplaceBrooklyn, New York City, New York, United States
- Date of Birth January 16, 1979
- Horoscope Capricorn
- Lucky Number 7
- Lucky Stone Topaz
- Lucky Color Brown
- Best Match for Marriage Scorpio, Virgo, Taurus
- date of death2001-08-22
- ethnicity / ethnic backgroundBlack
- nationalityAfrican-American
- net worth$10 million
- professionSinger, model, actress, and dancer
- weight53 kg or 117 lbs
- height5 ft 7½ in or 171 cm
- hair colorBlack
- eye colorDark Brown
- body type / buildSlim
- high schoolDetroit High Schoo
- motherDiane Haughton
- fatherMichael “Miguel” Haughton
- brothersRashad Haughton