Aaliyah is Gone, But Her Memory Still Lives On
Stars are not Made, They are Born
On January 16, 1979, the world was unaware that a star was born. One who would grace the stage with her fluid moves and sultry voice, and who would grace the movie screen with her ambitious talent. A woman, whose name, translated, means "highest, most exalted one" in Arabic. That star would shine brightly for a short time and expire much too soon...it's name, Aaliyah Dana Haughton. Better known to the world, as Aaliyah.
Aaliyah was no stranger to the stage. In 1983, at age 9, she would woo the audience on Star Search, singing "My Funny Valentine".
Watch Aaliyah on Star Search
Aaliyah's First Two Albums
After Aaliyah's run on Star Search, she grew up as normal as any other kid. Even though she was born in Brooklyn, NY, Aaliyah was actually raised in Detroit and would later graduate from the Detroit Performing Arts High School, with a 4.0 nonetheless. While attending school, she would meet and marry R & B singer, R.Kelly. Due to her only being 15 years old at the time of marriage (he was about 27 years old), their marriage was quickly annulled
This relationship was part of the inspiration for her album that was released in 1994 while still attending high school, titled Age Ain't Nothing but A Number. In her senior year, she would release her second album, One in a Million. The year was 1996 and Aaliyah was young, beautiful and talented.
Romeo Must Die Movie Trailer
Romeo Must Die (2000)
in 2000, Aaliyah's first-ever movie role would be cast in the movie, Romeo Must Die, co-starring Jet Li. In the movie, Aaliyah plays Trish O'Day, the daughter of Issak O'Day who is involved in a "business" deal with Jet Li's father. Jet Li, who plays Han Sing, is in town to avenge the murder of his brother. The two stars pair up in what would be Romeo and Juliet made for the 21st century and, of course, the fighting ensues. Think of it as a hip-hop, kung-fu movie with great music and some classic bad-ass Jet Li moves. If you've never seen the movie, you can watch the preview below.
Queen of the Damned (2002)
Queen of the Damned is a vampire movie unlike any I've ever seen. Aaliyah plays the beautiful, but deadly Queen Akasha. Co--star, Stuart Townsend plays the infamous vampire LeStat. LeStat awakens from his slumber due to some rocking music and wants to be a part of it all. He's tired of vampires hiding in the shadows and wants to live it up in the limelight. This movies is full of great music, pretty good acting and, of course, Aaliyah. Queen Akasha is all game for LeStat's coming out party and it turns out to be her demise.
Aaliyah's role in Queen of the Damned would be her last. Sadly, she passed prior to the movie being released in theaters when a small charter plan she was on in the Bahamas crashed just minutes after takeoff. Aaliyah and a few others were killed instantly and several of her team members were seriously injured. At 22 years old, having been in the Bahamas to film her video for her hit song, "Rock the Boat", Aaliyah would quickly leave us with the lingering remnants of a fast-paced, promising career that tragically ended way too soon. The date was August 25, 2001.
Please take a moment and enjoy the last video she made prior to going off into heaven, Rock the Boat.
Check this out...
If you haven't seen Queen of the Damned, well, you are really missing out on a great movie. The music alone is enough to put you in awe. I found myself singing songs from the movie months, even years later. It's one of those must-have movies you need to put in your vampire movie collection.
Just check out the movie trailer below, or better yet, why not just buy the movie?
