January 16 marks the day that one of music’s most influential artists was born. Aaliyah Dana Haughton would later grow up to be an icon across all genres of music, and leave a lasting imprint on the film scene. In memory of her birthday, one of the “4 Page Letter” singer’s closest collaborators, Missy Elliott, commemorates her special day.
Taking to Twitter Saturday afternoon, the award-winning rapper said, “Aaliyah your heart was so huge and you loved your fans and always wanted them to know that!”
HappyBDAY #Aaliyah u are loved & missed but will never be forgotten! U are inspiring a new generation of kids🙏🏾 but your heart was
— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) January 16, 2016
Aaliyah your heart was so huge and you loved your fans and always wanted them to know that! HappyBirthday we miss u R.I.P Babygirl — Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) January 16, 2016
Supa friends Aaliyah @Timbaland & me & @Ginuwine HappyBirthday Babygirl ?? pic.twitter.com/EYmk0lqXON
— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) January 16, 2016
Other artists like Kelly Rowland, Kehlani, and Trina also posted images of the “I Miss You” artist on Instagram and Twitter.
#Repost @ericferrellmakeup with @repostapp. ??? Tbt after the shoot baby girl gave me the Christian Dior shades she’s wearing and I still have them! A photo posted by kellyrowland (@kellyrowland) on
Happy birthday princess🏆 A photo posted by Lani Tsunami aka lil’LayLow?🏼 (@kehlani) on
Happy Birthday #Aaliyah !!!! ??👼🏾 pic.twitter.com/sC4N67oXv3
— TRINA (@TRINArockstarr) January 16, 2016
Aaliyah passed away on August 25, 2001 after a plane that she boarded in The Bahamas crashed shortly after takeoff. She was shooting a video for “Rock The Boat” before her flight back to the states. The tragic news followed the release of her critically-acclaimed self-titled album, which debuted at number two on the Billboard 200.
Since then, Aaliyah has influenced today’s top artists including Drake, Rihanna, Ciara, Chris Brown and countless more. Recently, close friend and frequent collaborator, Timbaland released a melody featuring Aaliyah’s vocals on his King Stays King mixtape. There are still talks of a posthumous project from the songbird, but no updates have been revealed.
Happy birthday, baby girl.