Tag: legend

The Life & Times of Robert Kelly: The Pied Piper of R&B

This man isn’t exactly hip hop but he does fit into the image and style of hip hop and sometimes the sound too. He’s worked with plenty of hip hop artists throughout his 25 year career and has an incredible discography and collection of hits that’s impossible to go through in just one day. He’s worked with The Notorious B.I.G., Nas, did two albums with Jay-Z, Cam’ron, Noreaga, Cassidy, the list goes on. Despite his troubles and controversy and having this reputation that’s not really a good one for a man his age when it comes to young women, this man is a musical genius nonetheless. His image in the beginning of his career was compared to and they accused him of biting his style from New jack swing/R&B legend Aaron Hall. He’s a Chicago native with a voice that represents the baby making style of music, his writing game is absolutely unstoppable, written for many artists and even did the entire LIFE soundtrack, the movie starring both Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy, this man’s talent makes him easily a great of his time and today he’s gained a lot of respect and love and also lost love too but still he shines through his talent. His name is Robert Sylvester Kelly aka R. Kelly, the Pied Piper of R&B. He started out in a group and as the lead too with R&B group Public Announcement. Their 1992 debut album “Born Into the 90’s” was a New jack swing smash that garnered the singles “She’s Got That Vibe”, “Honey Love”, “Slow Dance (Hey Mr. DJ)”, “Dedicated”, and “Hey Love (Can I Have a Word).” To me, the album was a combination of partying and love making. The album wasn’t too much but it was decent enough to put Kelly on the map but it was his standout solo debut 1993/1994 joint “12 Play” that officially put him on the map. The entire album was sexually themed and a bit over the top at some moments. Very shocking when he actually made a song dedicated to the woman’s body in a very specific manner too. This joint was another New jack swing/R&B smash and it had a little bit of hip hop influence when Kelly rapped on a few joints too. The remix to “Summer Bunnies” and “Your Body’s Callin'” introduced the new up and coming new singer named Aaliyah. Aaliyah was Kelly’s protégée. He helped her with her debut album “Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number” which released in May 1994. Aaliyah’s album was more hip hop than Kelly’s. Aaliyah came out in the mid-90’s with that hip hop soul trend that started with Mary J. Blige back in ’92. Aaliyah was just as down as Mary, TLC, Xscape, Usher, Jodeci, Faith Evans, this was a time when hip hop and R&B came together. The sound both represented the streets and gave R&B singers respect and a place in the hip hop community. Since we’re on the subject of hip hop soul, Kelly returned in 1995 with his self titled album, which is my top favorite R. Kelly album. That album was completely different from the first two albums. This album had a more hip hop influence and the songs were much more mature and deeper than the first two. This is the only R. Kelly album that I can play all the way through with no skips. This was the album that began the whole Mr. Biggs legacy, played by the one and only Ronald Isley. Mr. Biggs is a man who trusts Kelly around his women when he’s away on business and Kelly ends up sleeping with his women and then there’s trouble. It’s classic R&B shit. It’s hard to pick my exact favorites because this album is so fucking incredible to me. I’ll just say that “Step In My Room” and “Tempo Slow” are my top two favorites on the album. 1996 and 1997, Kelly releases “I Believe I Can Fly” for the Space Jam soundtrack. That song is Kelly’s greatest song to me. It’s the 90’s kid anthem for inspiration. Kelly appears on Mary’s 1997 “Share My World” album on the track “It’s On.” Then in ’98, he comes with an even stronger banger, a double disc called “R.” This is my second favorite R. Kelly album. This album was on another level. Way more darker topics, the hip hop influence is stronger especially on “We Ride.” A hip hop track featuring Cam’ron, Noreaga, Vegas Cats and Jay-Z. “Home Alone” featuring Keith Murray, “Did You Ever Think” and “Money Makes the World Go Round” featuring Nas are also great examples. I just didn’t understand why “I Believe I Can Fly” was added on the album. It fit but it was released 2 years prior. Kelly keeps the ball rolling, he’s super consistent throughout his career. The new millennium comes and he released “TP-2.com”, the sequel to “12 Play.” This album was definitely a perfect sequel because it’s more relaxed and “lovey dovey” than the previous two albums. Kelly goes back to that original 12 play vibe but on another level. It’s another hit for Kelly. He then enters a new point in his career where he gets into trouble with the scandals and it affects his sales on the “Best of Both Worlds” album with Jay-Z. After all that, he ushers in a new Kelly, a man whose more about being holy and spiritual, he’s all about the people and spreading love. The togetherness he spreads on this next album makes him legendary status. At then end of 2002, Kelly was supposed to release an album that was called “Loveland” but when it got leaked, the album had to be put on the shelf and was never released and in 2003, he came with “Chocolate Factory.” This album was a more happier Kelly, he also talked about marriage and of course “steppin’.” “Step In the Name of Love” is the perfect song to describe the vibe of the album. It puts people on the dance floor at any event, no matter the age. 2004’s “Happy People/U Saved Me” to me was a bit of a reach for Kelly. He takes it too far with the gospel vibes and extra happy songs. It’s my least favorite album from him. I’m not the type to bring up an artists’ personal issues but this album to me reflected someone whose almost hypocritical. He reminded me of that uncle at the family reunion who shows up and makes it awkward because everyone knows about his past and his issues and he’s acting like it never happened and instead being extra happy and over the top throwing God and Jesus in your face when you’re the one who messed up. The songs was cool though but it’s not his strongest work. 2005’s “TP.3-Reloaded” was an okay album too but it was better than the previous joint. It’s the third joint in the “12 Play” series. It doesn’t give me 12 Play vibes though. I get a mixture between “TP2” and “Chocolate Factory.” “Double Up” is where I started to not be interested in Kelly anymore. He still had the hits coming but that spark he used to have is no longer there to me. It seems like he was just putting out anything. He still kept his usual love making vibe there and getting married and stuff but it wasn’t the same. “Untitled”, “Love Letter”, “Write Me Back”, “Black Panties”, and “The Buffet” all give me the same vibe. This man is definitely one of the greats and he’s still going strong no matter what. He’s easily one of the greatest from the 90’s and there’s no one else snatching the crown from him. Forever and always the Pied Piper of R&B.

The Definition of X: The Legacy of DMX

The year was 1998 when this Yonkers native exploded on the scene with one catchy but an inviting, in-your-face phrase, “Get At Me Dog.” His raps are the stories about the hard times in life, including drugs and abandonment. He raps with a sorta bark/growl in his voice that makes you think of the biggest, most meanest pit bull with the biggest bark you’ve ever heard. This man goes by Earl Simmons aka Dark Man X or DMX for short. He was a part of the Ruff Ryders clique, a hip hop clique that includes members of a family who came from the Bronx. Ironically, they come from 1520 Sedgwick Avenue, the same place where hip hop all started with the father himself, otherwise known as the infamous DJ Kool
Herc. In Ruff Ryders, there’s a young, dope and fresh producer who goes by the name is Swizz Beatz. Swizz is the guy who provides all of the sound for the Ruff Ryders artists including Eve, The LOX, and Drag-On. DMX is the stand out guy who catches your attention with his raw, rough and rugged voice with a pain that tells a story of a guy who comes from struggle and pain. His pain isn’t the pain you get over overnight, it’s the kind of pain that takes a lot of healing. You gotta go to a place where you’re willing to change and get better. DMX is trying to get from one place to another. There’s no denying the kind of talent that DMX is and the list of hits he put out for almost the past 20 years. “What These Bitches Want”, “What’s My Name?”, “Come Back In One Piece” with the late great Aaliyah, “Where Tha Hood At” and more. X’s legacy continues and he is well loved and respected, despite his troubles and what he’s been through. The man is a hip hop legend. A legend who represented for the streets.

The Life & Times of Shawn Carter

“Shawn Carter was born December 4th….. weighing in at 10lbs. 8 ounces.” Those were the first words that was said on the track “December 4th” but the first time Shawn Carter aka Jay-Z was seen was back in the late 80’s, early 90’s when he and another dope MC named Jaz-O was spitting dope freestyles together. They even did a joints together called “Hawaiian Sophie” and “The Originators.” I do remember seeing the “Hawaiian Sophie” music video for the first time too. It was definitely around 2008 and they played it on VH1 Soul before it was BET Soul. That’s my favorite music channel on T.V. right now but I stopped watching T.V. Anyways, by 1995, Jay released his first joint called “In My Lifetime.” The song wasn’t released on an album or soundtrack but the remix does appear on the 1998 “Streets Is Watching” soundtrack and then there was “I Can Get With That.” That joint was so dope to me. It had this heavy bass beat with a piano sound in the background on the beat that reminds me of the Charlie Brown cartoon. Jay was flowin’ like crazy on that joint. Only true hip hop and Jay-Z fans know about that one. On June 25th, 1996, Jay finally came with “Reasonable Doubt.” A lot of people say it’s his best work til this day. Jay got a crazy huge discography so it’s gonna take a while to go through them all but I got to. I was only 2 when “Reasonable Doubt” dropped but I do remember hearing “Can’t Knock the Hustle” with my boo Mary J. Blige and “Dead Presidents.” That album gives you this movie in your head about the drugs and street life. Can’t forget about “Ain’t No Nigga” with my boo Foxy Brown and “Feelin’ It” but “Regrets” is my favorite on the album. Now the next joint “In My Lifetime, Vol. 1” is my personal favorite Jay-Z album. This was considered the “commercial” Jay. A lot of people hated Jay for going so mainstream so quickly and thought the songs were cheesy but to me, the entire joint from beginning to end is a fuckin’ masterpiece. A couple of songs I could do without but it’s incredible to me. The production especially. The album starts the same way “Reasonable Doubt” does. I love how he used the sample of “A Fly Girl” by Boogie Boys on the joint “I Know What Girls Like” and “(Always Be My) Sunshine” is my favorite on the album along with “Who You Wit II.” That album takes me back to that little boy growing up in the late 90’s early 2000’s. Then Jay takes it back to the streets with “Vol. 2… Hard Knock Life.” Another dope Jay album in a row. That’s 3 albums in 3 years consecutively. The ghetto anthem itself “Hard Knock Life” is a top 5 Jay-Z record, hands down. “Money, Cash, Hoes” is my favorite on the album too. DMX’s part always gets me hyped and it reminds me of my cousin from the South. LOL! “Vol. 3… Life and Times of S. Carter” I didn’t really like this joint. It was boring to me compared to the first three and the singles are the only songs I like. “The Dynasty: Roc La Familia” was okay too. Nothing too crazy. The whole Roc-a-Fella family appeared on this one. “I Just Wanna Love U (Give It 2 Me)” is a top 10 Jay-Z joint to me. Then Jay comes with “The Blueprint.” This album is a top 5 Jay-Z album. His strongest since “Reasonable Doubt.” I personally didn’t consider this album to be that great until later on. “Girls, Girls, Girls” and “Song Cry” are my favorites. “The Best of Both Worlds” with R. Kelly is underrated to me. That was banged from beginning to end. That’s a party album, all the way through. It’s very early 2000’s. R. Kelly’s R&B sex talk and Jay’s good vibes worked together great but no singles were released due to R’s charges at the time. “The Blueprint 2” is hands down my least favorite Jay-Z album. To me it didn’t stand out to me and the singles are the only joints that I like. “Bitches & Sisters” and “All Around the World” are the only joints like besides the singles though. “The Black Album” is my second favorite Jay-Z album. This was supposed to be his last album. I remember him saying that he was retiring after this one but New York without new Jay-Z music then was unheard of. Highly unlikely. “Unfinished Business” was supposed to be the sequel to “The Best of Both Worlds” but it’s another flop to me. “Kingdom Come” is my third favorite Jay album. Another Jay album that a lot of people considered to be his worst but I like this one just as much as “In My Lifetime, Vol. 1.” For some reason, the underrated stuff is the stuff I always seem to like the most. “Beach Chair”, “Do U Wanna Ride” and “The Prelude” are my favorites. “American Gangster” to me is like a sequel to “Reasonable Doubt” just on another level. When I was in high school, “Hello Brooklyn” was on repeat on my MP3 player. I was obsessed with that joint. The beat was something crazy I never heard before. “The Blueprint 3” is the beginning of what I call the “office chair Jay-Z.” His success as a business man stood out more than the music at this point. I didn’t see Jay as that Brooklyn MC anymore, now he’s the one appearing in suits and ties every damn where. I’m not hating or anything, it’s just not the same but this album was dope to me. I do remember these songs coming out at the time it did. My early high school days in the late 2000’s. “Watch the Throne”, I remember people going crazy about it because of Kanye West’s involvement. This album has mainstream written all over it though but it’s another banger and “Magna Carta Holy Grail” was dope too. I enjoyed how different it is compared to the rest of Jay’s stuff. Jay-Z came a long way from those Jaz-O days back in Brooklyn, those “Reasonable Doubt” days but through it all he always put out dope music. I grew up on Jay-Z so that’s why he’s my top 5 favorite along with Biggie. He’s the ultimate hustler who just so happens to know how to rap. The ultimate New York MC.

The Legacy of Usher Raymond

When this man’s music is up for discussion, a lot of people seem to think that “My Way” was his first. His first joint was on the “Poetic Justice” soundtrack called “Called Me a Mack.” The next year after that Usher released his first debut album with joints like “Can U Get Wit It”, “The Many Ways” and my all time favorite joint “Think of You.” There is absolutely no better Usher joint than that one, I don’t care what anybody says. That first album of his was extremely underrated. I’ve heard people say it wasn’t a very good album but to me it’s better than his shit after the “Looking 4 Myself” album. He went too pop for me. Besides the singles, “I’ll Make It Right”, “Crazy”, “I’ll Show You Love”, “Whispers”, “You Took My Heart” and “Smile Again” were all bangers too. People need to listen to the first album again. His next joint, 1997’s “My Way” is the Usher everybody started to know, the Usher everybody thinks is his first. LOL! Another banging album from Usher. This is the Usher that inspired me fashionably. He was rocking ski masks, leather outfits, shiny jackets and the infamous “U” chain. That “U” chain is his trademark, it’s like the “S” on Superman’s chest. This is the Usher that got him more recognition as an artist. That “My Way” joint was ill too. The video was more iller. “Bedtime” and “I Will” made me think the girls I had crushes on growing up. This was when we had true male R&B singers. They sung about loving their women. The “Live” album is one of my favorite live albums in music but I wish he performed more songs from his first album. “8701” showed a more mature Usher. This was the “Usher & Chilli” era. Usher was older, much wiser, his material was more serious but it definitely prepared us for his album of all time. That album happened to be 2004’s “Confessions.” Man listen, this album is in my top 10 R&B albums of all time list. This is Usher’s best work til this day. I don’t give a fuck what nobody say. The entire album from beginning to end is a banger. No fucking skips, but replays, rewinds, volume all the way up and singing along to Usher. My favorite joint is “Seduction.” It’s my favorite slow joint from Usher. The chorus and harmonies were smooth as silk but that’s regular Usher style. 4 years later, we got “Here I Stand.” This is the beginning of the “pop” Usher that I personally don’t like but this was definitely a dope album though. “Trading Places” is the best joint along with “Best Thing” featuring Jay-Z. After “Here I Stand”, I never listened to Usher’s entire albums just the singles. The singles are dope, he’s still doing his thing but the spark is gone. Too many club bangers for the younger crowd and not enough grown folk music like he used to deliver. It’s rare to hear that from him now but I’m still a Usher fan. Of all the birthdays in October, I’m always amped about Usher’s because he’s definitely my biggest inspiration as a singer, besides Ricky Bell from New Edition. Usher is the singer I always wanted to be but with a hip hop twist. He’s the ultimate ladies man with almost 25 years under his belt and albums and bangers for days. He’s the Prince of R&B to me. There’s no one like Usher Raymond IV. Yeaaahhhhh man!

The King of New Jack Swing: Happy Birthday Teddy Riley

They call him the King of New Jack Swing. He’s the man behind the legendary hip hop and R&B groups like Guy, Wreckx-N-Effect, and BLACKstreet, he helped provided sounds for Michael Jackson’s 1991 album “Dangerous”, Bobby Brown’s 1988 album “Don’t Be Cruel” and Queen Pen’s 1997 album “My Melody.” He did a lot joints for others artists including MC Hammer, Mary J. Blige, Doug E. Fresh, SWV, Kool Moe Dee and a whole lot more of other hip hop, R&B and new jack swing artists. This man is my all time favorite producer, for he is responsible for a lot of my favorite joints. His name is Teddy Riley. It was 1985 when Teddy produced his first joint to reach the Billboard Top 100 charts, Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick’s “The Show” and then two years later, the R&B group Guy was born. The group started off with Teddy, Timmy Gatling and Aaron Hall who pioneered the new jack swing style and movement. With only three albums underneath their belt, they had some of the greatest joints between the first two albums. “New Jack Swing” of course, “Teddy’s Jam”, “Groove Me”, “I Like”, “Yearning For Your Love”, and “My Fantasy”, which is a joint not to many can remember unless you play it like “Ohhhh snap! I forgot about this one. This is my shit!” LOL! To those that never understood what exactly was the sound of New Jack Swing, it was basically hip hop production, R&B vocals, pop infused with synthesizers and heavy bass with instrument sounds. It was the early combination of hip hop and R&B until Hip hop soul came along in the early 90’s, thanks to Mary J. Blige and Jodeci. In 1989 Teddy Riley began working with hip hop group Wreckx-N-Effect. Their main two singles were “New Jack Swing”, a song that celebrates the genre and of course partying with a numerous amount of cameo appearances in the music video and in 1992, their next biggest joint, “Rump Shaker.” In the early 90’s, the new jack swing movement and sound was slowly coming to an end. I would say around 1993/1994, the industry was taken over by a new popular sound called “Hip hop sound.” Hip hop soul was more straightforward and more street. It was like church choirs meet the street corner hustlers. This sound was strictly R&B singing over hardcore hip hop production and it is my favorite sound. Teddy didn’t miss a beat and he still put out bangers even with the new sound at the time. He did Michael Jackson’s 1991 album “Dangerous”, he did the remix to Mary J. Blige’s 1994 single “My Love” featuring the late great Heavy D, another artists part of the new jack swing movement, and then came along BLACKstreet, who is one of my all time favorite male groups. Their first two albums, the self titled 1994 album and 1996’s “Another Level”, I ran to death yo. The first joint introduced Chauncey Black and Dave Hollister. Chauncey and Dave had amazing voices but Dave was miles ahead of Chauncey and could hit some of the hardest and coldest notes I’ve ever heard come from an R&B guy. Their definitely influences on me when it comes to singing. The first album was a banger from start to finish. The sound had a west coast vibe but it was a tad bit new jack swing-ish but very, very smooth and R&B on a hip hop tip that makes you nod your head something crazy. Joints like “Baby Be Mine”, “I Like the Way You Work”, “Physical Thing”, “Happy Home”, “Before I Let You Go” man, that shit is a masterpiece. Their second album “Another Level” had the perfect name and it was exactly that but their first joint was more raw and street. “Another Level” had more church vibes but it was still dope. A couple of joints skipped here and there but still a dope body work. This album had the notorious Teddy Riley joint, “No Diggity” featuring Dr. Dre and Queen Pen. Queen Pen is another one of Teddy’s artists. She was incredible on the mic but very underrated. Teddy did her album “My Melody” a year after “Another Level” and “Party Ain’t a Party” took Queen Pen to the top. Her second joint didn’t do so well but she’s still a monster on the mic. BLACKstreet’s third album “Finally”, was an okay album though. I don’t really care too much about it but it was cool. Very R&B all the way and “Girlfriend/Boyfriend” featuring Janet Jackson, Ja Rule and Eve was dope too. I pretty much only celebrate Teddy’s career from 1985 to 1998. That’s when he was in his prime. Album after album, artist after artist, bangers after bangers, Teddy is definitely one of the greatest producers of all time. He’s pretty much the soundtrack and King of my “old soul” life. He provided that sound I love so much and exaggerates it a lot. Those beats of his was perfect to me. His ear is an incredible one and something you never doubt. I always dreamed of someday working with Teddy in the future. Hope I can.

From The Fresh Prince to Hollywood Best: Happy Birthday Will Smith

Who would’ve thought that the same guy from West Philadelphia, born and raised, on the playground was where he spent most of his days at, with the funny and happy raps, on a television sitcom with the illest hip hop gear I have ever seen, side by side with a DJ who goes by the name of DJ Jazzy Jeff, would be one of Hollywood’s most respected actors and married to the beautiful and lovely Jada Pinkett. That man would be known as Will Smith aka The Fresh Prince. When it comes to hip hop fashion, Will have always been an inspiration to me. Besides LL Cool J, Slick Rick, Run-DMC, and Big Daddy Kane, Will was also someone I looked up to fashionably. He literally would wear something that nobody else would or do something else with his clothes that nobody else would do either and that to me was dope. I take fashion lessons from this man. Now the music, that was dope too. As the album titles says “He’s the DJ, I’m the Rapper”, Will and Jazz were the perfect hip hop duo. Songs like “Brand New Funk”, “You Saw My Blinker”, “Girls Ain’t Nothing But Trouble”, “Parents Just Don’t Understand”, and the ultimate Fresh Prince and Jazzy Jeff classic “Summertime”, these guys are definitely one of the greatest hip hop duos of all time. Now the transition that Will went from the Fresh Prince to Hollywood actor Will Smith was a weird one to me. Throughout the last couple of seasons of “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”, Will’s style changed drastically. He went from hip hop gear in Doc Martens and Jordans, hat to the back, one sneaker white, one sneaker black, to plain shirt and jeans but still had the Jordans on. Towards the late 90’s all the way til now, Will Smith has been non stop coming out with movies back to back. My top favorites are “Hitch”, “Bad Boys II”, “The Pursuit of Happyness”, and more. I strongly disliked “Ali” though. I didn’t think he was the right person to play Muhammad Ali. It was more like Will Smith a boxer kinda movie, I didn’t get the Ali vibe from it. Wild Wild West was bad too. Just couldn’t get with it and I remember when that movie came out too. I can’t forget about how different his music became too but it was still good. DJ Jazzy Jeff was no longer beside him, and he had joints like “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” and “Men In Black” with Coko from SWV singing on the hook and chorus. From Fresh Prince to Hollywood big time, Will Smith is definitely one of hip hop’s greatest artists and Hollywood’s greatest actors on the big screen. Definitely an inspiration to me.

Ooohhh, It’s the L-I-Y-A-H!

Aaliyah, one of the world’s greatest R&B artists of all time. With only 3 albums and 2 movies underneath her belt, 15 years after her tragic death, she is still loved and appreciated and not just for her music but for her beauty, class, talent and mostly her positive and beautiful spirit that caught everyone’s attention. She was only 22 years old, that’s my age. I never heard anybody say anything negative about her as far as the industry goes and I never read about anybody saying anything negative about her either. She was well respected and loved by everyone, especially her musical peers both Timbaland and Missy Elliott. I grew up on Aaliyah. I have all 3 of her albums including a CD maxi single of her debut single “Back & Forth” and I have “Romeo Must Die” on DVD. Her debut album “Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number” produced and arranged by R. Kelly, was a dope R&B album with a touch of both new jack swing beats and hip hop glossed over by her smooth and calming vocals and R. Kelly’s ad-libs and an unknown young rapper named Tia who appears on tracks like “Throw Your Hands Up” and my top favorite cut on the album “I’m So Into You.” Aaliyah’s sophomore album in 1996, “One In a Million” is what made baby girl official. Both her look and sound changed. She came out in 1994 with baggy clothes and a hood kinda attitude with a scarf on her head and a groove which she claimed was a “jazz personality, G mentality”, and she pulled it off great. “Back & Forth” still gets people at parties and events going crazy, singing along to it, “At Your Best (You Are Love)” is romantic but the remix with R. Kelly going “1, 2 check it, baby lemme know wassup” was even better and had a low groove that was hip hop but R&B. Of course the title track, also had that same groove and she walking hard but kept it girly at the same time in the video. Then in ’96 she was in crop tops, rocking Tommy Hilfiger or Karl Kani gear, belly button showing, fly dark shades, baggy pants still, and her long beautiful, silky, shiny hair that glossed, swooped across her face over her eye. Aaliyah showed a more sexier side of herself but she wasn’t trashy, far from it. “One In a Million” is my personal favorite album of hers because the production was something different during that time and the songs were more dope and mature than her first joint. The hardest joints to me are of course the album title track, “Hot Like Fire”, especially the remix and video version, “Ladies In Da House” and “I Gotcha Back.” Can’t forget about the first single “If Your Girl Only Knew” and her remakes of Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give It Up” and The Isley Brothers’ “Choosey Lover.” This album definitely blows the debut album out of the water and almost makes you forget it exists, that’s how dope the second album is. After that, baby girl did soundtrack joints and started doing acting. She put out “Are You That Somebody”, which is one my favorite Aaliyah videos, I know part of the choreography, she also put out “Try Again”, “Come Back In One Piece”, “Journey to the Past” and “I Don’t Wanna.” Baby girl did her thing in Romeo Must Did but I never saw “Queen of the Damned.” After that, her 2001 self titled album came along. My favorites cuts on the album are “Loose Rap”, “Extra Smooth”, “Never No More” and “I Care 4 U.” Aaliyah was at the top of her career and then suddenly, the plane crash that happened on August 25th, 2001. I don’t remember where I was when I found out but I just remember feeling so sad to the point it made me feel dizzy thinking about someone like Aaliyah in a tragic accident. I do remember when “We Need a Resolution”, “Rock the Boat” and More Than a Woman” first came out. “We Need a Resolution”, I swear to everything, that video was too dope. It’s another favorite music video of mine with “Are You That Somebody.” The choreography in that video was bananas. Aaliyah was a smooth dancer. She could be sexy and belly roll or grind with a guy backup dancer or she could do hip hop and bounce and groove all over. Aaliyah was the truth, no doubt. Then it was “Rock the Boat”, the video was amazing, perfect and beautiful too and “More Than a Woman” had the same dope dance moves too. Aaliyah was like the pretty girl you saw in the neighborhood who all the guys wanted but she knew better, she’s the good girl, the one who stays out of trouble and is very nice and popular, that’s how I always saw Aaliyah, even through her pictures, interviews, music videos and movies. Forever she will be in our hearts and forever her legacy will continue. With only 3 albums, over 10 singles, and 2 movies, baby girl has done more than most. Rest in peace Aaliyah Dana Haughton. We love you and we miss you.