The entertainment world was rocked when recording artist Aaliyah Dana Haughton was lost after
her plane crashed shortly after takeoff in the Bahamas on Aug. 25th, 2001.
Six people, including the "Rock the Boat" singer, perished instantly, while two others
later succumbed to their injuries in a hospital.
In the years since the tragedy, surprising new details about the 22-year-old have gradually
emerged.
Here's what we didn't learn about Aaliyah until after her fateful final voyage.
Suspicious skies
As fans mourned, U.S. and Bahamian authorities began investigating what could have caused
the twin-engine Cessna to crash on a Saturday night in seemingly perfect weather.
Aaliyah and her crew were originally supposed to leave the following day, but they were
reportedly in a hurry to get back to Miami, so they hastily chartered the doomed flight
after shooting the music video for "Rock the Boat."
Before piling into the small plane, an argument reportedly broke out between her entourage
and the pilot, Luis Morales.
Morales supposedly thought the plane was overloaded with nine people, their luggage, and camera
and sound equipment.
And shortly after takeoff, the plane crashed, taking the lives of everyone on board.
But a heavy load may be just one of the reasons the plane went down.
Following the incident, more details about Morales emerged.
"It's turns out that the pilot of that plane, Luis Morales, was recently charged for cocaine
possession and may not have been authorized to fly that plane."
As a result of the revelations, Aaliyah's parents, Diane and Michael Haughton, sued
the plane's operator, owners, and the flight broker.
In 2003, the suit was settled for an undisclosed amount.
Afraid to fly
As if her fate wasn't heartbreaking enough, it was later revealed that Aaliyah was terrified
of small planes, and she was even said to be hesitant to board the tiny plane from the
Bahamas to Miami.
According to Newsweek, a friend who accompanied the singer to the airport said Aaliyah was
expecting a larger aircraft for the flight, and she was uneasy when she noticed the small
plane.
The company producing her music video reportedly offered to charter a larger private jet for
Aaliyah and her entourage, but the singer declined because she was, quote, "anxious
to get home to her boyfriend and enjoy her last free weekend before beginning a rigorous
fall schedule."
Secret projects
During the height of Aaliyah's career, social media wasn't the force that it is today.
This made it a bit harder to learn about a celeb's personal life, and Aaliyah was exceedingly
reserved.
In fact, because the songstress was rarely seen without a dark pair of sunglasses covering
her eyes, rumors emerged that she had a lazy eye or a glass eye.
Even when she ditched the shades, she frequently covered one eye with a perfectly coiffed bang.
Of course, those stories weren't true, but her secretive nature meant that most fans
didn't know she had a funny bone until after she was gone.
Aaliyah befriended Kidada Jones, the daughter of music mogul Quincy Jones, at a Tommy Hilfiger
fashion show in 1993.
The pals reportedly loved to act silly when they were together.
In a 2011 interview with the Fader, Jones said Aaliyah once prank called her father
and pretended to be pop star Christina Aguilera, explaining:
"She was asking my dad to do something on her record and she was just singing, and he
totally believed it was [Aguilera]."
But Jones and Aaliyah were more than just best friends.
They were becoming business partners, too.
Aaliyah was known for her impeccable sense of style.
She could effortlessly wear a pair of baggy jeans and a crop top one day and a Roberto
Cavalli dress the next.
Jones told Fader that she and Aaliyah had been developing a girl's clothing line called
Dolly Pop.
"Right when she passed we were getting ready to sign our contracts for that.
We were making plans for this brand that was gonna be girly and cute and have Japanese
inspiration."
Considering Aaliyah's ability to make the best-dressed list at any occasion, there's
no telling how successful that line would have been.
Love life
Aaliyah worked hard to keep her love life under wraps, but that didn't stop her romances
from making big headlines.
Vibe magazine blew the lid off her secret marriage in 1994 to her then-mentor, R. Kelly.
Aaliyah was just 15 years old when they wed, and Kelly was 27.
She reportedly lied about her age on the marriage license, claiming she was 18, so their union
was eventually annulled.
Towards the end of her life, Aaliyah had sparked a relationship with Damon "Dame" Dash, the
co-founder of Roc-A-Fella Records.
Supposedly, both he and his former business partner, Jay-Z, had their eyes on Aaliyah.
Dash said:
"I was going at her but Jay was going at her."
But the reason it didn't cost the men their partnership was that Aaliyah was able to keep
a cordial relationship with Carter even after putting him in the friend zone.
"Aaliyah was the type of girl that would give you a shot.
She didn't care what people thought.
So she'll date you and be your friend."
Clearly, there were no hard feelings because Jay-Z led a touching tribute to the singer
at a concert in Detroit one year after her crash.
Meanwhile, 10 years after her passing, Dash was still coping with his loss and told Billboard
Magazine:
"My heart was broken.
Nothing prepares you for that."
Though Dash and Aaliyah spent a lot of time apart working on individual projects, they
were apparently planning a future together.
He told MTV News:
"As soon as she had time, we were getting married.
She was the one—she was definitely the one for me."
On top of all of these bits of posthumous news, perhaps the most surprising thing we've
learned about Aaliyah after her departure is just how poetic her words about her work
really were.
"In the end it's all worth it because it makes me really happy, and I wouldn't trade it for
anything else in the world."