"Try Again", "More Than A Woman", and "Rock The Boat"=

Yeah, I hear all three of her albums as wholes were nothing to rave about, but I also hear "Aaliyah" was probably the best (judging from those three singles, I'd say so myself), and when you combine that with her beauty, her acting skills, her dancing, her pretty voice, etc., it's a total shame she never got to fully flourish. I hope she's still resting in peace.

PurpleKnight said:

"We Need A Resolution" was an example of run-of-the-mill R&B?

VoicesCarry said:

However, I liked the video.

MsLegs said:

If "WNAR" was an example of run-of-the-mill mainstream R&B at the time, I have to say I want to hear more of it. To me, run-of-the-mill R&B is Ashanti's bullshit - or maybe R. Kelly.

VoicesCarry said:

Exactly.

Go ahead, tell us how you really feel.

sosgemini said:

Heard you the first time.

VoicesCarry said:

Don't make fun!

I had a response all typed out and my computer crashed. I don't know why it just posted nothing instead.

dreamfactory313 said:

The short version...

My brother and I went to that school for her candlelight vigil the day of her death. It was one of the most moving experiences I've ever been a part of. Sadly, I haven't been able to play her music since. And she used to be on heavy rotation in the Renner household.

GangstaFam said:

I've had that happen, too

VoicesCarry said:

At least it wasn't uber-long or anything. I hate it when you have a really thoughtful post or orgnote all typed out and ready to send and then either the computer crashes or you time out. Arrgh! That's the worst. I've learned after a few really frustrating accidents to copy the good stuff before posting.

GangstaFam said:

I am the same way with her last album. I do not recall the columnist's name, but at the time of her death he went on and on about how too big a deal was being made about the death of somebody he'd never heard of. Needless to say, he took a lot of heat for it. I'm not familiar with anything else he's written, but a lot of people took his comments as racially motivated.

RipHer2Shreds said:

The guy was ignorant and opinionated. Gotta love that combo.

VoicesCarry said:

I like/liked Aaliyah. She definitely was a classy lady. As for R. Kelly,I'm gettin' fed up!! did you hear his stupid song "opening the closet" that doesn't even need to be a song,and after what he did to that minor,he needs to lay off those songs for a while.
[Edited 6/12/05 15:14pm]

AzurePanther said:

I think that had a lot to do with her appeal. Shortly before she died she expressed wanting to work with Trent Reznor. I was glad to see she wasn't afraid to step outside the box and try something different especially coming from an R&B background.

I think for the most part outside of her talent she was just likable. Aside from the R. Kelly connection you didn't hear negative stories about her, she wasn't in the press alot for things other than her music. She was graceful, articulate, friendly, and seemed genuine. She could hang with in any circle and be comfortable. Having started so young in the business it seemed that she was level-headed as well.
[Edited 6/12/05 15:14pm]

GangstaFam said:

I know! that gets me upset too

AzurePanther said:

Would you say the same thing if she looked like Ashanti or Missy Elliot...

I'm sorry but if it wasn't about her beautifull face, I really didn't pay any attention ....

Really....

I just dowloaded some videos of her on kazza, and she doesn"t impress me at all...
Her music is average, and her dancing skills are average...

She didn't have a powerfull voice...

But she has an extraordinary style, face, beauty...

Do you really think that no female R&B artists today are nothing compared to her in terms of talent, dancing ??

What about Alicia Keys ??
What about Beyonce, (even if I hate her, she has a great voice, way better than Aaliyah)
What about Ciara ?? She dances better than her

squiddyren said:

I love "Rock The Boat". I recently brought the I Care 4 U (CD/DVD package) and every time I put the DVD in and the video appears, I always skip it because it drives me into tears.

krayzie said:

Aaliyah and Alicia Keys aren't even the same type of artists so why compare the two? Beyonce and Ciara? Yep, I'll take Aaliyah over either of them. Beyonce has NO control over her voice, and Ciara won't be around long.

I don't think she was overated. Aaliyah was a beautiful woman with a pretty voice. What I loved about her was that she was so humble and grounded. She was also well spoken, graceful and very talented. I wish she was still around.

"I care for you" is such a beautiful touching song.

RipHer2Shreds said:

I'm talkin about talent...

Aaliyah is average, not great...

Beyonce has a way MORE powerfull voice (a real soulfull voice)

You talk like Aaliyah had an extraordinary voice...

Common...

Her voice wasn't that great...

To me she's overrated definitely...

krayzie said:

Show me where I said she had an extraordinary voice. Never said it, because I don't believe it. I think she was a good entertainer who never reached her full potential.

"Overrated"?? I dunno - how do people rate her?

For me she had some GREAT songs (One In A Million, Hot Like Fire, If Your Girl Only Knew, More Than A Woman, Rock the Boat, I Care 4 U) but she had to grow on me - I really wasn't digging her much until One In A Million... I do think her stunning beauty outshined her talent, but that's the case w/ lots of attractive artists. She had a nice, sweet voice, could dance, would have probably made a decent actress given the chance to grow.

It might have been said before but for me, I liked that she was willing to take chances within R&B. She worked with R. Kelly for her first CD but with the 2nd one, she worked with then-unknown Missy Elliot and Timbaland, a big risk right there. Her music changed once "One In A Million" dropped. And it got even better when "Aaliyah" dropped. That CD doesn't sound much like the "One In..." the way it doesn't sound like "Age Ain't Nothing But A Number". I would have loved to hear what she would have done with rock music. I think she would have done a great job. And I firmly believe that she would have been a superstar. I truly miss Aaliyah.

Aaliyah didn't have a strong over powering voice but she had a very pleasant soothing voice. One thing definitely liked was that she didn't sing LOUD and she didn't riff all up and down to get her point or emotion across. The beat could be hard as hell but she was always sounded cool relax. Even with her dancing... she was smooth.

I do not think Aaliyah was overrated. In my opinion, she was destined to be the next Janet. She would've represented Janet's legacy brilliantly. Aaliyah had an angelic soprano, beautiful image, great style and a grace about her that a LOT of today's pop stars are lacking. Her talent was wonderful. She could dance and she was on her way to write great songs and participate in production before her tragic death. The woman was a multimedia star and could've easily made noise for decades. I could so visualize her doing music and movies well into her golden years.

When I first heard the single "One In A Million" on R&B radio back in 1997. It was a transformative moment in urban music, IMHO. I never heard anything like that before. Those staccato, machine-fire drums and the groove -- it was top-notch. Only few moments come around like that musically, when you hear a sound for the first time and you're like "d*mn, I've heard her something as funky as this before." And that was definitely one of those moments.

I respect Aaliyah not only because she was a beautiful and compassionate spirit. But also her talent and presence was welcomed (and now sorely missed) during the time we had with her.

i don't think she was overrated as an artist. she was the first to come out between her, brandy, and monica. i would say out of the 3 of them she got less attention. brandy was america's black sweet heart. monica had the voice. aaliyah was sorta left in the shadows. between her 1st and 2nd album she went through the whole rkelly thing. he came out on top (no pun intended) in that situation. well at least at the time he did. i remember aaliyah was booed at the soul train awards when her name was mentioned. one and a million was a good cd for me. she was the face of timbalands beats so she got attention from that being that the sound was new at the time. she was gaining more attention with her last album and movie roles but unfortunately she died during that time. i think she gets a lot of attention from fans because she seemed like she was such a genuine person and was beautiful as well. i hear people comparing ciara's voice to aaliyah and i have to say ciara's vocals are much stronger. on wax aaliyah's voice was so damn smooth. she sounds so beautiful on record. however her live performances were ok. i saw ciara perform live a couple of weeks ago and was impressed. she wasn't all that but much better than i expected her to be. i was watching the rock the boat video yesterday and couldn't help but feel sad thinking that was basically her last 24hrs. at least she spent it doing something she loved.

JANFAN4L said:

I had that when I first heard "One in a Million" and it still stands as my favorite song by her. Hearing that for the first time reminded me of what it must've been like to hear Prince's Minneapolis sound come together back in the day. Landmark.