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28/06/2015

Aaliyah Archives: News


So I happened to come across something a couple days ago, with the most strangest thing that has ever happened to me. As a believer of fate/destiny, I truly believe I was meant to see this. Now, we all know Father's Day was exactly a week from today...and to my surprise, I happened to see a message from Rashad Haughton via Aaliyah.com who shared the most heart-felt memory, quote and poem I have ever read. Along with a song by Luther Vandross called 'Dance With My Father' in dedication to Michael Haughton. Being a Daddy's girl who is very close with her Father, I can only imagine how that raw pain feels inside.

It was also very sweet reading how Rashad's nickname 'Ra' came about too. Now I finally understand why Aaliyah would always call him that for short. :o) As you can see, family is very important to The Haughton's which is evident in Rashad's words, which you can read below. (Warning: Keep tissues at hand if you are emotional like myself, because this is really DEEP!) Thank you for sharing this with us all Rashad. I know you are a very private person, so to write something as personal as this takes a lot of courage and strength. Continue to stay blessed always! One love <3

"True Love and Blessings to Fathers everywhere!

The Haughton Family
 


"Father Honored"  

The definition of the word father is simply a man who has begotten and raised a child. I was blessed to be the son of Michael Haughton who transcended this definition. To me, a father is a man who embodies the divine connotation of the word. A man who guides a son and daughter spiritually, physically and mentally through the perils of life, while protecting them and their mother like a king overseeing the prosperity and enlightenment of his kingdom.

My father instilled in me the importance of family, education and respect. I learned how to treat a woman by the way he loved and cherished my mother, grandmother and sister. Although he lost his father at a young age, he defied expectations and maintained a marriage and solid household for his family while being present and involved in every aspect of our lives.

When I told him I wanted to become a professional wrestler he grabbed me and taught me how to play basketball and I made the team the first time I tried out. Looking back now, thank God he did that. Although I still love wrestling, Dad knew it was not for me.

When I was rebellious he didn't simply punish me without cause. He pushed me to become better, making sure I entered the declamation poetry contest at school which I eventually won overall prize sparking the belief in myself as a writer and lover of literature.

He exposed my sister and I to martial arts and showed me hundreds of films. I now live in Japan where my sister performed concerts in front of thousands and my life and love of the culture is evolving into more than I could have dreamed of. It all began with the unique and colorful mind of my father and the gifts he shared with us.

When I was still just a boy, he took me to see the sci-fi, action and drama films that would inspire me to pursue film. He taught me aspects of religion, philosophy and culture that shaped my vision of the world and myself. Most of all my Dad loved me, with every fiber of his being. And every fiber of my being is what is today because of him.

When I was young he always used to tell me to be "raw". "Raw" was a code-word between us that meant to be a tough, strong and hard man so that I could overcome any adversity in life. I have faced many adversities, and the day I lost my Dad, only my eyes were "raw" from crying. But now that I am older, I realize the brilliance of my Dad's word choice -- the realization that "raw" also means to be tender -- having the strength to feel emotion, be vulnerable so that you can open your heart to the world. Anyone who came in contact with my Dad loved him instantly, because he was the most loving, intelligent, generous and caring man in the world. Dad, you are my inspiration, my teacher, my confidant, my best friend -- the hero of the movie in my heart, the memory of my childhood, and the perfect adventure to come. And don't worry, I will be "Raw" no matter what. I love you forever. We will meet again soon!

Your Son,
Rashad
 

An Everlasting Quote
A truly special quote from Aaliyah's and Rashad's Grandfather.   For this day and every day...
"Everyone has a chance in this country now to get where you want and as high as you want as long as you have the brains, that's why I emphasize to everyone in America to get some education."
 

"The Man"
Dedicated to Marco, from Rashad,
"My Brother, My Friend Always, Mi Hermano, Marco"

Can be strong, maybe weak,
But must always be proud.
Can be soft spoken or a torrent of confidence,
Never must be plundered beneath.
Responsibility, a value he must have,
For on his back are the burden of bills.
But his will to survive will never let him down,
He'll keep going until he reaches his peak.
He might be very tough, and extremely strong,
To be equal in strength with any other man,
There must be love and kindness at hand.
From nine to five he may work tenaciously,
He might come home tired and fatigued,
But his tempo will never cease,
For he is a man and a man is a man.

Through his life, his confidence may fade,
At times all empty his strength may be,
But to rise should be every man's quality,
Rise -- Rise -- Rise!

To come back strong with demand and faith,
With his fist brandished high,
He will -- he will -- he will.
Along this journey of complexity called life,
Opportunities and chances will come his way.
He is a man to judge right from wrong.
His life is his; he may incredulously decide,
When or how it may end.
In poverty?
In riches?
But a man knows there are casualties in life,
But a man knows things will come together,
But a man knows...

In the end, a man's age may rise in number,
His skin may gradually wrinkle,
His hair may eventually gray.
But the man is a man,
Who knows what kind of man he really is,
"For he is a man and a man is a man."

Rashad Haughton

"Dance with My Father"
by Luther Vandross

Aaliyah: Rare Photo


Repost via @jamalmixon who posted this lovely throwback of himself and Aaliyah. Thank you for sharing with us all! :o)

26/06/2015

Craig Seymour Interview with Janet Jackson & Jimmy Jam: Talking about Aaliyah & Missy Elliott

Seeing as how yesterday marked the 6 year death anniversary of Michael Jackson (Rest his soul), I felt it would be appropriate to post this detailed written interview courtesy of Imogene who kindly shared this via the Aaliyah.PL Forum. Thank you so much for this! It was definitely a pleasure to read, and I couldn't help but to share with the rest of #TeamAaliyah.

Interviewer Craig Seymour happened to release an unedited audio, 3 hours long, from this particular interview he did with both Janet Jackson and Jimmy Jam back in April 2001. You can download the full audio here right after subscribing to Craig Seymour's mailing list! Below, you will find the main parts referring to Aaliyah and Missy Elliott. Enjoy! :o)

Craig Seymour: Tell me... Aaliyah was gonna be on the album, or something? Are you gonna duet? Someone told me that...

Janet: You're kidding... No.

Craig Seymour: What do you think of Aaliyah?
 

Janet: I love her. I actually met her last year.

Craig Seymour: Why you like her?
 

Janet: I think she's very talented. I love her music, I love what she creates on her album. I love listening to her voice. I think it's beautiful. She's beautiful.
 

Craig Seymour: What about Missy? There are all these things that you’re gonna work together too? Missy and the Timbaland’s whole camp…
 

Janet: Missy's too much... We had talked about doing something together, but we have never done it, and she kept saying NASTY 2000, NASTY 2000...and we never did it, but she was telling EV-RY-BO-DY that we were working together, and we didn't do it...

Craig Seymour: Does that bug you when people say how proud they are, proud of what they have done out of one little conversation at the party?
 

Janet: …Cuz you never know what’s gonna happen. Things can change. […] I’d just rather stay quiet, and just wait until you know for sure. 

******************
 

Photo courtesy of Jimmy Jam on his first ever encounter with Aaliyah at the MTV VMA's in 2000.

Jimmy Jam: I love her. I met her at the VMAs afterparty.
 

Janet: Sweet girl...
 

Jimmy Jam: I was like... I just met Aaliyah. She's the BOMB. She's so cool. There's a desire to work together. Maybe it isn't the time, but I wouldn't be surprised if we did something together. I'd love to see her as a fan.
 

Craig Seymour. Do you see her any different from the other teen singers out there like Britney, Brandy, Monica...?
 

Janet: Her stuff seems beyond her age, that's for sure. That's wonderful.
 

Jimmy Jam: A lot of stuff is very innovative, and also she has the depth because first of all, she can dance...
 

Janet: She's sexy... OK... There you go.
 

Jimmy Jam: ...but she's also acting. She's just someone... that I like. I have no idea. I've never talked about this. I'm sure most women coming up, at some point look up what she (Janet) did in her career... but Aaliyah, to me out of everybody is one of the all time. You know what I'm sayin' ...she really tries to set trends.

Craig Seymour: Right, and not just do the same old stuff that everybody else does...
 

Jimmy Jam: It's just fun to watch.

Craig Seymour: You know... It kinda surprises me how quickly her acting career has taken off like... ...we already talked how you set the ground for all the people, but often it means other people get opportunities that you didn't have at that point in your career, you know what I mean... Do you see that at all?  In a way, she's where you were with your Control album, or Rhythm Nation album... She can kinda do all these things...
 

Janet: We were also talking about putting certain things aside... You know... "I'm gonna do that project over that project" and I think that's what actually she's done... She was working on her album, and another film just came up... [...] and she had to put things aside, and move to Australia to work on it. I think it's great though...  that she moves into films. She obviously loves what she's doing. [...]
 

Jimmy Jam: People believe Aaliyah as an actress & want to buy her records, watch her videos, because it's the mentality now... Back then it was [Janet] quits doing "Fame" to do the music career.

Aaliyah & Jimmy Jam, back in 2000. 

(Source – Imogene from Aaliyah.PL Forum)

15/06/2015

Aaliyah: Rare Photo Courtesy of Jonathan Mannion


Since @jonathanmannion doesn’t mind #TeamAaliyah posting this beautiful, rare gem, I have no problem in sharing this picture now. Enjoy my lovelies! :o)

11/06/2015

Aaliyah Archives News: J-Dub Shares His Memories of Aaliyah & the Making of 'Steady Ground' ft. Static Major

 

A huge thank you to J-Dub, one of the producers on the red album who posted this beautiful throwback memory for all of #TeamAaliyah via his Instagram page. This is much appreciated beyond words. I love hearing about these personal, fond memories since they give us more of a deeper connection towards the song and the artist. Enjoy! :o)

J-Dub: "We recorded this song in LA at Enterprise Studios. My engineer at the time lost Aaliyah's background vocals. Back then we cut on 2 inch reels no protools. This song was suppose to be her single. Aaliyah was so disappointed that she couldn't cut the vocals over. This is a big song vocally to sing and it was some challenging vocal sessions. Back then no auto tune either so you had to be on point. In hindsight I believe everything happens for a reason. Now the song is a duet featuring Static Major (RIH) who wrote the song and demoed it. I remixed it a little and it still sounds fresh. Music allows you to live forever long after you're gone. Thankful and so blessed I had the chance to produce one of the sweetest spirits and artists ever to do it in my generation. And to work with one of the most talented writers I've ever worked with Static Major. May they both RIH and I know they're smiling down on me about this one. It was never released commercially, but since I still have the files I'll share it with the world. Enjoy!!! & this is my #TBT #Aaliyah #StaticMajor #SteadyGround #LA #EnterpriseStudios #EpicSession #Legends #MusicHistory #ItsAllGod #ThankfulForTheGift #DUBZWORLD #DubzworldProductionz #GodIsTheGreatest"


A video posted by J Dub (@dubzworld) on

Aaliyah: Rare Photo


Repost via @joelgarda: “#wcw with this angel. We were discouraged from asking celebs for pix backstage because the area was to be somewhat of a sanctuary for them but she welcomed me into this shot and was the gracious young artist you hope they all are. Rest in paradise Aaliyah… #kmelsummerjam #concordpavillion #Aaliyah thanks for digging this pic out @shortguyshow” | Thank you for sharing this picture and memory of Aaliyah with us all! :o)

Aaliyah Archives: News


Sorry for not posting as much everyone! Been so busy lately! :( I was meant to post this particular post awhile ago, so for those who are unaware, this one is especially for you! ;) Since I like to keep everyone updated on all the relevant news regarding our beloved Babygirl. Around late May time, Jonathan Mannion happened to gift an original portrait from one of his photoshoots (shown above) to Drake, who we all know is an avid admirer of Aaliyah in his own 'unique' way. Here's what Mannion had to say, courtesy of bet.com who I happened to find this information from :o)

Jonathan Mannion: "Everything that everyone always says about Aaliyah is 100% true," Mannion said of working with Baby Girl on her last shoot. "She was such an angel, her team was amazing. That was a gift of my career. People ask me what my favorite photoshoot was of all time — it's either Jay Z because it started my career with Reasonable Doubt or Aaliyah because nobody got her quite like I did." There is also a secret stash of photos from that shoot. "I did ten shots with her, so there's things that nobody's ever seen," he adds. "They're protected."

"I knew Drake had a tattoo of Aaliyah on his back," Mannion explained. "I wanted to do something for him because he's had such a run, and I feel like he really changed music. I knew he loved [Aaliyah] and that was a really big part of him doing what he was doing." Mannion sent Drake a massive print of Aaliyah from that final shoot to decorate his bare walls. "I went to his house and was like, 'You got some empty wall space.' He was printing things that he liked but like photocopying them and hanging them up." Mannion wanted to change that. "I said, 'Yo you need originals. You've gotta start buying art. You're that guy now. We are looking to you to be a patron of the arts, so I'm gonna kick it off."

He sent Drake the Aaliyah portrait of her leaning against a car with flames on the side. A few months later, the two reconnected at a club in Los Angeles. "He just came up and he hugged me," Mannion recalls. "That's what the f**k I'm talkin' about. It was so much better than a phone call."

(Source – bet.com)

I thought this was a very kind gesture from Mannion, proving that good people do still exist in today's world. I'm sure Drake will take very good care of it. :o)

04/06/2015

Aaliyah: Rare Photo Courtesy of Marc Baptiste


Repost via @marcbaptiste007 “#TBT #beauty by #marcbaptiste #blackandwhite #portraits #music @artmixcreates #photography happy #THURSDAY #aaliyah” | Thank you so much for sharing! This is just life! :D