Aaliyah consists of Aaliyah Dani.
For the Jewish cultural concept see Aliyah.
Aaliyah Dana Haughton ( January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001), better known simply as her stage name Aaliyah, was an American R&B singer, dancer, fashion model and actress. Introduced to audiences by R&B singer R. Kelly, Aaliyah became famous in her own right during the mid-1990s with several hit records from the songwriting/production team of Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott and Timbaland, and their associate Steve "Static" Garrett.
Aaliyah (Ah-Lee-Yah) was born in Brooklyn, New York to Michael and Diane Haughton. Her name is Arabic for the highest, most exalted one, the best. She grew up in Detroit, Michigan where she attended various schools including the Detroit High School for Fine and Performing Arts. Aaliyah signed with her uncle Barry Hankerson's Blackground label in 1993 and released her debut album, titled Age Ain't Nothing but a Number, in 1994. The album reached platinum status within months, and featured the gold-selling singles "Back and Forth" (number one U.S. R&B, 3 weeks), and "At Your Best (You Are Love)" (number two U.S. R&B), a cover of the 1976 Isley Brothers single. The album went on to reach double platinum status with sales of over two million copies in the U.S. and five million worldwide.
It was revealed that in 1994, when she was 15, she was married to R&B singer/songwriter R. Kelly, the producer of Age Ain't Nothing but a Number. VIBE magazine in 1995 published a copy of their marriage certificate and claimed Aaliyah had falsified her age as 18 so she and Kelly could be married. Neither agreed or denied the accusations. Both parties had the marriage quickly annulled when the press found out about the union. R. Kelly did not work on any of Aaliyah's future recordings.