Aaliyah has become a trending topic in the United States on Twitter, as the social media platform has been flooded with memories of the late singer. Today would have been Aaliyah’s 39th birthday, and fans and celebrities alike are remembering “baby girl” on social media.
Aaliyah died in a horrific plane crash on August 15, 2001. The singer had finished filming the music video for her smash hit, “Rock the Boat,” in the Bahamas and was heading back to Florida. The plane crashed shortly after takeoff and killed all nine people on board. She was 22-years-old when she died.
The music industry was shaken by the passing of one of their greatest talents, and fans mourned the singer alongside some of her famous friends like Missy Elliot, Puff Daddy, and Timbaland.
There have been over 79,000 tweets dedicated to Aaliyah, with fans posting photos and music videos of the singer.
“Happy birthday to the Princess of R&B you are truly missed,” one user tweeted .
Many fans noted Aaliyah’s beauty while guessing how beautiful she would look today if she was still here.
“She would’ve been 39 today & i can 110% GURANTEE [sic] you that she would not look it had she still physically been here,” another fan admitted .
One of the most touching posts dedicated to Aaliyah came from her best friend and collaborator Missy Elliot. The rapper shared a collage of photos alongside her friend, tagged to a lengthy caption where she admitted how much she missed her girl. Missy’s dedication tweet was liked over 10,000 times and had fans sharing their favorite moments of Aaliyah in the reply section.
Aaliyah so many people ?? your Style & Music! I wish they all got a chance to meet you to see how CARING you were to EVERYONE you met! I CAN STILL HEAR YOU LAUGH & me you @Timbaland joking?we MISS YOU so much but I know you are surrounded by ANGELS 4 your BDAY??? WE LOVE U pic.twitter.com/18SCsTF3Fz
— Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) January 16, 2018
Notorious music producer Timbaland also shared a short, but sweet, dedication to Aaliyah on Twitter. “Happy Born Day,” he captioned the tweet with a photo of the singer. Timbaland co-wrote Aaliyah’s smash hit, “Are You That Somebody,” in addition to producing “More Than A Woman” and “One in a Million,” which was written by Missy Elliot.
Happy Born Day!!! ? #rip #babygirl #aaliyah pic.twitter.com/j6z0dn6NcE
— Timbaland (@Timbaland) January 16, 2018
Aaliyah’s self-titled and third studio album hit number one on the Billboard charts and went two times platinum. In addition to music, Aaliyah was also known for her budding acting career. The actress starred in Queen of the Damned and in Romeo Must Die alongside Jet Li.