#314 Aaliyah, 'One in a Million' (1996)

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A breakthrough record for Aaliyah, but not just her. This was also the breakthrough for Timbaland as a producer and Missy Elliot as a songwriter. This follows her debut album, ‘Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number,’ which was produced by R. Kelly. Knowing what we know about him now, that title couldn’t be more creepy. The two allegedly got married illegally. After that was annulled, Aaliyah ended her record contract with Jive, left R. Kelly behind and signed to Atlantic Records. The industry saw her as tainted after the scandal and they struggled to find producers for the record… and that’s how they landed up with newcomer, Timbaland. Eventually, they did get a few others on board, but Timbaland produced the bulk of it, along with co-writing the tracks with another newcomer, Missy Elliot. The album didn’t immediately fly out of the gates, but gained momentum as it went, eventually selling 8 million copies worldwide. It was a new sound for Aaliyah, a change from the one-dimensional sound of R. Kelly’s production.

Aaliyah was only 17 years old when this record was released. She would die 5 years later at 22 years old. To be honest, I don’t think we’d even seen the best of her yet. This album is good, but I felt that her vocals were very buried in the production. In that, I mean that she was the vehicle for Timbaland’s production, moreso than he was supporting her vocals. I would have liked to have heard her vocals more front and centre. She does a great cover of Marvin Gaye’s ‘Got To Give It Up’ feat. Slick Rick (sidenote – the original of this song is what ‘Blurred Lines’ was based on). Back to GTGIU – her vocals sound great on this and it was the standout for me. Not surprised to see that it’s one that Timbaland didn’t produce. I think if the album was tightened up a bit and there was more focus on her vocals, I would have enjoyed it a lot more than I did. 

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