Aaliyah has been quite the hot topic for the last week.
In addition to fan tributes from around the world pouring in to commemorate the 20th anniversary of her untimely passing, the late R&B singer’s penultimate studio album – ‘One in a Million’ – was finally released to streaming outlets by her record label, Blackground Records.
The imprint’s CEO Barry Hankerson – despite objection from Aaliyah’s estate – is not only moving forward with the release of her entire catalog to streaming platforms, but he is also working on her first posthumous LP (which will reportedly feature Chris Brown, Future, Drake, and many more of today’s hitmakers).
Those topics and many more were among the talking points Hankerson addressed when he visited ‘The Rickey Smiley Morning Show’ earlier this week.
Hop inside to see what he had to say about the R. Kelly trial, why Aaliyah’s music has been held from digital outlets for so long, and so much more.
HANKERSON ON WHY HE IS FINALLY RELEASING AALIYAH’S MUSIC TO STREAMING:
“I had never decided for it not to be out. It was just circumstances,” he said. “Streaming has been devastating to artists, small labels, and independent labels because you’re literally not making enough money to stay in business. So, we decided to pull back on our music to try to figure out a way to survive.”
Barry went on to elaborate on how the decision to ‘pull back’ became strategic as it created a demand that allowed for him to make ‘better deals’ for distribution.
HANKERSON REMEMBERS AALIYAH 20 YEARS AFTER HER PASSING:
“She was so sweet and so considerate and she loved to sing,” he said before adding that he can’t speak about her too long without crying.
HANKERSON ON WHEN HE FIRST DISCOVERED AALIYAH’S RELATIONSHIP WITH R.KELLY:
“To be very honest with you, of course, I was upset. I had to really, really consider what my actions would be,” he said. “And really I found out, I wasn’t a hardcore criminal. I couldn’t kill nobody. So, I took it, I’m a Muslim, and I went to Minster Farrakhan and we just prayed about it, resolved ourselves to let God handle him. I think that’s what’s going on. Ain’t no sense in two lives getting destroyed.”
HANKERSON ON IF HE’S KEEPING UP WITH KELLY’S CURRENT TRIAL:
“I just put a wall up to that. It’s just too emotional for me. It just brings back too many bad thoughts for my whole family. He impacted my whole family, you know. It’s just a bad thing.”
![Stream: 'Mufasa: The Lion King [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]'](https://thatgrapejuice.net/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/mufasa-movie-soundtrack-tgj-1-464x260.png "Stream: 'Mufasa: The Lion King [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]'.")
Farrakhan? really? disgusting
Why are you not talking about Aaliyah’s mother and brother? Why don’t you give them what they deserve?
Why are you using the only recordings left from her without the approval of her mother and brother? and why you attaching those artists to this recordings Is it all just business for you?
go back to Farrakhan with your immoral mind, Show Me Your Friends, I’ll Tell You Who You Are. 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮
What exactly do they deserve. I never understood this concept that family members deserve anything that is not in a will. Aaliyahs brother nor mom wrote or produced a single song or put financial investments into Aaliyah so what exactly are they suppose to get? If Aaliyah left money in her own bank account that goes to them, sure. But record labels are not going to just hand over money to a family because an artist dies. In this case the artist didn’t own the rights to the music, so that’s that.
This man is primarily responsible for her death. He is the one who chose to save money on a plane that could not hold all the crew and all the equipment that was inside it. He’s the one who was in charge of the collaboration with R. Kelly, do you think he did not know what R. Kelly was doing?
Elia has rights to her music even if she did not write the songs she is the singer! Sometimes you have to be moral and not just think about money !!! Her mom and her brother have gone through too much all these years for them to use the remnants of her music in such a disgusting way.
Aaliyah!!!!
Was she pregnant
Was she cream pied by R.Kelly? 💅🏿 I bet that feels so good
Stop responding to me
Diva does whatever she wants & does it better 💅🏿💅🏿💅🏿 If you don’t like it, f u c k U 🖕🏻🖕🏻🖕🏻
This old saggy dinosaur knows he won’t live that long so it’s time to milk Aaliyah‘s ghost t I t s💅🏿
He can answer everything but if she was pregnant was her body after baby cause he not saying everything
i would never let him get away with an interview and not ask him about what he did to JoJo. Swine.
Okay hes not a hard-core criminal wtf?? I mean thats family There’s other ways to save your niece from s** predator than just to look the other way and do nothing. And what makes him think Aaliyah fans want all these collabos on her new music like I’m good with just her
Okay hes not a hard-core criminal wtf?? I mean thats family There’s other ways to save your niece from s** predator than just to look the other way and do nothing. And what makes him think Aaliyah fans want these collabos on her new music? like I’m good with just her and only her
Sleazy old man.