In addition to the big announcement about Aaliyah’s music coming to streaming services, it was also revealed that a new album is in the works.
In his Billboard interview, Aaliyah’s uncle, Blackground Records founder Barry Hankerson, shared plans to release a posthumous album from Aaliyah featuring new music.
While a release date has yet to be announced, Hankerson has been putting in long hours to complete the project, which is said to include features from Drake, Future, Ne-Yo, Chris Brown, and Snoop Dogg. Timbaland has remixed and produced some of the music, while Tank has also offered to lend his services.
“It has been really nice,” Hankerson said of the new recordings. “The only part that has been a little distasteful has been so many people being angry with me because the music didn’t come out when they wanted it. But I learned to live with that. There’s nothing I can do about it.”
There were previous plans for a posthumous Aaliyah album, helmed by Drake. Back in 2012, the Toronto MC announced that he and his producer Noah “40” Shebib had been tapped by Blackground to produce the ill-fated project, which was met with a mixed response.
“I don’t know. I think the press got out of hand and they maybe had a different vision for it or something,” Drake said during a 2013 CRWN interview. “It was sounding great to me. Whatever they end up doing with it, I wish them the best of luck.”
Twenty years after her death, Aaliyah’s catalog will finally be available on streaming services for the first time as part of Blackground’s new partnership with independent distributor EMPIRE.
Aaliyah’s discography will roll out over the course of two months, starting with One in a Million on Aug. 20. On Sept. 3, the Romeo Must Die soundtrack will arrive, followed by Aaliyah’s third self-titled album on Sept. 10. Two Aaliyah compilations, I Care 4 U and Ultimate Aaliyah, will be released on Oct. 8.