Had fate never played its part, Aaliyah Dana Haughton would have been 32 years old – young in the grand scheme of life, yet a savvy veteran in terms of the music industry.  There have been plenty of articles about where her career would have taken her had it not been cut short and at the end of the day they all attempt to answer a question which honestly does not have one.  It’s a complicated situation with an even more complicated answer.

The dope thing about Aaliyah’s legacy, however, is the fact that so many artists are still speak of her talent and the inspiration she was and continues to be. Drake tagged the ghost of the singer for her presence on “Unforgettable” and the end result was the song arguably ranking as the best song on Thank Me Later. Last year on the day of her passing, Drake blogged on his love for Aaliyah and the sadness in her passing.  Months later, J. Cole followed up by remixing Missy and Aaliyah’s “Best Friend” by adding his own vocals for his latest critically acclaimed mixtape Friday Night Lights. Lastly, Rick Ross called upon her presence for his year ending Ashes To Ashes mixtape on the record “She Crazy.”

Her brother Rashad sent out this tweet earlier today as well as write a new poem dedicated to the singer on her beloved birthday. (See the poem in the pictures gallery)

“Making it through this time has had more light than darkness because of my twitfam. Love y’all!”

As long as the trend continues good taste, because that’s who she was for the brief time she graced the world with her talents, artists sampling Aaliyah will continue to only enhance her legacy. So again, this is to remember one of the more legendary singers from this generation. At least for today, it isn’t about reminiscing upon her death. Instead, it will remain about the beauty and impact of her life. People may come and and go, but the beautiful thing about music is that it lasts forever.

Below are rare photos of the singer with the likes of Jay Leno, Celine Dion, The Notorious B.I.G. and more.

After the jump, J. Cole recalls making a beat in 2001 in memory of the singer after being so depressed after learning of her passing & Aaliyah interviews on her 16th birthday at the Apollo .

In 1994, Aaliyah was not your regular 16 year old. She was already a star with hits to her name. With this in mind, she didn’t have a regular “Sweet 16” birthday party either.