Can Drake Uphold Aaliyah’s Legacy?

Kids, here’s your urban vocabulary lesson for today.

Stan:  Based on the central character in the Eminem song of the same name, a “stan” is an overzealous maniacal fan for any celebrity or athlete.

Ex: Drake can’t go five minutes without declaring his love for Aaliyah. He stays stanning.

Drake’s infatuation with deceased pop queen Aaliyah has always been…weird, to say the least. I mean look at the pic above – even Aaliyah’s poster looks annoyed by the guy.

Now before we go any further, let me silence my critics because I already hear y’all mumbling. Yes, I’m a huge Keith Sweat stan.

KEEEEEEEEEEF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But my stanliness has NOTHING on Drake. It’s not like a have a Keith tattoo. 

But Drake has one of Aaliyah. Not sure why he thought it made sense to put a woman’s face on his back, but who am I to question a man who hangs out with such luminaries as Icki Garbaj and the living seaweed that is Lil’ Wayne? 

And look, Drake just got another Aaliyah tat!

The “416” is the area code of his hometown Toronto; the bold “116” is Aaliyah’s birthday, January 16.

And people wonder why Drake’s own fans are so eager to get dumb tattoos.

Image via

But I digress. Drake’s latest foray in Aaliyah standom goes beyond permanent ink and into Aaliyah’s forgotten archives. From xxlmag.com:

Reports of Drake taking the helm of a posthumous Aaliyah album have been surfacing for months now, only picking up steam as of late.

Well, after his third-annual OVO Festival in his hometown of Toronto on Sunday (August 5), Drizzy finally confirmed—to T-RexXx of local T-dot media outlet Much Music —that he and his longtime producer Noah “40” Shebib will be working the project for the beloved late singer.

The first single from this project, “Enough Said,” landed earlier this week and reactions from longtime Aaliyah fans were shockingly harsh. Word around the ‘Net (and my inbox) seemed to be that the Aaliyah/Drake collabo sounded too forced and hollow. They thought it was just too stanalicious to be taken seriously.

I have to disagree with the majority mindset (shocking, I know). “Enough Said” isn’t very memorable, but it’s not a bad track, per se. 40’s eerie production is a perfect fit for Aaliyah; that moody melody was – quite literally – made for her. Drake’s verse is tacked-on and unnecessary, but certainly not offensive. 

Here’s the real question: Is King Stan really worthy of taking the helm of a new Aaliyah album? I’m willing to let him take a shot at it.

In about two weeks, we’ll mark the 11th year of Aaliyah’s tragic death. Unlike other deceased music stars whose posthumous work has been beaten into the ground (I’m looking at you, Hologram 2Pac – actually, I’m looking through you…) there has been no new mainstream music from Aaliyah since 2003. Listening to “Enough Said,” and you’ll find her vocals are both familiar and fresh. I welcome more tracks, even though I realize these unreleased outtakes won’t touch her classic material. 

If Stanley decides to move forward with this project, he MUST do it right. There have been conflicting reports about possible input for longtime Aaliyah contributors Missy Elliott and Timbaland. Their input is not optional – they have to be involved if the project is to be taken seriously. Drake also must have the blessing of Aaliyah’s family. In the interview above, Drake claims that he has their approval, but earlier this week on Facebook Aaliyah’s brother said the family had not yet given their blessing. Also, if any of those Young Money mutants dare to appear on the album, it will be a disaster.

Yeah, Drake is a creepy Aaliyah fanboy, but if he uses his stanificent powers for good and resists the urge to hog the limelight, he could craft an album his dream girl would be proud of. If Keith ever passed away (Lord have mercy!) I’d jump at the chance to help create a posthumous album. As an invested fan, I’d do all I could to retain Keith’s original sound and ensure its success. If Drake keeps his ego in check, I bet he could do the same.

This could be the album Aaliyah stans have been waiting for.