One In A Million Aaliyah

[Gaby Zenz]

One in a Million is the second studio album by American singer Aaliyah. It was released on August 13, 1996, by Blackground Records and Atlantic Records. After facing allegations of an illegal marriage with her mentor R. Kelly following the success of her debut studio album, Age Ain't Nothing but a Number (1994), Aaliyah severed all ties with him as Blackground ended its partnership with Jive Records and signed a new distribution deal with Atlantic. Throughout that period of turmoil, Aaliyah began recording her second studio album with Sean Combs, who soon abandoned the project, prompting Aaliyah and her management to seek new collaborators. She subsequently began recording with producers such as Jermaine Dupri, Vincent Herbert, and Craig King, before meeting the previously unknown Timbaland and Missy Elliott, who quickly became the album's primary contributors.

One in a Million is an R&B, pop, and hip hop record experimenting with genres such as trip-hop, electronica, funk, and jungle music. Its lyrical themes predominantly address relationship circumstances, such as commitment, abstinence, and heartbreak. Upon its release, the album garnered generally positive reviews from music critics, mostly directed towards the innovative production and Aaliyah's progressed vocal performance. It debuted at number 20 on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 40,500 copies, before reaching number 18. Internationally, One in a Million peaked within the top 40 in Canada, Japan, and the UK. In June 1997, the album was certified double platinum in the US by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). By 2011, it had sold over three million copies domestically and eight million worldwide.

Production for One in a Million dates back to August 1995, when Billboard reported Aaliyah was starting work on a new album; initially, it was slated for an early 1996 release and was to be produced by Sean Combs, J. Dibbs, and Dave Hall.[18] The album was executive produced by Atlantic Records' then-executive vice president Craig Kallman,[a] Hankerson, and Aaliyah's father and manager Michael Haughton.[21] While speaking with Billboard about its development, Atlantic Records' product development director Eddie Santiago mentioned: "We wanted Aaliyah to keep growing, so we didn't want to have the same suspects on her new project".[16] In the same interview, Aaliyah discussed the record's direction: "I wanted to maintain my smooth street musical image but wanted to be funky and hot yet sophisticated".[16] With One in a Million, Aaliyah became more involved with crafting the material by taking co-writing credits and assisting in the creative direction.[16] Of the original producers enlisted for the album, Dibbs' songwriting and production effort "Giving You More" was included on the final track listing.[21] contributions from the likes of Hall never materialized, and she recorded songs with Combs at his studio in Trinidad for a week but their collaborative material was never finished as Aaliyah abandoned her session with Combs in favor of recording with Dupri in Atlanta.[13] "I Gotcha' Back" was the sole track created during sessions with Dupri to be included on One in a Million; it was written and produced by Dupri and Carl-So-Lowe within "three to four days".[22]

Aaliyah and Kallman promptly concluded it was important to find innovative producers who were not widely known to produce One in a Million, as the ultimate goal was to find Aaliyah her individual, artistry-defining sound. Kallman therefore started meeting with numerous obscure songwriters and producers including Timbaland. Kallman said that the point of their meeting became obvious when Timbaland first played beats: "This doesn't sound like anything that's out there and really had its own super exciting and electric, 'just dynamic properties.'"[22] Previously, Atlantic had received a demo from him and Missy Elliott, titled "Sugar and Spice". The label felt the track was too juvenile lyrically but enjoyed its structure and melody, hence it was sent to Aaliyah, who was impressed. Consequently, Timbaland and Elliott were flown to Detroit to work with her.[25] Prior to Aaliyah meeting Timbaland and Elliot, she spoke with them over the phone and explained the musical direction that she wanted to pursue.[13] During her initial meeting with the duo, Aaliyah said they were skeptical about if she would like their work, ultimately she did as she thought it was "different" and "unique".[13] Thereupon, the trio spent a week recording at the Vanguard Studios, with the first songs recorded being the title track and "If Your Girl Only Knew", before flying to Ithaca, New York to record at the Pyramid Studios.[13] As primary collaborators on One in a Million, Timbaland and Elliott contributed to nine out of 17 tracks on the final track listing, providing ad-libs and rap vocals on their tracks in addition to songwriting and production.[21]

In critical commentaries, One in a Million is classified as predominantly an R&B, pop, and hip hop record.[26][27] According to Micha Frazer-Carroll from The Independent, it "had a bold, expansive vision, with tracks effortlessly bouncing from trip-hop to sensual slow jams to jungle beats".[28] BET described the album as "a unique fusion of R&B, hip-hop, and electronic beats that was light-years ahead of its time".[29] The album opens with the jungle-inspired intro "Beats 4 Da Streets", on which Elliott invites Aaliyah and the listeners into "the new world of funk", as echoing amid bells, blippy synths, and heavy bass are heard in the background.[30][31][12]The trip hop track "Hot Like Fire" was described as a suggestive-themed "panting, minimalist controlled-blaze baby-maker".[32][12][33] On "Hot Like Fire", Aaliyah makes a promise to her new lover "that his patience will be rewarded".[34] The album's title track is an ethereal club ballad with "seductive" trip hop, funk, electronica, and drum and bass influences.[35][36][31] It incorporates "shimmering" synths and cricket noises within its instrumentation.[37] Lyrically, the song sees Aaliyah expressing affection and devotion to her partner.[38]

"A Girl Like You" has a "standard 90s boom bap beat", on which Aaliyah "holds her own" against featured rapper Treach from Naughty by Nature.[35][12] During the chorus, Aaliyah and Treach engage in a "cute back-and-forth".[34] The fifth track "If Your Girl Only Knew" is a funk, pop, and hip hop song described by Connie Johnson from the Los Angeles Times as "teasingly witchy".[40][41][42][43] On the track, Aaliyah "chide[s] a man for hitting on her when he already has a girlfriend",[40] against heavy keyboard and organ instrumentation interspersed with live drums and a thumping bassline.[16] The sixth and seventh tracks "Choosey Lover (Old School/New School)" and "Got to Give It Up" are both covers, of songs originally performed by the Isley Brothers and Gaye, respectively.[16] The former "mimics the 1983 original faithfully" for the first four minutes before transitioning into a contemporary-styled remix outro.[35] On the latter, Aaliyah places her falsetto "toe to toe against the liquid overlapping rhyme scheme of hip hop's ultimate storyteller Slick Rick".[44] On "4 Page Letter", Aaliyah tells her "crush to keep an eye out for the mailman" because she has sent him a love letter, while recalling and following her parents' advice.[12][38]

Dean Van Nguyen from The Independent described the ninth track "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" as a "carefree anthem for the summertime block party".[30] Subsequent tracks "Giving You More" and the Tavarius Polk-assisted duet "Never Givin' Up" lyrically see Aaliyah portraying a "reassuring lover".[12] "I Gotcha' Back" is a "jeep-friendly" mid-tempo G-funk song containing an interpolation of "Lean on Me" by Bill Withers.[12][33][34] The track showcases Aaliyah promising devotion to her potential boyfriend: "When no one else is there / With me you can chill".[33][34] The jungle-inspired ballad "Heartbroken" features drums that fill out space in between the low, shifting two-tone synth hums.[31][33][34] Like its successor "Never Comin' Back", it depicts Aaliyah opposing a negligent lover.[34][38] The latter features Timbaland "aping the sound of a live band vamping on a laid back groove" as Aaliyah performs a "call-and-response harmony routine with an imaginary concert audience over canned crowd noise".[35] "The One I Gave My Heart To" is a pop-R&B power ballad highlighting the protagonist's vulnerability over heartbreak and betrayal.[45][34]

The cover artwork and overall packaging for One in a Million were photographed by Marc Baptiste, who had previously photographed Aaliyah's cover shoot for Seventeen. After the Seventeen shoot, the two crossed paths again, after mutual friend Kidada Jones introduced them at The Mercer Hotel.[22] A month later, they met to discuss possible concepts for the artwork and after hearing his ideas, Aaliyah decided that she wanted to work with him.[22] The 14-hour photo shoot for One in a Million occurred at various locations throughout New York City, with the cover itself being photographed at the Canal Street station late into the session.[22] Baptiste wanted the concept for the artwork to have a "street-chic vibe", as he wanted Aaliyah to have realism and be "more approachable to an audience".[22] The finished product saw Aaliyah staring down the camera, while wearing a power jacket and silver-rimmed glasses. [46]

Throughout the promotional cycle for One in a Million, Aaliyah adapted a more mature and feminine image as opposed to her previous tomboy style, a switch quickly noticed by the public.[47][48] She incorporated slimmer garments, such as bra tops, into her style alongside her signature "sweeping deep-parted bang" hairstyle, which heavily contrasted the loose-fitting, baggy and masculine clothing she sported while promoting Age Ain't Nothing but a Number.[48] Furthermore, she became the face of Tommy Hilfiger's Tommy Jeans advertising campaign upon the release of One in a Million, and frequently wore the label's clothing items while promoting the album.[49] In an April 1997 article discussing the music video for "One in a Million", MTV staff felt that Aaliyah was getting "all grown up and steamy in the video", to which Aaliyah responded by stating: "[As] far as it being sexy, I would prefer to say sensual. Sensual is being in tune with your sensual self. Sexy, I mean that's in the eye of the beholder, such as beauty is in the eye of the beholder."[47]

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