Throwbacks: Aaliyah - One in a Million

On August 13, 1996, Blackground and Atlantic Records dropped a project that dragged R&B directly into the future using trip-hop and jungle music. Aaliyah’s second studio album, One in a Million, completely rewired the culture's DNA.

She largely built this record with Timbaland and Missy Elliott, experimenting with electronica and funk while singing about commitment and heartbreak. The industry loves to give the producers the lion's share of the credit for this era, but Aaliyah's vocal instincts are what actually anchor these erratic beats. Without her tone, a track like "If Your Girl Only Knew" is just a weird hip-hop experiment. With her, it's a timeless anthem. Look at the tracklist. She gives us the futuristic pop of the title track, then completely pivots to stretch "Choosey Lover (Old School / New School)" past the seven-minute mark for the old heads. She understood lineage just as well as she understood the avant-garde.

Nobody has touched her blueprint since. Check it out below.