The Roc-A-Fella co-founder claims the 'Empire State of Mind' hitmaker was 'bitter' knowing he was also pursuing the late RnB star before they began dating until her tragic death in August 2001.
- July 22, 2023
AceShowbiz - Dame Dash opened up about the moment when he was competing with Jay-Z in pursuit of Aaliyah. When sharing his story, the Roc-A-Fella co-founder claimed Hov was "bitter" about him winning out with the late R&B singer.
"I didn't look at her like that because she was like a tomboy," the 52-year-old said when appearing on the "That's F**ked Up" podcast. He added, "She was little to me. But then one time, I guess we had the same book keeper, and I walked past… every time I saw her, she looked different. She had different looks every time and I was like, 'Who the f**k is that?' "
"I just threw my A-game and I guess Jay was trying to get at her as well and I didn't know," the record executive continued. "Then it got brought up and I was like, 'F**k both of y'all.' It never worked out for them and we were both trying to get at her. I eased up and then we ran into each other."
Dame went on to note, "Everybody was getting at Aaliyah, bro. She'll go to dinner with a n***a but she wasn't just gonna be smashing." He then stated, "So that was like the big deal - who could get with Aaliyah."
Dame claimed Jay-Z was "sending flowers and doing all that s**t" as he was courting her. However, it came to a head after they "ended up in the same house for 4th of July" in 2000.
"It was like one day it might lean toward him, then it would lean toward me," the music exec explained. "I was just on fire that week. Everything I was saying was funny. I remember coming down after it happened and he was like, 'You know this gonna be hard for me.' His friends were laughing at him and s**t."
Dame and Aaliyah met through having the same accountant in 2000. They eventually began dating until her tragic death in August 2001 due to a plane crash while leaving The Bahamas.
