Aaliyah: One in a Million

"On an average day for Da Bassment crew at Dajhelon Studios in Rochester, New York, you might have found Ginuwine in one room tinkering with a track you'd recognize as his horndog classic "Pony." In the next area, Tweet, nearly a decade before "Call Me" hit BET, recording demos with her girl group, Sugah. Down the hall, Static Major collecting the scraps that would turn into Playa's Cheers 2 U, the if-you-know-you-know '90s R&B gem."

"and Missy, with her R&B group Fayze (later renamed Sista), snuck backstage and sang their song "First Move" for DeVanté. Impressed-and eager to follow in the footsteps of Berry Gordy's Motown or Andre Harrell's Uptown Records-he offered to sign them to his newly formed Swing Mob clique. Missy, who had cut her teeth at the makeshift studio in Timbaland's Norfolk, Virginia bedroom, said she would only go if her boy who makes their beats was"

Aaliyah's second LP emerged from dire circumstances paired with extraordinary creative chemistry inside DeVanté Swing's Da Bassment collective. DeVanté ran a 24/7 writing camp at Dajhelon Studios in Rochester that gathered hungry musicians and songwriters from across the country. Ginuwine worked on "Pony," Tweet recorded early demos with Sugah, and Static Major compiled scraps that became Playa material. Missy Elliott repeatedly won DeVanté's songwriting competitions, and Timbaland absorbed DeVanté's madman fusion of gospel, gangsta rap, and new jack swing. DeVanté aimed to sign Missy and her crew to his Swing Mob, with Missy insisting that her producer be included.

Read at Pitchfork