Aaliyah's Last Photoshoot: Jonathan Mannion Reflects On The Experience

BYCole Blake18.5K Views
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Jonathan Mannion
"It was like hearing an angelic voice."

Jonathan Mannion was the last photographer to work with Aaliyah before her death in 2001. He’s one of the best photographers in the game, having shot over 300 album covers and worked with Jay-Z, Dr. Dre, Aaliyah, Outkast, Kendrick Lamar and more.

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Mannion recently ran into Page Six at “Moët & Chandon: Nectar of the Culture,” where he spoke about having vivid memories of the time they worked together.

“I had to do 10 shots in four hours. She would say let’s have a moment of singing and she would belt out some tunes, so it was like hearing an angelic voice,” he told Page Six on Tuesday.

“It was a relentless pace. She was charming, elegant and graceful all the way through. There is star power, and then there is something else. I really think she is the definition of grace and elegance.”

Mannion was hired to shoot Aaliyah for promotion on her self-titled album. The R&B star passed during a plane crash only a month after the project’s release. She was in the process of filming a music video for her single “Rock the Boat.” 

To this day, Aaliyah is still regarded as one of the best R&B singers of all time. 


About The Author
Cole Blake is a current staff writer at HotNewHipHop based out of New York City. He began writing for the site as an intern back in 2018 while finishing his B.A. in Journalism at St. John’s University. In the time since, he’s covered a number of breaking stories for HNHH. These include the ongoing YSL RICO trial, the allegations surrounding Diddy, and much more. His work also extends outside of hip-hop, having written extensively about a myriad of topics including politics, sports, and pop culture. He’s attended several music festivals to provide coverage for the site as well, such as Rolling Loud and Governors Ball.
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