Dame Dash Explains How He & Jay-Z Competed Over Aaliyah

BYGabriel Bras Nevares1.7K Views
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Dame Dash Jay Z Aaliyah Competition
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The R&B star was (and still is) the envy of all.

Recently, Dame Dash sat down for an enlightening and at times odd conversation with the That's F***ed Up podcast, going into the Hov and Nas beef and much more. Moreover, that last adjective came into play thanks to a conversation they had around late R&B star Aaliyah. Specifically, the Roc-A-Fella cofounder explained how he and Jay-Z actually fought for her heart at the same time. Sure, many expressed some discomfort at the idea given how young she was, and at the general idea of discussing these things about someone who is no longer with us. However, that aside, it still made for a somewhat comical anecdote, albeit one that has a much darker and more tragic context.

"I didn't look at her like that because she was like a tomboy," Dame Dash began. "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 then, you know, I guess Jay was trying to get at her as well, and I didn't know. It got brought up and I was like 'F**k both of y'all.' But it never worked out for them, and we were both trying to get at her. And I kind of eased up, but then we ran into each other. It's a long story.

Dame Dash Breaks Down Battling With Jay-Z For Aaliyah's Attention

"Everybody was getting at Aaliyah, bro," Dame Dash continued. "She'll go to dinner with a n***a but she wasn't gonna just be smashing. So that was the big deal, like, who can get with Aaliyah." Then, one of the podcast hosts asked whether Hov was bitter about it. "Obviously," he replied. "Yeah, he felt a way. But everybody knows that s**t. Well, they be trying to act like he was really f***ing with her. Nah, he was sending flowers and doing all that s**t, he was courting her. So we were both going hard and we ended up in the same house for 4th of July. So it was, like, one day it might lean towards him then it'll lean towards me.

"But I was just on fire that week," he concluded. "Everything I was saying was funny, you know what I'm saying? I remember coming downstairs and he was like... *sigh*. 'Cause like, you know, his friends were laughing at him and s**t." For more news and the latest updates on Dame Dash and Jay-Z, stick around on HNHH.

About The Author
Gabriel Bras Nevares is a staff writer for HotNewHipHop. He joined HNHH while completing his B.A. in Journalism & Mass Communication at The George Washington University in the summer of 2022. Born and raised in San Juan, Puerto Rico, Gabriel treasures the crossover between his native reggaetón and hip-hop news coverage, such as his review for Bad Bunny’s hometown concert in 2024. But more specifically, he digs for the deeper side of hip-hop conversations, whether that’s the “death” of the genre in 2023, the lyrical and parasocial intricacies of the Kendrick Lamar and Drake battle, or the many moving parts of the Young Thug and YSL RICO case. Beyond engaging and breaking news coverage, Gabriel makes the most out of his concert obsessions, reviewing and recapping festivals like Rolling Loud Miami and Camp Flog Gnaw. He’s also developed a strong editorial voice through album reviews, think-pieces, and interviews with some of the genre’s brightest upstarts and most enduring obscured gems like Homeboy Sandman, Bktherula, Bas, and Devin Malik.
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