It’s been nearly two decades since the hip-hop world lost its Princess of R&B, better known as Aaliyah Dana Haughton. The singer, along with eight other passengers, perished in a tragic plane crash shortly after takeoff–the aircraft was significantly over packed. The 22-year-old and her team were shooting a music video in the Bahamas for the songstress’ third and final self-titled album, “Aaliyah,” when she died. 

Prior to her death, Aaliyah was romantically involved with Roc-A-Fella Records co-founder Damon Dash — the late star’s only-confirmed boyfriend. Recently, the industry veteran sat down with “Entertainment Tonight,” where he revealed some shocking details about his former girlfriend’s untimely passing and why it caused him to grow angry at industry peer Hype Williams — the last director to work with the “Romeo Must Die” star. 

Singer Aaliyah (1979 – 2001) and Damon Dash (b.1971) attend the premiere of ‘Planet of the Apes’ at the Zeigfeld Theatre in New York, 2001. (Photo by Steve Eichner/Getty Images)

The music executive told “Entertainment Tonight” host Kevin Frazier that prior to the singer going to the Caribbean island, the two met up in Miami, where Aaliyah was shooting a music video. Dash allegedly warned Aaliyah that Hype would try to sneak in an extra few hours of filming and advised her to decline, citing, “it’s just so he can spend money.” Soon after, Dash said just as he thought that Williams eventually added more time to their schedule. The businessman said he also communicated with the actress at the time, who had a severe fear of flying.  

“When she actually saw the plane… She said, ‘I don’t like this plane.’ I was like, ‘Well, don’t get on it.’ She was like, ‘Well, I got to because I got work to do,’ ” Dash said. “She got on the plane, and she always had a very serious fear of planes in general, so she had to overcome a fear to get on that plane on the way there.” 

He added that he became furious when he later learned there was another plane option, but Williams allegedly had boarded it instead. “But what I was really more tight about was that I had heard that Lenny Kravitz had offered her a jet and that Hype had took the jet. So, that’s what really pissed me off about the situation when I heard about that. You can ask Hype about that.”

It’s apparent that Dash is still battling with the star’s tragic death. “There hasn’t been one day since she’s passed, not one, in 20 years, that I haven’t heard her name, heard her record, or seen a picture of her. Every single day she’s present in my life, and I feel lucky for that,” he explained. 

As for his relationship with Williams: He said the two spoke, but he didn’t offer many details regarding their discussion. Instead, he told Frazier to “ask him.” He added, “Because of my respect for Aaliyah and her family … Everyone’s respectful of her memory. No one really speaks on it … So in respect for her memory, I don’t say a lot of things.”