<p id=”par-1_65″>At the end of <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/jay-z/?swcfpc=1″>Aaliyah’s</a> life, she was romantically involved with Damon Dash. The couple had a relatively brief but reportedly intense <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/celebrity-relationships/?swcfpc=1″>relationship</a>; Dash said that within six months they began discussing the possibility of marriage. When he was first pursuing her, though, he was in competition with <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/jay-z/?swcfpc=1″>Jay-Z</a>. Dash said that both he and Jay-Z were working to impress Aaliyah at the same time.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-damon-dash-said-he-and-jay-z-were-both-pursuing-aaliyah-at-the-same-time”>Damon Dash said he and Jay-Z were both pursuing Aaliyah at the same time</h2>
<p id=”par-2_48″>According to Dash, he hadn’t thought much of Aaliyah when they first met. When he began to develop feelings for her, he tried his best to impress her. Unfortunately, he realized he was not the only one in pursuit of her affection. Jay-Z was also interested in Aaliyah.</p>
<p id=”par-3_80″>“I just threw my A-game,” he said on the <em>That’s F***ed Up</em> podcast (via <a target=”_blank” href=”https://www.vibe.com/news/entertainment/dame-dash-jay-z-in-competition-aaliyah-1234774397/” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Vibe Magazine</a>). “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*** 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.” </p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Aaliyah-Jay-Z.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Jay-Z stands with his arm around Aaliyah. They are also with Bijou Phillips and Kidada Jones.” class=”wp-image-3726545″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Jay-Z, Aaliyah, Bijou Phillips, and Kidada Jones | Jeff Vespa/WireImage</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-4_16″>Dash said that Jay-Z wasn’t happy to be competing with him. This didn’t stop him, though.</p>
<p id=”par-5_60″>“Yeah, he felt a way [about me pursuing her]. But everybody knows that s***,” Dash said. “They be trying to act like he was really f***ing with her. Nah, he was sending flowers and doing all that s***, he was courting her. So we were both going hard and we ended up in the same house for 4th of July.”</p>
<p id=”par-6_24″>For a while, Dash said Aaliyah seemed equally interested in both of them. During the 4th of July trip, though, he won her over.</p>
<p id=”par-7_36″>“It was, like, one day [Aaliyah] might lean towards him then it’ll lean towards me,” he said. “But I was just on fire that week. Everything I was saying was funny, you know what I’m saying?”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-aaliyah-denied-dating-both-jay-z-and-damon-dash”>Aaliyah denied dating both Jay-Z and Damon Dash</h2>
<p id=”par-8_38″>While Aaliyah and Dash were together in the time before her 2001 death, she denied their romantic connection. She liked to keep her private life fully private, and simply referred to him as a close friend in interviews.</p>
<p id=”par-9_68″>“I think rumors are hilarious,” she told <a target=”_blank” href=”https://www.vibe.com/features/editorial/aaliyah-august-2001-cover-story-what-lies-beneath-682260/” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Vibe Magazine</a> in 2001. “I don’t pay any attention. It goes in one ear and out the other. When you’re in the business, you hang out with people, and people are like, ‘I wonder, are they seeing each other?’ I never dated Jay. I never dated Ginuwine. Damon and I are very good friends. I’ll keep it at that right now.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-damon-dash-spoke-about-their-relationship-after-her-death”>Damon Dash spoke about their relationship after her death</h2>
<p id=”par-10_26″>Dash said he greatly valued the time he had with Aaliyah. In the years since her death, he said he has thought of her every day.</p>
<p id=”par-11_52″>“I was reflecting [that] there hasn’t been one day since she’s passed, not one in the 20 years, that I haven’t either heard her name, heard her record, or seen a picture of her,” he told <a target=”_blank” href=”https://www.etonline.com/damon-dash-reflects-on-aaliyahs-legacy-on-the-anniversary-of-her-death-exclusive-170913″ rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Entertainment Tonight</a>. “Every single day she’s present in my life and I feel lucky for that.”</p>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-2″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Aaliyah-DamonDash.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Aaliyah and Damon Dash sit at a table together. She wears a black shirt and he wears a white shirt.” class=”wp-image-3726546″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Aaliyah and Damon Dash | Kevin Kane/WireImage</figcaption></figure>
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<p id=”par-12_19″>When he hears her songs, he feels that she is directly reaching out to him from beyond the grave.</p>
<p id=”par-13_64″>“They’re signs to me, it means she’s talking to me,” he said. “You know, because sometimes things will come on and people will say her name in other songs when I’m bringing her up, or [say] that she’s a living angel — now she’s an angel for real. So, you know, she looks out for the people that she loves, that’s how I feel.”</p>