Aaliyah Biopic: The industry reacts (and not in a good way)

The heavily-documented Aaliyah biopic Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B has aired on US TV, and the industry have been heavy on the criticism, with many calling that the made-for-TV movie shouldn’t have been crafted in the first place. As an example, fans disgust at the programme led to #LifetimeDisrespectsAaliyah trending online during the screening.

We had a watch earlier today, and unfortunately we agree with most of the commentary (you can watch it and read our thoughts, here).

Below are just some of the multitude of reactions from across the music industry… we’re recommend the producers of the movie stop reading now, this really won’t paint the programme in a good light whatsoever:

TIMBALAND

Out of the whole industry, it’s Timbaland’s reaction that is perhaps the most necessary. As one of Aaliyah’s closest friends, and her producer, his reaction to the biopic paints more than a thousand words, essentially calling it “bullshit”.

THE FADER

We massively-respect The Fader, so much so that it’s one of the few music sites out there that we cite as our influence on launching Stagedoor FM, which is why we pretty-much appreciate almost every article they write.

The Fader gave Aaliyah: The Princess of R&B a scathing review yesterday, saying that it was a “TV movie that nobody asked for and nobody wants to see”, concluding that “Lifetime [the TV channel that aired the movie] and the producers’ use of a deceased pop luminary’s image and backstory to attempt gaining notoriety and, ultimately, high ratings is the truest, saddest tragedy sitting in the center of this film’s frigid, banal heart.”

Head over to their full in-depth analysis, here.

TWITTER REACTIONS

Here’s just some of the strongest reactions we’ve seen from a UK-industry perspective.

You can watch the full movie below, and as always, let us know your thoughts.

ALTERNATIVE LINK