T-Rexxx gets some clarification straight from OVO regarding his and 40’s involvement with the upcoming Aaliyah project, and so far it looks like they will be helming this posthumous album.

Personally I feel like the online hate’s a bit premature and knee-jerk. Aaliyah has ALWAYS worked with other producers besides Timbo & Missy on her albums (of which there are only really two ‘Timbo/Missy’ albums – unless you include the “Romeo Must Die” soundtrack). Yes, the “Aaliyah” album is an entirely Timbo/Missy album if you consider the Bassment crew (Static, Tweet, Ginuwine etc. – Tank, by association) an extension of their sound; and without question she’s done her best work with the Timbo/Missy/Bassment team (altho she’s got classic songs, pre-Timbo/Missy/Bassment crew with R. Kelly, and showed she could make great records w/o Timbo/Missy with “I Don’t Wanna”). But it’s also important to note that Timbaland’s sound has changed since his time with Aaliyah; so a pretty solid argument could be made that 40’s style is much more suited to the Aaliyah we love than Timbaland’s current 2012 sound. Still, I’ll say it again: given that (i) 40 is highly influenced by Timbo/Missy, (ii) both 40 and Drake have expressed a genuine admiration for Aaliyah AND Timbo/Missy’s musical legacy, and (iii) 40 and Drake have exhibited a respectable level of diligence with their own production track record, I think we should all just wait till we hear/see more.

All that said, I hope they keep a humble demeanor throughout the PR process for this project.

Previously: NEW MUSIC: Aalyah feat. Drake “Enough Said” (Prod. Noah ’40’ Shebib)