Though nothing's official yet, various reports indicate that Zendaya Coleman, formerly of Disney Channel fame, will be cast as the young lead in VH1's Aaliyah biopic. Coleman's career began in Kidz Bop's rendition of Katy Perry's "Hot N Cold" back in 2009. She went on to star in Disney's Shake It Up, a series about two backup dancers, has also appeared on Dancing With The Stars and dropped a self-titled album in September. Its lead single, the fairly innocuous "Replay," garnered more than 50 million views on YouTube and charted at No. 40 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Aaliyah's presence in pop is as strong as ever: rumors of a posthumous album leaked after the release of "Enough Said," a collab with Drake that used Aaliyah's demo vocals, and in June of last year, Aaliyah was used on the hook of Chris Brown's "Don't Think They Know." The VH1 biopic is expected to air in September, and filming is set to begin in a few weeks. For more, revisit The FADER #54 Icon Issue, which examined the life and legacy of one of contemporary R&B's most iconic stars.
