The Ethics of Releasing Posthumous Work: Aaliyah, Michael Jackson, Prince, and More

Tomorrow, a new single by Aaliyah and The Weeknd – titled ‘Poison’ will be released to the masses. Yes, the same Aaliyah who passed away in 2001 following an unfortunate plane crash. As jarring as it is to think about listening to new music by deceased artists, posthumous works do not come as a surprise anymore; what with the multiple albums and songs put out by late artists like Michael Jackson, Prince, Tupac, David Bowie, Mac Miller, and more after their deaths.

The news follows Aaliyah’s late introduction into the world of streaming services this year – with her three already-released albums finally adding onto the online database of music by Blackground Records 2.0 (founded by the singer’s uncle Barry Hankerson). On top of that, Hankerson and Blackground Records 2.0 are set to put out an album of unreleased Aaliyah songs featuring current popular R&B artists like The Weeknd, Drake, Future, and Chris Brown soon. However, this may not be entirely good news when considering the ethics behind the move.

It all comes down to profit and branding at the end of the day. The sad truth is that artists like Aaliyah did not and will never have complete control over the work they put out. And ultimately, their names have been reduced to a brand for others to exploit – especially after death.

In Aaliyah’s case, Hankerson remains the owner of the rights of a majority of the singer’s masters and has even kept them off streaming services in the years before this one. Ever since Aaliyah’s introduction to streaming services, Hankerson (and Blackground) have been hit by lawsuits from the Estate of Aaliyah Haughton – arguing that they had not been made aware of the decision to release her music via streaming services and that they were entitled to know the “full account of (Blackground’s) earnings.” Their lawyer also recounted the Estate’s statement, saying that they have endured “shadowy tactics of deception with unauthorized projects targeted to tarnish,” regarding Aaliyah’s music. 

This is also not the first time Hankerson has had a run-in with artists fighting for the rights to own their music – with the record company releasing old Toni Braxton and JoJo albums to stream without their consent. But, we digress. The truth of the matter is, neither Aaliyah nor her family has full ownership over her music after death. Unlike artists like Taylor Swift who have had similar run-ins with copyright problems with their ex-record labels and could actually do something about it, Aaliyah does not have the opportunity to fight for hers.

When it comes to the ethics of posthumous output in general, there are many things to consider. How aware are you of the corporations profiting off artists and does it make you uncomfortable now that you know? Who ultimately gets the profits? Have these late artists explicitly consented to having their unreleased (and often, incomplete) works published for the masses? It varies from person to person, case by case.

Take rapper Mac Miller, for example. His album ‘Circles’ was released posthumously in 2020 with permission from his family, citing that the album was already close to completion before his death in 2018. It makes listeners feel better knowing that this was a piece of work that Miller had already intended to put out and that the people closest to him are supportive of sharing it with the world. 

However, when it comes to artists like Aaliyah, Michael Jackson, Prince, Tupac, Kurt Cobain, and many others, morals are brought into question because no one knows for sure if these greats have ever consented to publish their demos after death.

The same issue goes for ‘80s legend Prince, with the release of his EP ‘Deliverance’ by Ian Boxill in 2017, on the anniversary of his death. For context, Boxill previously worked with Prince on his albums – ‘3121’ and ‘Planet Earth’ and was given writing credits for them.

After the release of ‘Deliverance’, Boxill was faced with legal repercussions with Prince’s estate, stating that he did not own the recordings and that they could not be sold, regardless of whether he worked with Prince on them or not. The estate filed a lawsuit and cited the following in court: “Mr. Boxill maintained copies of certain tracks, waited until after Prince’s tragic death, and is now attempting to release tracks without the authorization of the Estate and in violation of the agreement and applicable law.”

Circling back to the case of Aaliyah, the posthumous album was initially teased back in 2012 by Drake and Noah ‘40’ Shebib before halting production due to a public backlash. Now, 20 years after her passing, the album is going ahead as planned.

Some fans who have heard the leaked version of Aaliyah’s upcoming single ‘Poison’ with The Weeknd have already voiced their conflicting opinions on social media outlets, stating that the song sounds foreign from Aaliyah’s essence and style, with pitched and sped-up vocals, and an overpowering reverb that is very unlike the singer’s typical work. 

On top of that, many have also questioned why artists like The Weeknd, Drake, Future, Chris Brown, and more were chosen over Aaliyah’s nearest and dearest friends in music like Missy Elliot and Timbaland to be featured on the album; people who would have been more in tune with Aaliyah’s vision from working with her in the past and collaborated with her to commemorate her life over profit.

But at the end of the day, it’s all business. Whatever sells will be favoured, and if a collaborative album with the trending artists of today will sell Aaliyah records in 2021, then so it shall be done. It is, ultimately, up to consumers as to whether they can accept this harsh reality or not.