Just days afterAaliyah‘snew wax figure was unveiled at Madame Tussaudsin Las Vegas, her family is urging museum-goers to respect the replica after fans defaced it with makeup and re-styled its hair.
On Monday, the late singer’s Twitter account posted a photo of a woman applying lip gloss to the wax figure, and another that showed the figure’s hair noticeably styled differently, which prompted them to issue a statement to fans.
The figure was unveiled to pay tribute to Aaliyah 18 years after she waskilled in a tragic plane crashat 22 years old. She was memorialized wearing an outfit from her “Try Again” music video in 2000, featuring leather pants and silver sequin bra.
The woman seems to have been applying lip gloss from M.A.C.’s Aaliyah collection, whichfeatures a shiny beige tube with maroon-colored applicator.
“Very disappointed to see it hasn’t been a week and this has happened,” one commenter wrote.
“It’s disgraceful that anyone would move a hair or put anything on the beautiful waxwork that they created, if I was lucky enough to see it in person I would never be so disrespectful,I’d be so in awe & take a picture. This tribute is so beautiful so I don’t know why this happens,” wrote another.
The singer’s family, including her brother Rashad Haughton, worked very closely with the museum on the design.
“I was involved in the process from the inception of the project,” Haughton toldVibe. “The team at Madame Tussauds welcomed a collaborative effort in choosing the pose and look of my sister’s figure. They made sure my mother and I were comfortable and supported through an amazing but understandably emotional process.”
On Sunday, the 18th anniversary of her death on August 25, 2001,many performers paid tributeto the superstar includingMissy Elliott,KehlaniandElla Mai.
“I always forget how young Aaliyah was. rip to a REAL legend,” Kehlani, 24, wrote.
MusicianElla Maitweeted on Sunday, writing, “rest in paradise aaliyah. thank you for all of your inspiration. we miss you 🌹.”
Aaliyah was traveling with seven others on the day of the plane crash while en route home to Miami from the Bahamas after shooing the music video for “Rock the Boat.”
The five-time Grammy nominee released her first album,Age Ain’t Nothing But a Number, when she was 15. Her second album,One in a Million, was certified double platinum in 1997, and her final record,Aaliyah, sold over 2.4 million copies worldwide and scored a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Album in 2002.
source: people.com
