Read the following paragraph and extract the answer for the question: What is the first name of the person who auditioned for several record labels and at age 11 appeared in concerts alongside Knight? Aaliyah Dana Haughton was born on January 16, 1979, in Brooklyn, New York, and was the younger child of Diane and Michael "Miguel" Haughton (19512012). She was of African-American descent, and had Native American (Oneida) heritage from a grandmother. Her name has been described as a female version of the Arabic "Ali", but the original Jewish name "Aliya (Hebrew: )" is derived from the Hebrew word "aliyah (Hebrew: )", meaning "highest, most exalted one, the best." The singer was highly fond of her Semitic name, calling it "beautiful" and asserting she was "very proud of it" and strove to live up to her name every day. Aaliyah's mother enrolled Aaliyah in voice lessons at an early age. She started performing at weddings, church choir and charity events. When Aaliyah was five years old, her family moved to Detroit, Michigan, where she was reared along with her older brother, Rashad. She attended a Catholic school, Gesu Elementary, where in first grade she was cast in the stage play Annie, which inspired her to become an entertainer. In Detroit, her father began working in the warehouse business, one of his brother-in-law Barry Hankerson's widening interests. Her mother stayed home and raised Aaliyah and her brother.Throughout Aaliyah's life, she had a good relationship with Rashad, who recalled Aaliyah having a beautiful voice as a child. Aaliyah's family was very close due to the struggles of her grandparents and when they moved to Detroit, the Hankersons were ready to take them in if necessary. These same bonds led to ties in the music industry, under the Blackground Records label.Aaliyah's mother was a vocalist, and her uncle, Barry Hankerson, was an entertainment lawyer who had been married to Gladys Knight. As a child, Aaliyah traveled with Knight and worked with an agent in New York to audition for commercials and television programs, including Family Matters; she went on to appear on Star Search at the age of ten. Aaliyah chose to begin auditioning. Her mother made the decision to drop her...
Answer:
Aaliyah