Actress Zendaya arrives at the 2014 MTV Movie Awards in Los Angeles, California April 13, 2014. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok
Actress Zendaya arrives at the 2014 MTV Movie Awards in Los Angeles, California April 13, 2014. REUTERS/Danny Moloshok REUTERS/Danny Moloshok

Disney star Zendaya has been roped in to play the role of late R&B singer Aaliyah, who was killed tragically in a plane crash in Bahamas at a very young age of 22. The biopic "Aaliyah: Princess Of R&B" will be a television movie and will focus on the personal life and career of the late singer. The movie will be based on a bestselling book "Aaliyah: More Than A Woman," which tells the story of her life from childhood to her untimely death.

Seventeen-year-old Zendaya Coleman has expressed her happiness and excitement to her fans for been chosen for this role. "She's been an inspiration and influence in my whole career, her talent still shines brighter then ever, all I wanna do is honor her," Zendaya wrote on her Twitter page.

Zendaya then went on to talk about the achievements of Aaliyah and wondered at how much she had achieved in the short life span of 22 years. "...she's beautiful inside and there will never be another Aaliyah, I just hope to share her," Zendaya added.

Zendaya acknowledged the fact that she is just a 17-year-old teenager who has been tasked to play a vital role and she promised her fans on Twitter that she will do justice to the role as Aaliyah has been her inspiration. Here are few interesting facts about singer Aaliyah's life.

1. Aaliyah secretly married fellow R&B singer R. Kelly when she was just 15-years-old but her marriage was annulled by her parents as she was underage at that time. Both R. Kelly and Aaliyah never publically accepted they were married.

2. R. Kelly not only became Aaliyah's mentor but also became the songwriter and producer for her debut album, "Age Ain't Nothing but a Number," which sold three million copies in the United States and was certified double platinum.

3. For her second album "One in Million," Aaliyah worked with record producers Timbaland and Missy Elliott. This album too was a huge hit as it sold reportedly 3.7 million copies in the America and more than 8 million copies worldwide!

4. Aaliyah died on August 25, 2001 while returning from Bahamas in a plane which was being flown by an unlicensed pilot. It was later found that the pilot, Luis Morales III, had traces of cocaine and alcohol in his system.

5. Aaliyah also appeared in a movie "Romeo Must Die," where she even did a background score "Try Again," which became a hit at the Billboard Hot 100 countdown.