Usher is currently happy in his relationship with girlfriend Jenn Goicoechea, but does wish he moved a bit differently in his past romantic endeavors. While sitting down for E! News‘ Daily Pop segment on Tuesday (March 1), the “Confessions” singer revealed that he once had the chance to shoot his shot and date Aaliyah, but did not make a move on the late R&B singer.
When asked what celebrity he would have dated back in the day, the eight-time Grammy winner said, “I’ve never told anybody this … somebody that I was really good friends with that I wish I would have taken more serious because she was a really close friend of mine for a small amount of time and then we just kind of disconnected. It was Aaliyah. I think I would have dated Aaliyah and we just didn’t get around to it. We just talked, but didn’t do it.”
Usher also said that his and Aaliyah’s lack of a romantic connection wasn’t due to scheduling conflicts, they just never had the spark to get a relationship started. “We were friends, we hung out, we watched movies together … it didn’t go there,” he added. The “Try Again” singer died at age 22 in an August 2001 plane crash.
Later in the interview, Usher shared that his celebrity first kiss was with Monica, and excitedly exclaimed that she was a good kisser.
The 43-year-old has been dating Goicoechea since 2019. They share two kids together — daughter Sovereign Bo Raymond and their newborn son Sire Castrello Raymond. The singer had previously shared that he was playing 50 Cent‘s 2004 hit “In Da Cub” as his youngest was born. The artist is also dad to sons Usher V and Naviyd with ex-wife Tameka Foster.
Watch Usher talk about his relationship with Aaliyah below.