TLC on new album, Beyonce, dating and ‘Left Eye’ Lopes
For T-Boz and Chilli, TLC is a marriage and divorce is not an option.
The top-selling girl group is releasing its final album on Friday. Although they don’t plan to record new music, “That doesn’t mean we’re done though. That doesn't mean we won’t do a residency in Vegas,” T-Boz said.
“We have a body of work and when you (have) timeless songs like ‘Waterfalls’ and ‘No Scrubs’ and ‘Unpretty,’ you should be able to (tour), you know. The white rock bands do it all the time. Why can’t we?”
Of the potential Vegas residency, Chilli said: “We’ve had some people come and reach out, but it just got to be right.”
For now they are focused on “TLC,” their fifth album and first in 13 years. They recorded the project over the last two years. It features Snoop Dogg, a song sampling Earth, Wind & Fire's “September,” producer Ron Fair and help from T-Boz’s brother, songwriterproducer Carnoy “A yo Kayo” Watkins.
In an interview with The Associated Press, TLC talked about their music, dating while in a girl group, Beyonce, and the late Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes. ____ HATERS GONE HATER TLC, which launched a Kickstarter fund in 2015 to raise money for their final album, earned more than $430,000, though they initially asked for $150,000.
“We were in disbelief,” Chilli said. “We were so shocked.”
Katy Perry and thousands of fans donated to the project, which thrilled the band. That was in contrast to the reaction the group received when Left Eye died in 2002, T-Boz said.
“When Lisa first passed, so many people, especially ones you wouldn’t think would turn on us, kind of counted us out, but her passing didn’t really hinder our ability to sing and dance, and our talent didn’t leave, we just lost a group member,” she said. “So you find your new normal and you put it back together and to see that people believed in us touched my heart the most.” ___ BEYONCE’S FAN GIRL MOMENT
TLC has big fans in artists like Drake and Lady Gaga, but Beyonce’s fan girl moment really surprised T-Boz and Chilli.
The group said Queen Bey showed her love to the veteran girl group at the season 10 finale of “American Idol” in 2011.
“This is the first time this ever happened. Like, she just rolled up on us and was like, ‘Thank you for everything,’” Chilli said.
“‘That was some of the best times of my life’ is what she said,” T-Boz added.
“We were like, ‘Oh really? Never knew that! People said that she said stuff like that in interviews, I just didn’t know . ... That was like real humbling and just like, ‘Wow, really? OK girl!’” ____ GIRL GROUP ETIQUETTE When TLC debuted in the early ’90s, the industry was jam-packed with girl groups. Today, it’s a rarity.
Chilli says one of the keys to a successful girl group is not going “into a group knowing that you want to be a solo artist.”
“If you end up going solo that’s fine, but don’t go in there like, ‘I’m just going to use this as my platform,’” she added.
Chilli also said things work smoothly for her and T-Boz because they “are exactly identical when it comes to morals and values.”
“‘Cause I was never, even if she liked or had a crush (on a guy), hands off. Nah bro, I don’t play that,” Chilli said.
Pointing to T-Boz, she added: “‘Cause this one is really shy, even if she’s was just like, ‘I’m not going to tell him’ — it doesn’t matter that’s like hands off. Like forever.” ____ LEFT EYE NEVER LEFT TLC said Left Eye’s spirit wasn’t just in the studio while recording the new album, she's around them every day.
“We just incorporate her in everything. The thought is always there, whether you’re recording or not — you can’t forget it,” T-Boz said.
Left Eye’s voice — taken from an old interview — is featured on the track “Interlude” from the “TLC” album." It's the essence of what you remember her for," T-Boz said of Left Eye's words.