TLC fans asked for a new album and it looks like that’s exactly what they’re going to get. After starting their Kickstarter campaign one month ago, TLC, the five time Grammy Award winning band, not only met the final goal of $150,000 but exceeded it by $280,000. “Thank you to everyone who has donated to our final album!! The amount doesn’t matter but the fact that you donated means the world to us.” TLC’s final album, which the group assures will stay true to the TLC sound with music that is relatable to “everyone,” is also dedicated “to all of you that have stuck with us, always challenging us to do our best. And of course it’s for the new fans too!”
Receiving over four thousand pledges, many from artists such as Katy Perry, New Kids on the Block, Bette Midler, Soulja Boy, and Russell Simmons, TLC has promised all funds will go to the creation of the album including booking music producers, writing and recording sessions, and much more. On February 17th, the outpouring of support TLC received in the music community prompted them to post an Open Letter to Artists Past, Present, and Future, in which the group thank everyone for their “support and your enthusiasm for this milestone in TLC history, and for that, we thank you.” They go on to say “…we are inspired by our fans to make more work, always. And after the showing of support we’ve seen, we are inspired by our fellow artists to lead and make a path.”
The as of yet untitled final album already has some big names attached to it, such as producer Ron Fair and Lil Mama; and even a track co-written by Lady Gaga titled “Posh Life.” TLC’s debut album, written mainly by Dallas Austin and Lisa Lopes, was released early 1992 and was a success both commercially and critically, producing three Hot 100 top ten singles and being certified quadruple platinum. Their success continued with 1994’s CrazySexyCool, with four singles reaching the top five of the U.S. Hot 100. “Creep” and “Waterfalls,” TLC’s biggest hit, peaked number one on the same chart.
Though CrazySexyCool became one of the first albums to receive a diamond certification from RIAA and won two Grammys, their recording contract was paying them only fifty-six cents per album to be split between each of the members, forcing them to file for bankruptcy. A new contract was negotiated and FanMail was released in early 1999, debuting number one on Billboard 200 and selling over six million copies in the U.S. Both “Scrubs,” produced by Kevin “She’kspere” Briggs, and “Unpretty” were number one hits.
After Lisa Lopes’ fatal car accident in 2002, the remaining members went into the studio and finished their fourth album. 3D was produced by Timbaland and Missy Elliott, among others and would be TLC’s final album, as the girls did not want to replace Lopes and carry on as a group. Lopes does appear vocally on four songs, and the album went on to sell over a million albums. With TLC out of retirement and a new album in the works, they are now embarking on a forty three day tour with New Kids on the Block and Nelly starting this May.