History, Interview, Lifestyle, News

Monica Recreates Left Eye’s Mugshot For Halloween and T-Boz Shares Story Behind The Dress

R&B superstar Monica went viral on social media on Oct 30, 2022 when she posted her Halloween outfit on her pages, posing as TLC‘s Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes‘ mugshot after being arrested for arson in 1994 for burning the mansion of her then boyfriend Andre Rison.

Monica posted a picture of the VIBE cover that TLC took part in, posing as firefighters to let the world know that the members of TLC knew how to poke fun at themselves and would not be offended of situations like Left Eye’s arson incident being highlighted for Halloween.

TLC member Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins saw the post and gave Monica her approval as well as sharing a story about why Left Eye was wearing the floral dress she had on, which wasn’t her usual style. “Haaaaaaaa U crazy love it!!!!”, T-Boz replied on the post. “Funny story I dressed her that day…. And My Mama Said Why U Give Her That Ugly Ass Dress… And I Said That’s What She Picked”, T-Boz continued. “But Like WHY Did I Hv That Dress In The First Place lol Miss My Sister. Funny… U Did That”.

Monica was delighted with the response from T-Boz and shared the humor in the story behind Left Eye’s floral dress before sharing why she loves the ladies of TLC. “OMG YOU’RE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE DRESS… I can hear Ms Gayle saying this”, Monica exclaims. “And why did you have it? But ok ok lol I LOVE U!”.

Monica went on to explain to T-Boz what TLC has done for her over the years. “Watching you all work was so impactful to me as a child but your continued support then always helped me stay on track! Both yours and Lisa’s ability to stay true to who you are left a mark of authenticity and humility on me that I’ve kept close to my heart for decades!”

Although some fans found the portrayal distasteful, it was worth noting that Monica grew up in the industry with TLC and was very close to the members of the group, and was signed to the same label Arista Records.

Other celebrities also chimed in to show what they thought of Monica’s Left Eye Halloween 2022 outfit. Cardi B said Monica ‘Bodied’ the look, Jermaine Dupri reacted with a “Wow!!!”, Ludacris added laughing emojis and Fat Joe wrote, “My girl.”

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West‘s daughter North West also paid homage to TLC this year. North and her friends decided to recreate the iconic “No Scrubs” music video, with North playing the role of Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas.

Responding to the super cute video, Chilli excitedly wrote, “#demtlcbabies nailed it!!!”, before also calling the recreation “toooo cuuute” in her Instagram story. T-Boz followed when she also shared it and wrote, “yyyyyyyeeeee. Okayyyyyy PrettyGirls … #NorthWest And Her Girls Smashed #TLC This Halloween @kimkardashian #demTLCGirls #DemTLCbabies Love The Love #tboz #Tbeezy #Nori”

The official TLC account also posted about the little superstar trio, sharing the same TikTok in a series of Instagram stories. “Yes! Looking incredible ladies!” the caption read. The account also said North West and her friends “nailed it,” before calling them “soo cute.”

Announcement, Appearance, Interview

TLC Partnered with Khloe Kardashian’s Good American Fashion Line

On October 26, 2022, TLC were announced as the exclusive new faces to front the size-inclusive fashion brand, Good American. Co-founded by Khloe Kardashian and Emma Grede, Good American is a brand made for real women with real curves. The fashion line has sizes to fit every woman and encourages women to love and embrace themselves as they are.

Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins and Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas took part in a gorgeous photo shoot for Good American, posing candidly wearing various outfits available in the fashion line that the ladies have tentatively titled, “CrazySexyGood“, a play on their record-breaking 1994 album, ‘CrazySexyCool‘.

“It’s so amazing. We have not done a photo shoot together like this in years!”, Chilli confesses in the behind the scenes promo video for the photo shoot, which was shot by KESH. “It’s been a minute”, T-Boz adds. “It took Good American to make this happen”.

T-Boz explains why having a fashion line like Good American is so important and appreciated for women of all shapes and sizes. “It’s made for these type of bun buns. I love it. It makes every woman feel good. It’s amazing that there is a line like that, because a lot of times you do go to the store and it’s like, it’s just almost there.”

T-Boz went on to reveal that the struggles of finding the right size to wear whilst on a weight loss journey can leave us between sizes that aren’t always reflected in fashion lines. “Yesterday, she told me that [my size] was just in the middle — and I am in the middle, because I’m in the middle of losing more weight, and I’m right there in the middle. So, [Good American] has a size for me. We didn’t have to alter them, and they just came on and slid right on my butt, so I love it”.

T-Boz and Chilli also touched on forever honoring the late, great Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes in everything that they do. “She may not be here physically, but you’ll feel the essence of Left Eye always, no matter what we do”, T-Boz states. “We’ll always keep that legacy alive”, Chilli adds.

TLC make it clear that it is important to never change for anybody — which serves as a key to how they have remained so successful for 30 years as the biggest selling US girl group of all time. “We never changed for the label, or whatever fad was going on at the time”, Chilli says. “We always stay true to ourselves, and our style and lyrical content, the way we carry ourselves and the whole thing — we never changed for anybody”. T-Boz agreed and adds, “I don’t think nobody should change for anybody, change for yourself. If you want to better yourself, do it for yourself, and ONLY yourself. We are living proof that that works”.

TLC spoke to Cosmopolitan earlier in the week and revealed how their thought-provoking #1 single, “Unpretty“, served as a major inspiration behind the Good American campaign. “The lyrics and message of “Unpretty” represent something that was, and still is, very significant. We want to empower women to be strong, and confident in their own skin and know that you don’t have to look, act, or speak in one particular way to be ‘pretty,'” explains Chilli.

“Like “Unpretty”, this campaign empowers women to be their authentic selves, and shares the message that you do not have to meet unrealistic beauty standards.” T-Boz adds, “The message that we hope to convey through “Unpretty” and this campaign is to be confident, resilient, and not to let hurtful comments change who you are”.

TLC teased that they have some exciting projects in the works, so stay tuned. “We have a lot of exciting stuff in the pipeline, but this campaign really was a highlight for us,” Chilli shared. T-Boz adds, “We’re also really looking forward to a few more shows we have through the end of the year (in Australia) and will definitely be packing our Good American faves to bring on the road with us!”

Check out the TLC ‘CrazySexyGood’ range now at American Good.

Announcement, Interview, News, Television

TLC Announce Australian Tour and Talk 30th Anniversary on Today Show

TLC are celebrating their 30th anniversary in style this year. Fresh from an overseas tour in UK & Europe earlier this year, and a sold out tour in Hawaii last week, T-Boz and Chilli are ready to return down under in sunny Australia!

Ever since their first Australian venture back in 2014, the girls have become regulars in Oz, performing sold shows both solo and as part of the RNB Fridays lineups over the years. Their last Australian tour was as recent as 2018 for RNB Vine Days.

RNB Fridays has undergone a bit of a makeover this year and has changed the name of ‘Australia’s biggest party’ to Fridayz Live! TLC will be joining the party down under this November on the 4, 5, 6, 11 and 12. Tickets went on sale on August 12.

Joining TLC on the tour will be Macklemore, Shaggy, Ashanti, Craig David, Jay Sean, Lumidee, Dru Hill and Akon amongst others. Hosted by Fatman Scoop and radio personality Abbie Chatfield, whilst Havana Brown and Yo! Mafia will be behind the DJ decks.

Speaking to the Today Show this morning, Chilli explained how much she loves seeing a new generation of younger fans enjoying their music, 30 years later. “It touches both of us in a way, it’s hard to explain, it just pulls at your heartstrings to see little one’s [enjoying TLC music]”, Chilli said. “They weren’t even born when we first came out, in fact, they weren’t even thought about! It’s amazing.”

T-Boz explained how she feels when the reality sinks in that they have been rocking TLC for 30 years. “Everytime someone says it out loud it’s sounds like a whole other lifetime, like wow, three decades”, T-Boz exclaims. “But it’s still a blessing, to still be here selling out tours, doing shows and living life the way that we are, it’s a blessing”.

One of the many highlights in their 30 year career was being the focal point of fashion during the 90’s. “When we set out to do this originally in the beginning we would say things like, ‘we’re gonna be trendsetters, people are gonna dress like us’, but to see it actually come to fruition and happen is a whole other level”, T-Boz states. “We kinda ran the 90’s with the fashion. We would have Donna Karen and people like that would have our silk pajamas [from the ‘Creep’ video] up there like, this is where fashion is going. Just hearing things like that is amazing”.

“Even like the Spice Girls and Scary Spice [Mel B]”, Chilli adds, “it’s an honor that people want to dress like you or be inspired by you”.

Fridayz Live 2022 dates are:

NOVEMBER
Friday 4 – Melbourne, Rod Laver Arena
Saturday 5 – Perth, HBF Park
Sunday 6 – Adelaide, Entertainment Centre
Friday 11 – Brisbane, Showgrounds
Saturday 12 – Sydney, Giants Stadium

For more details and ticket information head over to https://fridayz.live

Lifestyle, News

Ciara Pays Homage To TLC By Recreating “No Scrubs” For Halloween 2021

Ciara didn’t come to play games this year for Halloween. After receiving praise for her Selena impersonation just a day previously, Ciara went all out today (Oct 30) and broke the Internet by posing as not just one, but all three members of TLC, as she recreated the iconic “No Scrubs” music video!

The attention to detail is on point, as Ciara convincingly pulls off her Chilli, T-Boz and Left Eye — even taking on Lisa’s epic rap verse, which often gets overlooked due to radio airplay time limits omitting the rap.

Posting on social media, Ciara shared a side-by-side image of herself as TLC next to the original pose of the group that she chose to replicate, and she did them justice! She was proud to represent for her fellow ATL sisters.

“Honoring my hometown girls TLC,” Ciara said. “Their swag was on another level. One of the best female groups of all time! This was so much fun!”

Even Chilli approves of Ciara’s tribute and showed her some love via Instagram under the post. Former Arista boss LA Reid also joined in the praise, commenting “Yeah C!!”.

Yolonda Frederick was responsible for providing the make-up duties to bring Ciara’s recreation to life. She reveals that TLC were actually her first celebrity clients! “They believed in me and they gave me a shot”, she wrote. “I will forever be grateful to these uber talented… beautiful girls… Love them to the moon and back”.

The hairstyles were handled by celebrity hairstylist César DeLeön Ramirêz and the costumes were created by LA ROXX.

The original video was directed by Hype Williams and it won TLC the MTV Video Music Award for Best Group Video in 1999.