After months of speculation we can finally reveal that the TLC Funko Pop! Rocks are styled as the girls in the iconic “Waterfalls” video! They come with limited editon Chase variants in a translucent style, replicating the scenes of the video where the ladies turn into water!
The estimated release date for the Pops are scheduled for January 2021. Chase Pops are sent at random with a 1 in 6 chance of obtaining one, so you may have to get lucky or order 6 at a time to get one!
‘Chase’ is what they refer to as linited edition. These Pops are harder to find and sent in orders at random, which usually cannot be reserved unless specified by the retailer.
This incredible one-woman show, ‘2 The Left‘, performed solely by talented actress Kerisse Hutchinson, returns to the spotlight this year with a very limited availability online to stream for the first time, courtesy of the Aurora Theater.
‘2 The Left’ is an inspiring music-filled, multimedia experience chronicling the life and spiritual journey of Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, controversial member of the 90s pop music phenomenon, TLC. This play with music focuses on a young woman of color and the challenges that she encounters as she embarks on a journey to find her artistic voice and purpose.
‘2 The Left’ allows the audience to take a glimpse at the woman behind the legend and discover how her path might mirror our own. We reported on this amazing show when it was originally announced last year when it debuted in Atlanta. Recorded at the Aurora Theatre as part of its ‘Our Stage Onscreen’ series, the digital production will be available through until November 8, 2020.
Kerisse was so dedicated and determined to fulfil this passion for the role, that she took up an invitation to visit the USHA healing village in Honduras by Lisa’s brother, Ronald Lopes, to truly get a feel of who Lisa was and what she wanted to share with the world. “Kerisse took a moment out of her life to experience some of the things that Lisa experienced, to be able to tell a truer story about Lisa”, Ron says proudly.
Kerisse reveals that although Lisa’s story is bittersweet, it is full of depth, hope and insightful teachings that we can all learn from. “The bitter is removed when you realize that where Lisa’s journey ends, ours begins to be lived out more fully and boldly”, Kerisse says.
For a limited time, you can get a discount off the price for the show, by using the promo code TLCARMY on the website here.
The phenomenal hip-hop rapper Cardi B is making a big return in 2020 with a helping hand from Megan Thee Stallion on her latest single, “WAP“, and she once again pays homage to a very special person, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes.
Cardi B decided to rock a hairstyle in the music video based on the style Left Eye wore at the Soul Train Awards 2000, created by TLC’s long-time hairstylist, Marie Brown (formerly Davis), who is now the owner of Atlanta’s Glamorazzi Salon.
Referencing the afro-futuristic braids, Marie explains how she came up with the creation. “The circles are the little round pieces of styrofoam. Styrofoam from Michael’s. You wrap them around, and they’re just braided on and connected onto her hair. I was just always trying to do something different. I was trying to always reach a different level with her and she was just free to do it.”
Cardi B is no stranger to paying homage to TLC. She previously wore another style like Lisa’s at her Coachella debut in 2018, and also has name dropped Left Eye and TLC in numerous tracks on her debut album, ‘Invasion Of Privacy‘.
Some fans on the Left Eye fanpage The Eye Is Right also noted other similarities in the music video. The scene with Megan and Cardi looking thorough the other rooms is reminiscent of TLC’s “Hands Up” video. And the end scene of the girls running away is very similar to TLC’s “Dear Lie” video, where Lisa knocks on a door and quickly runs away.
Watch the full video:
Do you think Cardi B paid homage or was it a coincidence?
Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes shocked the world when she signed with Suge Knight‘s reinvention of his classic Death Row records, renamed as Tha Row back in 2002, as a result of her disappointment at her home label, Arista Records, failing to support her debut solo album, ‘Supernova‘, in 2001.
Lisa’s new moniker was N.I.N.A (New Identity Non-Applicable) on Tha Row, a name given to her by Knight, as he felt her small frame was like a small 9mm handgun (which has a street name of ‘nina’). When she was spotted with Knight at a Lakers/Grizzlies game in LA on Nov 9, 2001, Lisa explains to EW, “I was visited by a man in my dream, one that sweated me all night about Mr. Suge Knight. He was right, but that’s a whole other story.”
Eastwood, a label mate of N.I.N.A on Tha Row worked with her on her solo project shortly before she passed away on April 25, 2002. He told Variety that he worked on 99.5% of her second solo album, and even co-wrote her verse on TLC‘s single, “Girl Talk“, the lead track from their ‘3D‘ album in 2002.
“You know the song “Girl Talk” with TLC? That was their last joint — I wrote her verse on there. If you go back and listen to it, you’ll hear me respond to her in the beginning of that verse. This happened three days before she passed”, Eastwood said.
Producer Darren Vegas worked on the majority of the tracks for the N.I.N.A project, and when she tragically passed away he was given the task to work with material that was left over, mostly comprising of masters from her previous solo album. “Her vibe was real cool,” he says. “I expected her to be all wild and stuff from what I’d heard, [but] she was real laid back and calm”, he told LA Weekly.
“When she was [signed to Tha Row] she didn’t drink at all. She was on a cleanse, and she actually got artists at Death Row to do cleansings, as she was back and forth to Honduras”, he continues. “She just seemed real determined to have the world hear a solo album. The stuff we were working on, we weren’t copying what she had done [with TLC]. We were creating a brand new sound.”
Many of the tracks were released online over the years as the project was eventually abandoned, officially. Jordan Cooper of the Left Eye fanpage The Eye Is Right decided that the project deserved some more attention, and decided to compile all of the available material from the project as one album for all to enjoy.
After creating some polls with fans on social media, the title of the project was decided as the self-titled ‘N.I.N.A‘, which was released on July 25, 2020 via the fanpage. It also features a version of “Too Street 4 TV” featuring Brandy‘s brother Ray-J, who also signed to Tha Row for a brief period of time.
‘Tha Row Presents… N.I.N.A.’
Tracklist:
1. Block Party (featuring Eastwood and Phobia)
2. Life (featuring Danny Boy and Eastwood)
3. Let Me Live (featuring Crooked I)
4. Universal Quest (featuring Crooked I)
5. Rags to Riches (featuring Kurupt)
6.Untouchable (with 2Pac)
7. I Believe In Me
8. Hot Lanta (featuring Kurupt and Juvenile)
9. Tru Confessions
10.Too Street 4 TV (featuring Danny Boy)
11. Friends (featuring Kurupt and Danny Boy)
Bonus Tracks:
12. Life (Alternate Version) (Featuring Carl Thomas and Eastwood)
13. Too Street 4 TV (OG Version) (Featuring Ray J.)
14. Crush on You (with Ejypt)
Leon@TLCArmy
