TLC warn hopeful pop stars they don’t need to get naked to have a hit
R&B supergroup TLC – famous for songs like Waterfalls and No Scrubs are touring again, and they have a message for today’s pop princesses.
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GIRL power pioneers TLC suggest pop princesses should keep their clothes on.
And anyone with a negative opinion about their decision to continue with the group after the death of Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes should keep their mouths shut.
Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas and Tione “T-Boz” Watkins kicked off their first Australian tour, armed with enduring 90s hits for TLC including No Scrubs, Unpretty, Waterfalls and Creep.
The group’s baggy pants and midriff tops inspired a generation of copycats and they fear the nudity trend among today’s female pop stars could have the same impact on today’s teenage girls.
“To me, that’s not girl power, that’s using the easy way out, it’s just typical,” Chilli said.
“When we first got started, we were saggin’, covered up from head to toe, sometimes you saw abs.”
T-Boz added: “We’re not raggin’ on the girls who choose to do that, we just want girls to know you don’t have to do that, it’s not the only way. You don’t have to be naked, you can just sing.”
The trio’s success also put the spotlight on their heyday and clashes with each other, their partners and minders maintained their celebrity.
But they have finally had enough of family members, fans and critics criticising them for returning to touring and recording after Lopes was killed in a car accident in Honduras in 2002.
T-Boz claims they were bullied on social media by a member of the Lopes family for not posting a photo on the rapper’s birthday last week.
Both women said there are times when they can’t look at the image of Lopes projected during performances without becoming grief-stricken.
“Being on stage together for many, many years, you look to the right, there’s one and look to the left, there’s the other, all the time,” Chilli said.
“After she passed away and we started touring again, it was so hard because we would have images of her on the big screens and we would never, ever look at those.
T-Boz added: “You can’t judge how people mourn and you can’t put a dollar sign or a time on what our feelings should be. We built history together.”
The TLC ladies, who played their first show at the Enmore Theatre on Thursday, reckon they still have a couple of more hits in them but will wait until they find a song to match Waterfalls or Unpretty.
“I definitely think if we put Waterfalls out today it would be a hit because I hear it all the time in grocery stores and elevators and places,” T-Boz said.
“I know our songs would be hits now, because those Unpretty publishing cheques are still good, girl.”
TLC perform at Eatons Hall, Brisbane on June 7, Enmore Theatre on June 9, Palais Theatre, Melbourne on June 11 and Metro City, Perth on June 13.
Originally published as TLC warn hopeful pop stars they don’t need to get naked to have a hit
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