TEAM RNS PRESENTS

TITLE: Now And Forever The Hits

RIPPER: Team RNS

2hr 12min total-127.1mb

RELEASE DATE: 2003-11-25
RIP DATE: 2003-12-05

01 Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg            7:17
02 What About Your Friends        7:01
03 Hat 2 Da Back                  7:11
04 Get It Up                      7:17

07 Red Light Special              8:00

09 Diggin' On You                 7:28
10 Kick Your Game                 7:19

14 Come Get Some (featuring Lil'  7:22
Jon and Sean Paul of Youngbloodz)

17 Whoop Dee Woo                  6:16
18 In Your Arms Tonight           7:21

TLC was one of the biggest-selling
female R&B groups of all time, riding a
blend of pop, hip-hop, and urban soul to
superstardom during the '90s. Tionne
"T-Boz" Watkins, rapper Lisa "Left Eye"
Lopes, and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas
managed to appeal equally to pop and
R&B audiences, blending catchy hooks and
bouncy funk with a sassy, sexy attitude.
Initially, their image was equal parts
style and spirit, bolstered by a
flamboyant, outrageous wardrobe. As time
passed, they became equally well known for
their chaotic personal lives, leaving a
trail of headlines that read like a
soap-opera plot: arson, rehab,
bankruptcy, serious illness,
high-profile romances, and countless
intra-group squabbles. After their
star-making second album, CrazySexyCool,
TLC fell into disarray, taking over
four years to record the follow-up
Fanmail; even so, they returned more
popular than ever, and the hits kept on
coming. Unfortunately, tragedy struck
in early 2002, when Lopes was killed
in a car accident in Honduras.

TLC was formed in Atlanta, GA, in 1991,
when Watkins and Lopes decided to split
off from another all-female group. In
short order, they met Thomas, locally
based producer Dallas Austin, and '80s R&B
singer Pebbles, who became their
manager. They quickly scored a record
deal with L.A. Reid and Babyface's new
label, LaFace, and in 1992 issued their
new jack-styled debut album
Ooooooohhh...On the TLC Tip. The video
for the sexy, aggressive lead single
"Ain't 2 Proud 2 Beg" established their
quirky, colorful fashion sense, and true
to her nickname, Lopes stirred some
attention by wearing a condom over her
left eye to promote safe sex. The song
became a Top Ten hit, as did its
follow-ups, the ballad "Baby-Baby-Baby"
(a number two hit) and "What About Your
Friends." TLC was definitely a success,
but they weren't quite stars yet, and it
remained to be seen whether they could
maintain their momentum over the long

Not long before the release of their
second album in late 1994, Lisa Lopes
was arrested on arson charges. In an
alcohol-fueled fit of rage, Lopes vented
all the frustrations from her
often-stormy relationship with NFL wide
receiver Andre Rison, burning his
Atlanta mansion to the ground and
vandalizing several of his cars. Lopes'
lawyers claimed that she had a drinking
problem, and while Lopes herself wasn't
happy with that defense, she avoided
jail time with a sentence of five
years' probation; she was also later
admitted to an alcohol rehab program. All
the publicity certainly didn't hurt
CrazySexyCool, which became a
blockbuster success, albeit for other
reasons. Taking a cue from Salt-N-Pepa's
makeover on Very Necessary,
CrazySexyCool toned down the
boisterousness of their first record
in favor of a smoother, more mature
presentation; they were still strong and
sexual, but now fully adult as well, and
were more involved (especially Lopes) in
crafting their own material. The slinky
lead single "Creep" became TLC's first
number one pop hit, topping the charts for
four weeks. It was followed by three
more Top Five singles: "Red Light
Special," "Waterfalls" (which became
their biggest hit ever, spending seven
weeks at number one), and "Diggin' on
You." TLC was a bona fide phenomenon, and
their stylish videos and live
performances kept upping the ante for
outrageous fashion sense. CrazySexyCool
eventually sold over 11-million copies in
the U.S. alone, and won a Grammy for

All was not well, however. In 1995, TLC
filed for bankruptcy, claiming debts of
over 3.5-million dollars, in part
stemming from Lopes' insurance payments
over the arson incident. They also
claimed they hadn't seen their fair
share of royalties from CrazySexyCool;
LaFace countered that they were simply
trying to get a bigger contract. TLC
did wind up splitting from Pebbles'
management company over the money
issues (not helped by the fact that
Pebbles' marriage to LaFace head L.A.
Reid had gone through a nasty breakup).
What was more, it was announced that
for some time, Watkins had been battling
sickle cell anemia, which sapped her
energy and often made performing
difficult. TLC spent much of 1996
getting their financial affairs in
order, and was set to re-enter the
studio in the summer of 1997. The
sessions had trouble getting off the
ground, though, thanks to the group's
public spat with producer Dallas
Austin, claiming that his fee was far
too high; not only had Austin played a
significant role in the creation of
their music, but the split was all the
more awkward because he and Thomas had
just had a son together. It took until
early 1998 to finally resolve the
producer situation, and Austin wound up
handling the vast majority of the
record. Still, it took quite some time
to put together; Lopes announced in the
summer of 1998 that she was working on a
solo record, and Watkins tried her hand
at acting with an appearance in the
Hype Williams-directed Belly. All the
delays, tension, and side projects
fueled rumors of the group's impending

TLC's third album was finally released
at the beginning of 1999. The hotly
anticipated Fanmail debuted at number one,
and its first single "No Scrubs" -- a
dismissal of men who didn't measure up
-- topped the charts as well for four
weeks. The critically acclaimed
follow-up, "Unpretty," tackled
unrealistic beauty standards, and spent
three weeks at number one. Fanmail wound
up going six-times platinum, and won
another Best R&B Album Grammy. As TLC
prepared to tour in late 1999, tensions
between the individual members spilled
over into a public feud; Watkins and
Thomas criticized Lopes for putting
herself before the group, and Lopes
responded by blasting TLC's recent music
and challenging her bandmates to record
solo albums, so that fans could see who
the real talent lay with. The blowup
was only temporary, but rumors about
TLC's future continued to swirl. Lopes
continued to publicize her upcoming solo
project, and Thomas eventually began
working on her own album as well.
Watkins married rapper Mack 10 in the
summer of 2000, and had their first
child not long after. Meanwhile, tabloid
favorite Lopes continued to make
headlines when she disappeared for over
a week, missing a family function and a
press conference (she turned out to be
with a new boyfriend).

In 2001, TLC somehow managed to
regroup and enter the studio together
to work on material for a new album.
That summer, a report surfaced that Lopes
had postponed a wedding with, of all
people, Andre Rison. Meanwhile, her
solo debut, Supernova, was scheduled for
release and then scrapped on several
occasions; it eventually came out
overseas, but domestically Arista
pulled the plug. Meanwhile, TLC's
recording halted while Watkins was
hospitalized from complications with her
anemia. At the beginning of 2002, Lopes
announced that she had signed a solo
deal with the infamous Suge Knight's
new label Tha Row, for which she would
begin recording a follow-up to the
unreleased Supernova under the name
N.I.N.A. (New Identity Non-Applicable).
Sadly, she would never get the chance.
Vacationing in her favorite getaway
spot, Honduras, Lopes was driving a
rented SUV with at least seven (possibly
eight) passengers. Reportedly speeding,
she lost control of the vehicle, which
flipped over; she was the only member of
the party to be seriously injured, and
died from severe head trauma on April
25, 2002. The surviving members of TLC
announced their intention to complete
the album they'd begun, though without
their most vibrant character, the
group's long-term future remained in

This is the definitive Greatest Hits
collection from the best selling girl
group of all time. The current success
of R&B and rap owes a great deal to TLC
- their sound, creativity, and
personality changed the face of pop/R&B
forever. Lisa Lopes' tragic death
unfortunately means that this will be the
last album from one of the greatest and
best selling urban/pop acts of our
generation. 'Now & Forever - The Hits'
includes over 75 minutes of classic TLC
smash hits such as 'Waterfalls',
'Creep', 'No Scrubs', plus 'Unpretty'
and features work by superstar
producers such as Jermaine Dupri,
Dallas Austin, LA Reid, Babyface, Rodney
Jerkins, She'kspere, Jimmy Jam & Terry
Lewis, and The Neptunes. The US release
has been pushed back until February