They stand alone, a trio of female pioneers who

have demonstrated an uncanny ability to bridge

the gap between rap, hip-hop, pop and soul. No

followers of fashion, but leaders of their generation

who push the envelope in music, image and style.

Out front, no strangers to controversy, the three

young women who compose the best-selling

female group in music history are always looking

ahead, creating a new level of growth and

accomplishment. With the release of their third

album FanMail, T-Boz, Left Eye and Chilli use the

cutting edge approach that has taken TLC to

international recognition.

Filled with tough grooves and melodic jams,

FanMail is the most personal album the trio has

made, reflecting experiences and emotions T-Boz,

Left Eye and Chilli have faced in the last few years

since TLC became a household name on the

music scene

worldwide. Cut by cut,

TLC delivers on this

power-packed,

hit-filled album, which was executive produced by

co-founders Antonio "L.A." Reid and Kenneth

"Babyface" Edmonds, and super hitmaker Dallas

Austin.

Fearlessly, they lay it on the line with "Come On

Down" which is a provocative ballad penned by

award-winning songwriter Diane Warren especially

for the group. The slammin' smash single, "Silly

Ho," is about a certain type of female who hasn't

gotten her game together. Their first single, "No

Scrubs," which was produced by newcomer

Shekspere and written by Columbia recording

artists Tiny and Candy from Xscape is set to put

men with no cars, no jobs, no lives and no love in

their proper places. While the no-nonsense rap,

"My Life" deals with challenges of being a public

personality, and the hard-edged "If They Knew"

centers around keeping an illicit love affair under

wraps.

"We're taking it to the next place in terms of

production, artwork, concept and image," says

Left Eye referring to the group's 1999 release. "We

want to be universal with this record. It's for our

fans - which is why we called it "FanMail," but we

also want to get it to the people who have never

even heard of us," says Chilli. With production by

Dallas Austin (who worked with TLC on their two

previous best-selling albums), Babyface, Jimmy

Jam & Terry Lewis, Jermaine Dupri and Shekspere

- FanMail has all the makings of becoming TLC's

most successful project to date. "We all had a lot

of input for this album," says T-Boz. "We sat down

with Dallas (Austin) and worked on some of the

concepts behind the material. For example,

"UnPretty" was based on a poem I wrote that he

converted into a song. It's a girl's anthem because

I know a lot of women who feel insecure. Society

can make them feel unpretty and I know it all

starts within."

The groove-flavored title track addresses some of

the trials and tribulations as well as the group's

way of saying 'thank you' for the support that has

kept them at the top of their game for the past

seven years. The melodic slow jam "Don't You Pull

Out On Me Yet" has a distinctive '70s old school

flavor and feel; while the hypnotic "Shout" is all

about self-expression, "about letting it all out," as

Left Eye explains. Track for track, FanMail is an

ambitious musical set that closes the five-year gap

since the 1994 release of the 10 million-selling,

Grammy-award album CrazySexyCool. "You'll

never see us copy anyone else," says T-Boz.

"We're always a little scared when we put out a

new record, but we stand firm in what we believe in

and we have our own thoughts which come

through our music."

Production for FanMail began in early 1998, and in

the years since the release of CrazySexyCool, all

three women have been busy working on different

projects. "Since the last record I've become a

mother," says Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas. "And

since I don't believe in the 'nanny' thing, I've been

spending all my time with my new son. I did some

acting on the side. I was in the film "Hav Plenty"

and I've been working with an acting coach. I

turned down quite a few major movie roles,

because I want it to be right." Tionne "T-Boz"

Watkins has also had an opportunity to hit the

silver screen through the 1998 film "Belly" and

she's also been spending time developing

business interests. "I started my own companies,

Shee Entertainment, Shee Inc. and Grung Girl

Music. I've been doing some writing and I plan on

doing some production on new and established

artists. I've written an inspirational book of poetry

and I have a cartoon in development, Oh, and I

started a clothes line with Dallas Austin called

Grungy Glamorous. So, I've been pretty busy!"

Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes has also been maintaining

her visibility as the host for MTV's daily show, "The

Cut" while developing her Left Eye production

company, working on projects for Sony Music.

The release of FanMail has been much-anticipated

by the group's countless admirers the world over.

TLC literally burst on the music scene in 1992 with

two consecutive Top 3 platinum singles, "Ain't Too

Proud To Beg" and "Baby, Baby, Baby" and the

gold single "What About Your Friends." All three

tracks helped propel their LaFace debut

Oooooooohhh! On The TLC Tip to the top of the

charts, selling three million in the process.

However, it with the 1994 follow-up,

CrazySexyCool that broke wide open. Working

with producers such as Austin, Dupri, Sean

"Puffy" Combs and Organized Noize, TLC

delivered a record that set them apart from all

other female groups of the day. The first single,

"Creep" was another platinum smash, staying at

the top of the pop and R&B charts for weeks to

end. The second single, Babyface's "Red Light

Special" was another major hit while the hypnotic

"Waterfalls" was platinum-plus release that also

topped Billboard's pop and R&B charts. The

million-dollar high-tech video for the song (which

dealt with how a mother copes with her son's drug

dealing and how AIDS has become a part of the

daily lives of countless people everywhere)

garnered no less than four MTV Music Video

Awards.

The success of CrazySexyCool (which also

featured guest appearances by Busta Rhymes and

Phife of A Tribe Called Quest) led to a total of six

Grammy nominations and TLC walked away with

two Grammy Awards for "Best R&B Performance

by a Duo/Group" for "Creep" and "Best R&B

Album" for their sophomore set. Countless other

accolades followed including two Lady of Soul

awards, two Billboard Music Awards, three Soul

Train Music Awards and a Blockbuster

Entertainment Award. In 1995, TLC completed a

successful nationwide tour with Boyz II Men. Their

many media appearances included the film "House

Party 3," and the popular sitcom "Living Single"

and "Out All Night." Musically, the group

contributed the theme to Nickelodeon show "All

That," covered The Time's "Get It Up" for the

"Poetic Justice" soundtrack. Their charitable work

has included launching the 1995 "Believe In

Yourself" campaign and working with the

"Make-a-Wish" Foundation.

Known for their unique 'look,' TLC has earned a

reputation for a down-to-earth attitude and straight

ahead approach to a career that has given the

group global recognition. "Some groups have tried

to take off from where we left off in 1994," says

Left Eye. "We've heard about record companies

who have tried to put together groups like us, but

no one can do it. It's the combination of our

personalities and the chemistry between us that

makes TLC what it is." Adds T-Boz, "We know

that some people think we're the big 'cahunas'

because of the success of our records. Sure,

there's room for everyone and we're not worried

about competition, because we've tried to be

trendsetters. But, honestly, with this new album, I

would worry if I was one of those other groups out

there! We're back to reclaim what's ours!"

United, according to Chilli, in their goal "to be the

biggest female group of all time, to sell so many

albums that it will be a few years before any other

group can catch up!" The members of TLC are

ready to hit the road in '99 and make FanMail

another milestone in a career already filled with

accomplishment. As Left Eye states with

characteristic frankness, "Look, our best

challenges are ahead of us. Whatever we've been

through personally and professionally has made us

stronger, and has prepared us for what we're doing

now." And what TLC is doing now is reaching new

heights with FanMail, an album that reinforces

their status as unquestionably the world's top

female trio.