On August 18, 1992, TLC released their third consecutive top-10 single, What About Your Friends. Now, it’s 22 years later they are looking for more friendly assistance. The legendary R&B group recently launched a Kickstarter campaign to crowdsource funds from fans to make their final album.
Tionne ‘T-Boz’ Watkins and Rozonda ‘Chilli’ Thomas, founding and remaining members of TLC are seeking to raise $150,000 by February 19 to record the group’s fifth and final album. The funding goal appears to only be a starting point as the campaign post states the $150,000 will cover “a writing session in the studio with a producer and engineer” with additional writing, recording and mixing session to come from money beyond the initial funding goal.
The tiered reward system for the final TLC album includes admittance to a listening party, backstage passes to upcoming TLC shows, two slumber parties in Atlanta and Los Angeles with T-Boz and Chilli as well as the chance to be in a professional photo shoot with the two singers. The campaign has currently accumulated $7,070 from 97 backers with over 81 percent (79) of the backers pledging between $5-$250. Most of the backers have pledged between $100-$250 and will receive a signed vinyl copy of the album. Anyone who pledges more than $5 will be able to vote on one of five songs that will be chosen to be remixed by TLC.
This album will be the group’s first album since their 2002 3D album and the first studio album featuring only T-Boz and Chilli. Founding member Lisa “Left Eye” Lopez died in a car accident on April 25, 2002; seven months before the release of 3D.
There may not be a better time for TLC to seek funding through Kickstarter as 2014 was the company’s best year ever. Of the 22,252 successfully funded projects on Kickstarter, 4,009 (18 percent) were music projects.
