Lisa Nicole Lopes, better known by her stage name Left Eye, was an American rapper and singer. She was a member of the R&B girl group TLC, alongside Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas. Besides rapping and singing on TLC recordings, Lopes was the creative force behind the group, receiving more co-writing credits than the other members. She also designed some of their outfits and the stage for their FanMail Tour and contributed to the group's image, album titles, artworks, and music videos. Through her work with TLC, Lopes won four Grammy Awards.
Lopes as featured in Black Enterprise magazine c. 2001
Lopes's grave at Hillandale Memorial Gardens
TLC is an American girl group formed in 1990 in Atlanta, Georgia. The group's best-known line-up was composed of Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas. The group enjoyed success during the 1990s, with nine top-ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100, including four number-one singles: "Creep", "Waterfalls", "No Scrubs", and "Unpretty". The group also recorded four multi-platinum albums, including CrazySexyCool (1994), which received a diamond certification from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). TLC became the first R&B group in history to receive the million certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for FanMail (1999).
TLC in 1999; left to right: Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas, Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes
Watkins and Thomas performing at Justin Timberlake's 2009 benefit concert
TLC performing live in 2016
Image: Rozonda Thomas