Lisa Lopes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lisa "Left-Eye" Lopes | ||
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| Background information | ||
| Birth name | Lisa Nicole Lopes | |
| Born | May 27, 1971 | |
| Origin | Philadelphia, PA, United States | |
| Died | April 25, 2002 | |
| Genre(s) | R&B, hip hop | |
| Years active | 1991 — 2002 | |
| Label(s) | Arista Records and LaFace | |
| Website | — | |
Lisa Nicole Lopes (May 27, 1971 – April 25, 2002), an African American rapper of Cape Verdean descent, also known under the stage name of "Left Eye", was a member of the popular R&B and hip hop group TLC. In addition to hit songs like "Waterfalls" with TLC, Lopes also did some solo performing. She was considered by some fans as the creative talent behind TLC and, though she sang infrequently, contributed her own self-written raps to many of TLC's popular singles, including "Waterfalls" and "No Scrubs". Lopes was also a self-taught keyboardist and, by way of a Beethoven piano piece, displayed those talents during her solo spot on TLC's headlining concert performances (immortalized in a pay-per-view broadcast of TLC's FanMail tour in the spring of 2000). She received the name "Left Eye" from a boyfriend because her left eye was larger than her right eye. She was known for wearing a pair of glasses with a condom in place of the left eye lens, which was one of the ways the group promoted safe sex.
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[edit] Solo career
After TLC's third album, Fanmail (1999), Lopes in 2000 became a featured rapper on several singles by other musicians, including former Spice Girl Melanie C's "Never Be the Same Again", which went to #1 in 35 countries, including the UK. They performed the song live on "Top of the Pops" the week it went #1, which was Lisa's sole appearance on the UK show. The song was co-written and produced by Rhett Lawrence. She also was featured on Donell Jones' sophomore album's first single, "U Know What's Up", sang "Space Cowboy" with *NSYNC, a song from their 2000 album No Strings Attached and was featured on "Gimme Some" by Toni Braxton from her The Heat album published in 2000.
Lopes was also the host of the short-lived MTV series, The Cut, a precursor to American Idol in which a handful of would-be pop stars, rappers, and rock bands competed against each other and were judged. The show's final winner, which ended up being a male-female rap duo, was promised a record deal and MTV's funding to produce a music video, which would enter MTV's heavy rotation. A then-unknown Anastacia finished in third place, but so impressed Lopes and the show's three judges, that she scored herself a record deal anyway.
Lopes also discovered the R&B trio Blaque and helped them secure a record deal with Columbia Records. Their self-titled debut album was executive-produced by Lopes, who also made a cameo appearance on the album and in one of their music videos, "I Do". Group member Natina Reed's rapping style was heavily influenced by Lopes'.
Lopes spent much of her free time after the conclusion of TLC's first headline tour behind Fanmail recording her first solo album, Supernova. Amongst the album's 12 tracks was a posthumous duet with Tupac Shakur that was assembled from the large cache of unreleased recordings done prior to his murder in 1996. The unreleased song "Left Pimpin" was sampled for the song "Quickie", which is featured on TLC's fourth album, 3D. Initially scheduled for release on a date to coincide with the 10th anniversary of her father's passing, Supernova was then delayed for two months before her American label chose to shelve the project. The album was released outside of the United States, and hardcore American TLC fans caused a demand for import copies of the album from the UK and Japan. Lopes then severed her solo deal with Arista Records (she remained contracted with the label as a member of TLC) and signed with Tha Row Records (the former Death Row label), intending to record a second solo album under the pseudonym N.I.N.A (New Identity Not Applicable).The Album Supernova features a song titled 'A New Star Is Born 'is dedicated to her late father.
Cameo Appearances On Other Artist's Recordings
- Damian Rams - Damian Dame: Sixty Second (The Conclusion - featuring QT (Left Eye) & Boz (T-Boz)) (1991)
- Keith Sweat - Get Up One It: How C You Like It (featuring Left Eye) (1994)
- Panther O.S.T.: Freedom (By various artists include TLC, solo by Left Eye) (1994)
- The Song of West Side Story O.S.T.: Gee Officer krupkee (by various artists including Left Eye) (1996)
- Kazaam O.S.T. : No Tighter Wish (by Tangi Forman & Left Eye) (1996)
- Nothing To Lose OST: Not Tonight (by Lil' Kim featuring Left Eye, Angie Martinez, Da Brat, & Missy Elliott) (1997)
- Will Smith - Big Willie Style: Big Willie Style (featuring Left Eye) (1997)
- Pras - Supastar Ghetto: Finale Interlude (featuring Left Eye & various artists) (1998)
- DeDe O' Neal - What' S Up (Individual Promotion vinyl): What' S Up (featuring Left Eye) (1998)
- Method Man - Tical 2000: Cradle Rock (featuring Left Eye) (1998)
- Donell Jones - Where I Wanna Be: U Know What' S Up (featuring Left Eye) (1999)
- Blaque - I Do Remix (Individual): I Do (featuring Left Eye) (1999)
- Melanie C - Northern Star: Never Be the Same Again (featuring Left Eye) (1999)
- Nsync - No Strings Attached: Space Cowboy (featuring Left Eye) (2000)
- Toni Braxton - The Heat: Gimme Some (featuring Left Eye) (2000)
- Mya - Fear Of Flying: Takin' Me Over (featuring Left Eye) (2000)
- 2Pac - Until The End Of Time: Let Em Have It (featuring Left Eye) (2001)
- Dysfunktional Family OST: Too Street For T.V. (credited as N.I.N.A. featuring Danny Boy) (2003)
[edit] Controversy
Lopes was often plagued with controversy due to a rumored temper. She was arrested when she burned down the home of her boyfriend, former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Andre Rison, in 1994, after a major fight. Lopes, who was sentenced to 5 years probation and therapy at a halfway house, never was able to shake that incident from her reputation, and along with Lil' Kim, became one of hip hop music's bad girls. Along with her TLC band mates, Lopes filed for bankruptcy that same year claiming that poor royalties and an outstanding debt that was owed to Perri "Pebbles" Reid after she sued the group for breach of contract, caused them to take this action.
[edit] Death
Lopes had already started work on both her second solo album and on songs for the fourth TLC album, 3D, when she died in a car accident in Honduras on April 25, 2002. She was one of seven people in the vehicle (a Mitsubishi Pajero), however it was reported that she was not wearing a seatbelt. [1]She had been there doing missionary work, which was something she had a passion for. It is said by those close to her that she had been undergoing a spiritual epiphany and had recently ended a month-long fast prior to her death. Her funeral was held at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Lithonia, Georgia. Lopes was interred at Hillandale Cemetery, also in Lithonia.
The controversy over autopsy photos which had been leaked following her death led to a protest by NASCAR star Dale Earnhardt, Jr.. Earnhardt painted a stripe next to the left headlight decal on his #8 Chevrolet Monte Carlo for the Pontiac Excitement 400 at Richmond International Raceway to protest the display of her autopsy photos. A similar controversy had befallen Earnhardt after the death of his father a year earlier.
