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Blaque | |
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Also known as | Blaque Ivory |
Origin | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. |
Genres | |
Years active | 1996–2008, 2012, 2019–present |
Labels | |
Members |
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Past members |
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Website | www |
Blaque is an American girl group that charted from 1999 to 2004. Outside of the United States, they are known as Blaque Ivory. Their self-titled debut album Blaque sold more than 1 million copies and was certified Platinum. The group's debut included the platinum-selling lead single "808", a second single, "I Do", and the international pop hit "Bring It All to Me". In 1999, Billboard named Blaque the 4th Best New Artist of the year, with "Bring It All to Me" landing at number 30 on the 2000 Year End Chart. [2] In 2002 and 2003, the group released three less successful singles, "Can't Get It Back", "Ugly", and "I'm Good", the latter appearing in the film Honey.
Blaque worked on two unreleased albums in the mid-to-late 2000s before their disbandment in 2008. The group attempted a comeback in 2012, [4] but it was cut short by Natina Reed's accidental death. In 2019, Blaque's intended third album Torch was released under the label Blaque/The Move Entertainment.
Natina Reed and Shamari Fears both moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and met while in high school. Reed formed Blaque while Fears formed another group called Intrigue. Intrigue won a recording contract with Elektra Records, and Fears met up with Brandi Williams at a talent show while a member of that group. Fears left Intrigue to join up with Reed in Blaque and Williams joined the group shortly thereafter. Reed met Ronald Lopes while singing jingles to earn extra cash and he introduced her to his sister Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes of TLC. Lisa Lopes signed the group to her production company, Left Eye Productions.
Blaque has said that their name means "Believing in Life and Achieving a Quest for Unity in Everything". [5]
In 1997, the group made a cameo appearance in the video for Lil' Kim's "Not Tonight (Remix)".
Their self-titled debut debuted at number 23 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop albums chart, and at number 53 on the official Billboard 200 and was certified platinum by RIAA. The album's lead single "808" was a success in the U.S. reaching number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and earning Gold certification. The follow-up single "I Do" was not a success like the previous singles, reaching number 73 on the R&B/Hip-Hop single chart. The music video for "I Do" was nominated for a MTV Video Music Award for Best Editing. The last single "Bring It All To Me", which featured JC Chasez, was a hit song that made the number 5 position on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and topped the Rhythmic charts in late 1999 to early 2000 for six weeks.
In mid-1999, Blaque toured as one of the opening acts for boy band 'N Sync. [6] Blaque also performed as one of the opening acts for TLC's FanMail Tour later that year. [7]
In 2000, the group starred as cheerleaders in the film Bring It On and went to the studio and recorded the Shelly Peiken and Guy Roche song "As If" for the soundtrack that same year. [8] A remixed version of the Blaque song "Bring It All To Me" appeared in the film, with added rapping by 50 Cent.
While their self-titled debut album went platinum, the second album called Blaque Out , which was set for release in 2001, [9] was shelved as the group was dropped from Columbia Records for unknown reasons. The video for the first single "Can't Get It Back" was never released. [10] The album was soon leaked on the Internet. After Lopes's death in a car crash in Honduras on April 25, 2002, the group signed with Elektra Records. They began work on their third album after Reed gave birth to a son. An alternate version of the shelved album was released to iTunes on May 22, 2007, but was later taken down. In December 2011, Blaque Out was released back onto iTunes.
Fears was signed to Darkchild Records in 2005. Williams also signed a new record deal and started working on a solo album. She also provided vocals on the hook of Nelly's single "Grillz".
In 2005, Blaque came back together to record their studio album Private Show (originally titled Beauty). They worked on the album sporadically from 2005 to 2009. Blaque agreed to film a show Blaque In the House set to air in the summer of 2008; however, the show was never picked up, and the album went unreleased. Blaque released four songs on YouTube: "Cut You Off", "All Nighter", "Blue Jeans" and "High Definition" before they decided to disband.
On July 28, 2012, Blaque reunited for the Left Eye Music Festival in Decatur, Georgia. At the event, Blaque performed their single "808". Shortly after, the group contracted with artist manager Inga "Nandi" Willis, and started working on an album and a reality television show.
On October 26, 2012, Reed died after being hit by a car near Atlanta, Georgia. The group broke up shortly after her death. [11] Two days later, "Cut You Off", a song intended for the album, leaked via the internet. [12]
Blaque's intended third album, Torch, featured Missy Elliott, songwriter Linda Perry, and producer Rodney Jerkins. The intended single "Blackout" was derided as a "rip-off" of 50 Cent's song "In da Club". [13]
"I'm Good" appeared on the soundtrack for the 2003 film Honey .
Torch was scheduled to be released exclusively to iTunes in 2008, nearly five years after its completion by Music World Entertainment, but this was canceled. It has been confirmed that Mathew Knowles owns the rights to the albums Torch and Blaque Out. [14]
On May 31, 2019, Blaque released Torch under the label Blaque/The Move Entertainment.
In addition to their recording work, Reed, Fears, and Williams appeared in the 2000 film Bring It On as members of the East Compton Clovers cheerleading squad, fronted by Gabrielle Union. [8] Williams also had a small role (playing herself) in the 2001 movie On the Line . Blaque also appears on Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes's 2001 solo debut album, Supernova , on the track titled "Head to the Sky", which was only released internationally. In 2005, two clips of Fears's solo songs titled "The One" and "NJ2" were leaked onto the internet.
Title | Album details | Peak chart positions | Certifications | |
---|---|---|---|---|
US | US R&B | |||
Blaque |
| 53 | 23 | |
Blaque Out |
| — | — | |
Torch |
| — | — |
Year | Song | Peak chart positions [16] [17] [18] | Album | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
US | US R&B | US Pop | AUS [19] | CAN | UK | |||
1999 | "808" | 8 | 4 | 33 | 68 | — | 31 | Blaque |
"I Do" (featuring Lisa Lopes) | — | 73 | 39 | 94 | — | — | ||
"Bring It All to Me" | 5 | 15 | 6 | — | 7 | — | ||
2000 | "Adore Me" | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
"As If" | — | — | — | — | — | — | Bring It On soundtrack | |
2001 | "Can't Get It Back" | — | 91 | — | — | — | — | Blaque Out |
2003 | "I'm Good" | — | 95 | — | 28 | — | — | Honey soundtrack |
2003 | "Ugly" (featuring Missy Elliott) | — | — [lower-alpha 1] | — | — | — | — | Torch |
2013 | "Summertime Riding" | — | — | — | — | — | — | non-album single |
2014 | "Today" | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Year | Title | Album |
---|---|---|
2000 | "You Can Always Go" (with Jagged Edge) | Big Momma's House |
2001 | "Head To The Sky" (with Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes) | Supernova |
"Can't Trust Myself" | On the Line |
Year | Result | Category |
---|---|---|
2000 | Nominated | Best Editing In A Video For: "I Do" |
Year | Result | Category |
---|---|---|
2001 | Nominated | Best Female Group For: "Blaque" |
Soul Train Lady Of Soul Awards
Year | Result | Category |
---|---|---|
1999 | Nominated | Best R&B/Soul Or Rap New Artist For: "808" |
2000 | Nominated | R&B/Soul Album Of The Year, Group, Band Or Duo For: "Blaque" |
Billboard Video Awards
Year | Result | Category |
---|---|---|
2000 | Won | Best New Artist-R&B For: "Bring It All To Me" |
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.
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).
FanMail is the third studio album by American girl group TLC, released on February 23, 1999, by LaFace and Arista Records. The album title is a tribute to TLC's fans who sent them fan mail during their hiatus. FanMail debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, selling 318,000 copies in its first week of release, and spent five weeks at number one.
"No Scrubs" is a song recorded by American girl group TLC as the lead single from their third studio album, FanMail, released on February 2, 1999, by LaFace Records and Arista Records. The song was written by producer Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, former Xscape members Kandi Burruss and Tameka "Tiny" Cottle, and TLC member Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes. The song lyrics describe the role of a man in a relationship. Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas sings the lead vocals for the first time on a TLC single.
"Girl Talk" is a song by American group TLC. It was written by band members Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins along with Anita McLoud, Edmund "Eddie Hustle" Clement, and Kandi Burruss for the group's fourth studio album, 3D (2002). Recorded a few days before Lopes' death in April 2002, production on the song was helmed by Clement. Lyrically, "Girl Talk" has the protagonist warning men that if they lack in the bedroom, it will spread on the street amongst the women.
"Can't Get It Back" is a song by American recording group Blaque. It was written by Salaam Remi, Marlon Williams, and Hernst "StayBent" Bellevue, and band member Natina Reed for the group's second album, Blaque Out (2002). Production was helmed by Remi with co-production from Bellevue. The song samples from the song "We're Going to a Party" (1977) by American R&B singer Evelyn "Champagne" King. Due to the inclusion of the sample, Aubrey Gravatt, Joseph Freeman, and Theodore Life are also credited as songwriters. "Can't Get It Back" was released as the first single on October 16, 2001 in the United States where it peaked at 91 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. With Blaque Out eventually being shelved, "Can't Get It Back" was later re-recorded, remixed, and released by British girl group Mis-Teeq in 2003.
"Dear Lie" is a song by American group TLC. It was written by Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds and band member Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins for the trio's third studio album FanMail (1999), featuring production by Edmonds. The song was released as the album's third and final single on December 6, 1999, peaking at number 51 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reaching the top 40 in several other countries. "Dear Lie" is included on the group's 2009 compilation album, We Love TLC.
"Unpretty" is a song by American group TLC, released on May 17, 1999, through LaFace and Arista Records as the second single from the band's third studio album, FanMail. It was written by Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins and the producer Dallas Austin. Austin assisted Watkins in adapting the latter's written poem into "Unpretty" after feeling disgusted by an episode of American talk show Ricki Lake.
Shamari DeVoe is an American singer. She is best known as the lead singer of the early 2000s pop/R&B girl group Blaque. DeVoe portrayed Lava in the comedy film Bring It On (2000). She has also appeared on the Bravo reality television series The Real Housewives of Atlanta for its eleventh season; and the VH1 series Couples Retreat (2022–2023) alongside her husband R&B singer Ronnie DeVoe.
Natina Tiawana Reed was an American singer, rapper and actress. She was born in New York City and raised in Atlanta, Georgia, where she pursued a career in music beginning in her early teens. Discovered by rapper Lisa Lopes, she worked as a writer for the girl group TLC. Reed gained notice in the late 1990s as a member of the girl group Blaque. They released two albums: their 1999 eponymous debut album that peaked at number 53 on the Billboard 200, and Blaque Out (2001).
"Baby-Baby-Baby" is a song by American girl group TLC. It was the second single released from their debut studio album, Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip (1992), and their second consecutive top-10 hit. It was the most successful single from the album, reaching number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, giving them their first number-one single on that chart.
"What About Your Friends" is a song by American group TLC, released as the third single from their debut album, Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip (1992). It was released on August 21, 1992, and reached number seven on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming the group's third consecutive top-10 single. A remix to the single, titled "What About Your Friends " includes the first ever appearance by the Atlanta hip-hop duo Outkast.
"Hands Up" a song by American girl group TLC. It was written and produced by both Babyface and Daryl Simmons for the band's fourth studio album, 3D (2002). A sensual mid-tempo song that deals with romantic betrayal, it was selected and released as the album's second single in the United States in November 2002, following lead single "Girl Talk" (2002). Arista Records consulted several producers to remix the song for its single release, including Richard X, LaMarquis Jefferson, and Jermaine Dupri.
"Where My Girls At?" is a song by American R&B/pop group 702, released by Motown as the first single from their self-titled second album, 702, on April 5, 1999 in the United States, followed by a United Kingdom release on July 26, 1999.
"I'm Good" is a song by American R&B/pop vocal trio Blaque. It was written by Rodney Jerkins, LaShawn Daniels, Fred Jerkins III, and group member Natina Reed, and produced by Rodney Jerkins for Blaque's third studio album Torch. The song was also included on the soundtrack for the film Honey (2003) and released as a single in September 2, 2003. "I'm Good" peaked at number 28 on the Australian ARIA Singles Chart, number 47 on the Swiss Singles Chart, and number 57 on the Austrian Singles Chart. It peaked at number 95 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart in November 2003.
"808" is the debut single by American R&B/pop girl group Blaque from their self-titled debut album. Released to radio and music video stations in early 1999, "808" became the group's first top-10 hit in the United States, peaking at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and reaching top five on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart.
"Bring It All to Me" is a song performed by American R&B girl group Blaque. The song samples Shalamar's "I Don't Wanna Be the Last to Know". The remix and album version of the song features JC Chasez of boy band *NSYNC but is credited to the group as a whole. It was released on October 11, 1999, as Blaque's third single in the United States.
"I Do" is a song released in 1999 by the American vocal trio, Blaque. It was released as the group's second single in the United States and Japan, and the third single in Europe.
"Let's Just Do It" is a posthumous single by American rapper Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, and is the lead single from her posthumous album, Eye Legacy. Originally recorded by Lopes and her TLC groupmate Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins in 1998 for the group's third studio album FanMail, the track was shelved until 2009, when it was remixed to feature new vocals from fellow member Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas and rapper Missy Elliott.
Death Row Records full discography with all albums, compilations, EP's & singles release.
Blaque is filled with songs that represent contemporary R&B/pop, with selections that include sassy rap stylings and sultry ballads.
We are a pop group, said Reed. When an ethnic group first goes out with an album, they are automatically labeled R&B. It's something we have to change.