TLC pop star Lisa Lopes dies in holiday crash

Internal links

Obituary

Lisa Lopes, a singer with the American rhythm and blues trio TLC, one of the world's biggest-selling female groups, has been killed in a car crash in Honduras.

Lopes, 30, known as "Left Eye", was on holiday and was travelling in a car with seven people when it crashed. She was the only one to die and it was unclear if she was wearing a seatbelt.

TLC made their debut in 1992 and were first known for gimmicks before achieving critical acclaim and huge sales in 1994 with CrazySexyCool. The album included a number one single, "Creep", and won the group the first two of four Grammy awards.

The surviving members, Tionne Watkins and Rozonda Thomas, issued a statement yesterday saying: "We had all grown up together and were as close as a family. Today we have truly lost our sister."

The Atlanta-based band's career was shaped by Antonio Reid, president of their record company, Arista. "No words can express the sorrow I feel for this devastating loss. Lisa was a gifted musical inspiration, and she was like a daughter to me. Her legacy will be remembered forever," he said.

Arista's spokeswoman, Laura Swanson, said that Lopes frequently went on holiday to Honduras. "She found it peaceful and tranquil, and it was a very special place for her," she said. Her manager has flown to Honduras to bring her body back to the US.

TLC's more recent career had been troubled by reports of in-fighting. In 2000, after the release of the successful record Fanmail, Lopes publicly challenged Watkins and Thomas to put out solo albums, and let fans determine who was the most popular. The group had recently been working on a new record to have been released this year. Lopes had reportedly signed a solo deal with the Death Row label to put out a project under the pseudonym, "N.I.N.A." (New Identity Not Applicable).

Lopes' death is the third tragedy involving successful female singers over the past year. In February, Doreen Waddell, 36, who sang lead vocals on Soul II Soul's influential 1989 Club Classics Volume I album was killed as she ran across a dual carriageway in Shoreham, East Sussex.

Last August, the rising star Aaliyah died in a plane crash on her way to the Bahamas for a video shoot. She then had a posthumous number one single and a film she appeared in, Queen of the Damned, went to number one in the US.