TLC Musical CrazySexyCool Brings T-Boz, Left Eye and Chilli’s Story to the Stage: ‘A Dream Come True’

• A new TLC musical is in the works, about the success of the R&B trio and its members
• It’s named CrazySexyCool —The TLC Musical, and will open at the Arena Stage in Washington, DC in June 2026
• No casting has been announced yet, but season ticket packages are now available

Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, and Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas have already found their names in the record books, the trio (known as TLC) cementing themselves as the best-selling American girl group of all time, with over 65 million records sold worldwide.

But now, they’ll join a growing list of music icons to see their life story turned into their very own stage musical.

Aptly titled CrazySexyCool —The TLC Musical after the group’s blockbuster 1994 album, the production will make its world premiere at Arena Stage in Washington, DC next summer, as part of the not-for-profit regional theater’s 75th anniversary season.

The show will run for eight weeks, from June 12, 2026 to Aug. 9. It will feature the songs from the group’s catalogue of hits and promises to take audiences “beyond the fiery scandals, explosive creative clashes, and harrowing tragedies to experience this remarkable story of defiance, triumph, and love.”

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British actor, playwright, director and broadcaster Kwame Kwei-Armah will write and direct the musical. Choreography will be by actor and author Chloe O. Davis.

“Bringing this story to the stage is a dream come true,” T-Boz said in a statement. “We have performed in a lot of different venues all over the world throughout our career, but bringing our story and music to the theater is a totally new and exciting challenge.”

“We have some of the best people in the business working on this project,” Chilli added. “Audiences will get to hear our story — mostly fact with a sprinkle of fiction — told in our own way, and of course it’s set to all your favorite hits!”

Bill Diggins’ Diggit Theatrical Group is producing the new musical alongside Tony Award-nominated producer Stephen Gabriel who is serving as executive producer.

Said Diggins: “TLC completely changed the game. Their music gave a voice to women everywhere, empowering them to be confident and unapologetic. But this isn’t just a story about the music; it’s about the sisterhood between these women and what kept them together through both unimaginable challenges and chart-topping success.”

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TLC came to prominence in the ’90s, releasing four multi-platinum albums and nabbing nine top-ten hits on the Billboard Hot 100 (like “What About Your Friends” and “Ain’t 2 Proud 2 Beg” and the No. 1 singles “Creep”, “Waterfalls”, “No Scrubs” and “Unpretty”).

But behind the boundary-breaking girl group was a slew of conflict, including major money problems that stemmed from bad contracts that didn’t pay them fairly for album sales.

Despite earning an estimated $175 million for the runaway success of CrazySexyCool, the trio filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in July 1995. “We’re as broke as broke can be,” Chilli famously told press at the 1996 Grammys, moments after they’d won two awards

They eventually settled a multimillion-dollar lawsuit with LaFace Records, resulting in a more equitable contract. And though the ordeal brought the women closer, internal disagreements threatened to pull them apart.

Then, tragedy came in a 2002, when Left-Eye died in a car crash at age 30 while on a spiritual retreat in Honduras.

In the years since, T-Boz and Chilli have kept the legacy of TLC alive with tours, albums, a Lifetime original movie and more.

“I miss her every day,” Chilli told PEOPLE in 2023. “I often wonder what things would have been like if she was still here.”

One thing she knows, Left-Eye would still be in the news. “Boy I’m telling you, people would be so entertained,” Chilli laughed. “She was always like, ‘All news is good news’ — that’s how she felt. She would have more followers than Selena Gomez!” 

Season ticket packages for Arena Stage are now on sale.