"The Block Party" is the debut solo single by American singer and rapper Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, member of the girl group

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

. It was released following multiple collaborations with big name artists such as

Donell Jones Donell Jones (born May 22, 1973) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, and record producer from Chicago, Illinois. He met record producer Eddie F in the mid-1990s and signed with his record label Untouchables Entertainment, beginning his car ...

and

Melanie C Melanie Jayne Chisholm (born 12 January 1974), commonly known as Melanie C or Mel C, is an English singer and songwriter. She rose to fame in the mid-1990s as a member of the pop group the Spice Girls, in which she was nicknamed Sporty Spice. W ...

. The track was written by Lopes,

Salaam Remi Salaam Remi Gibbs (born May 14, 1972) is an American record producer. He is most known for producing material for close associates Nas, Amy Winehouse, and Jazmine Sullivan, but has also produced for other mainstream acts including Alicia Key ...

Maurice White Maurice White (December 19, 1941 – February 4, 2016) was an American musician, best known as the founder, leader, main songwriter and chief producer of the band Earth, Wind & Fire, also serving as the band's co-lead singer with Philip Bailey. ...

, and Tracey Horton, with Remi providing production. The track was first released on July 24, 2001, to American radio as the lead and only single from her solo debut studio album ''Supernova'' (2001), which would only be released internationally. A sample of

Earth, Wind & Fire Earth, Wind & Fire (abbreviated as EW&F or EWF) is an American band formed in Chicago, Illinois in 1969. Their music spans multiple genres, including jazz, R&B, soul, funk, disco, pop, Latin and Afro-pop. They are among the best-selling ba ...

's song "Drum Song" is played throughout the track. The song would receive mixed reception both critically and commercially. While it would crack the top twenty in the United Kingdom and the top-forty in Scotland and the Netherlands, it failed to garner any success in the United States, leading to the cancellation of a planned US-release of ''Supernova''.

Critical reception

Colin Finan of ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' gave the song a mixed-to-unfavorable review, criticizing the lack of a hook and the "sound of whining voices repeating."

Chart performance

"The Block Party" was a commercial failure in the United States, failing to enter any charts in the country. The track would experience its biggest success in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 16 on the UK Singles Chart and spent 5 weeks in total on the chart.

Music video

The music video was directed by

Hype Williams Harold "Hype" Williams (born August 1, 1970) is an American music video and film director, film producer, and screenwriter. Early life Williams was born in Queens. He is of mixed African-American and Honduran descent. He attended Adelphi Univ ...

and Lopes and was shot on July 10, 2001. Lopes said of the video, "We are in the wonderful world of Left Eye and it's in my galaxy, Supernova." Her adopted daughter Snow appeared in the video. The video was released in October 2001 on

MTV UK MTV is a British pay television channel focusing on reality TV and music programming operated by Paramount Networks UK & Australia. The channel launched as part of MTV Networks Europe localisation strategy in 1997. MTV UK (previously MTV UK & I ...

and The Box. It was not released to North America.

Track listing

European and Australian maxi single # "The Block Party" (Radio Mix) – 4:05 # "The Block Party" (Dallas Austin Remix) – 3:54 # "Friends" (featuring Cassandra Lucas) – 4:45 # "Tampered With" (featuring

Wanya Morris Wanyá Jermaine Morris ( ) (born July 29, 1973) is an American singer, best known as a member of the Contemporary R&B, R&B group Boyz II Men. He competed on the Dancing with the Stars (American season 22), twenty-second season of ''Dancing wit ...

and

Shamari Fears Shamari DeVoe ( Fears) is an American singer. DeVoe gained notice in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the girl group Blaque. DeVoe portrayed Lava in the comedy film ''Bring It On'' (2000). She has also appeared on the Bravo reality televisio ...

) – 4:36 UK CD single # "The Block Party" (Radio Mix) – 4:05 # "The Block Party" (Dallas Austin Remix) – 3:54 # "Friends" (featuring Cassandra Lucas) – 4:45 # "The Block Party" (music video - enhanced interactive element) UK cassette single # "The Block Party" (Radio Mix) – 4:05 # "Friends" (featuring Cassandra Lucas) – 4:45

Music video

The music video was directed by

Charts

Release history

2009 version

"Block Party" is the second posthumous single by the late singer

Lisa Lopes Lisa Nicole Lopes (May 27, 1971 – April 25, 2002), also known by her stage name Left Eye, was an American singer and rapper. She was a member of the R&B girl group TLC, alongside Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas. Beside ...

and is the second single from her first posthumous album, ''

Eye Legacy ''Eye Legacy'' is the second and final studio album by singer Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and is her first posthumous release. Released on January 27, 2009, the album contains previously unreleased songs, and remixed songs from ''Supernova'', featuri ...

'' and her third solo single.

History

The song was originally recorded for Lopes' solo debut ''

Supernova A supernova (: supernovae or supernovas) is a powerful and luminous explosion of a star. A supernova occurs during the last stellar evolution, evolutionary stages of a massive star, or when a white dwarf is triggered into runaway nuclear fusion ...

'' and was released as the album's first and only single. The song was reworked and remixed for her first posthumous album, ''

'', and features

Lil Mama Niatia Jessica Kirkland (born October 4, 1989), better known by her stage name Lil Mama, is an American rapper. She experienced top 10 ''Billboard'' placements at 17 with her debut album '' VYP (Voice of the Young People)'' (2008), which debuted ...

. After the first single " Let's Just Do It" failed to chart in the United States, "Block Party" was announced to be released as the second single after its positive critical reception. The song was not released as a single, but rather as a ringtone, along with all the songs of ''Eye Legacy''.

References

External links

LeftEyeLegacy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Black Party, The 2001 songs 2001 debut singles 2009 singles Lil Mama songs Lisa Lopes songs Songs written by Lisa Lopes Songs written by Salaam Remi Music videos directed by Hype Williams Arista Records singles