3LW (

initialism An acronym is a word or name formed from the initial components of a longer name or phrase. Acronyms are usually formed from the initial letters of words, as in ''NATO'' (''North Atlantic Treaty Organization''), but sometimes use syllables, as ...

of "3 Lil Women") was an American

girl group A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...

formed in 1999 by Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and

Naturi Naughton Naturi Cora Maria Naughton (born May 20, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Naughton is best known as one-third of the Contemporary R&B, R&B group 3LW and for her acting roles in the films ''Fame (2009 film), Fame'' and ''Notor ...

. Jessica Benson later replaced Naughton after she left the group in 2002. 3LW was signed to the label

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

, and later moved to So So Def. They are best known for their singles " No More (Baby I'ma Do Right)", " Playas Gon' Play" and " I Do (Wanna Get Close to You)".

History

1999–2001: ''3LW''

In 1999, the group 3LW was formed by sisters Michelle & Tse Williams. Michelle's daughter & Tse's younger sister/niece Kiely Williams was the first member into the lineup and the group would soon be rounded out by Adrienne Bailon &

, with both Michelle and Tse as head of the group's management. Their debut single, " No More (Baby I'ma Do Right)", was released in the fall of 2000. "No More (Baby I'ma Do Right)" was a chart success, and was followed by " Playas Gon' Play" in early 2001. The group's self-titled debut album, ''

3LW 3LW (initialism of "3 Lil Women") was an American girl group formed in 1999 by Adrienne Bailon, Kiely Williams, and Naturi Naughton. Jessica Benson later replaced Naughton after she left the group in 2002. 3LW was signed to the label Epic Recor ...

'' was released on December 5, 2000. The album went on to be certified platinum by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

, selling 1.3 million copies in the US. In the summer of 2001, the group embarked on the

MTV MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...

Total Request Live Tour along with

Destiny's Child Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final line-up comprised Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Houston, Texas. After years of limited ...

, Dream,

Nelly Cornell Iral Haynes Jr. (born November 2, 1974), better known by his stage name Nelly, is an American rapper, singer, actor and entrepreneur. He embarked on his music career with the hip hop group St. Lunatics in 1993 and signed to Universal ...

, Eve, and

Jessica Simpson Jessica Ann Simpson (born July 10, 1980) is an American singer, actress, entrepreneur and philanthropist. After performing in church choirs as a child, Simpson signed with Columbia Records in 1997, aged seventeen. Her debut studio album, '' Swe ...

. In 2001, 3LW recorded " What More Can I Give" as part of a

supergroup Supergroup or super group may refer to: * Supergroup (music), a music group formed by artists who are already notable or respected in their fields * Supergroup (physics), a generalization of groups, used in the study of supersymmetry * Supergroup ...

of various artists including Michael Jackson,

Reba McEntire Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955), or simply Reba, is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed " the Queen of Country", she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide. Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 single ...

Usher Usher may refer to: Several jobs which originally involved directing people and ensuring people are in the correct place: * Usher (occupation) ** Church usher ** Wedding usher, one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony ** Fiel ...

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

, Céline Dion, and

Mariah Carey Mariah Carey (; born March 27, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the " Songbird Supreme", she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style and signature use of the whi ...

in response to the September 11 attacks. In late 2001 they collaborated with Lil' Romeo and Nick Cannon for "Parents Just Don't Understand" on the '' Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius'' soundtrack. 3LW spent the first half of 2002 in the studio, recording an album tentatively titled ''Same Game, Different Rules''. The album and its intended lead single "Uh Oh" were presented to the label, who felt it did not have enough urban radio appeal. The tracks from ''Same Game, Different Rules'' were leaked to the Internet in MP3 format, and Epic considered dropping the girls. A fan support campaign for 3LW named 'Never Let Go Of 3LW' (after their song "Never Let Go") gained traction, and the act was retained.

2002–2003: ''A Girl Can Mack'' and Naughton departure

Recording a new set of tracks, the group returned in the summer of 2002 with the P. Diddy-produced single " I Do (Wanna Get Close To You)", featuring

Loon Loons (North American English) or divers (British / Irish English) are a group of aquatic birds found in much of North America and northern Eurasia. All living species of loons are members of the genus ''Gavia'', family Gaviidae and order Gavi ...

. That same summer, the group performed a concert special on Nickelodeon titled ''Live on Sunset''. By August, the group was set to release its newest LP, ''

A Girl Can Mack ''A Girl Can Mack'' is the second studio album by American girl group 3LW. A follow-up to their self-titled debut album (2000), it was released by Epic Records on October 22, 2002. With ''A Girl Can Mack'', the group attempted to shed their you ...

'', when member Naughton left the group. In an interview on Wendy Williams' radio show, Naughton alleged that she had a number of conflicts with Bailon, Williams, and their management, which led to an August 2002 altercation involving a plate of food from

KFC KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) is an American fast food restaurant chain headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky, that specializes in fried chicken. It is the world's second-largest restaurant chain (as measured by sales) after McDonald's, with 2 ...

. Naughton later claimed that she was forced out of the group. Williams and Bailon continued as a duo while using the "3LW" name, causing the press to jokingly refer to them as "2LW". The departure of Naughton greatly affected the group's popularity and album sales. According to a cover story for the October 2002 issue of ''Sister 2 Sister'' magazine, Williams and Bailon said they received death threats. ''A Girl Can Macks release date was pushed back a month and debuted at No. 15 on the ''Billboard'' 200 with 53,000 copies sold in the first week. After the second single released from the album, " Neva Get Enuf", underperformed, the group released a Christmas-themed LP '' Naughty or Nice'', which failed to appear on any major ''Billboard'' charts. After nationwide auditions for a new third member, fifteen year old Jessica 'J' Benson was selected as the third member and made her first appearance with the group in March 2003.

2003–2006: Canceled third album and breakup

In the midst of 3LW's public drama, Bailon and Williams signed on to star in the

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...

original movie ''

The Cheetah Girls The Cheetah Girls may refer to: * The Cheetah Girls (franchise), a series of young adult novels by Deborah Gregory and the spin-offs made from the novels, including a film series ** ''The Cheetah Girls'' (film), a 2003 Disney Channel Original Movie ...

'' in 2003, alongside Raven-Symoné and Sabrina Bryan. Due to the group's success, Disney decided to turn the project into a real girl band. As

the Cheetah Girls The Cheetah Girls may refer to: * The Cheetah Girls (franchise), a series of young adult novels by Deborah Gregory and the spin-offs made from the novels, including a film series ** ''The Cheetah Girls'' (film), a 2003 Disney Channel Original Movie ...

project grew, with albums released and world tours, 3LW was on 3 years of hiatus. The progress on 3LW's third studio album, titled ''Point of No Return'', became a background for Bailon and Williams and was delayed several times. Only on August 15, 2006, after four years, the group released their new single, " Feelin' You". Despite this, ''Point of No Return'' was shelved and Bailon and Williams continued working on The Cheetah Girls. On January 7, 2008, Bailon confirmed in an interview with BlogTalkRadio that 3LW officially disbanded in 2007, after the release of "Feelin' You". In 2022, three previously unreleased songs recorded in 2003-2005 – Trouble", "After This" and "How U Gonna Act" – were released on iTunes.

In popular culture

* 3LW are featured as bonus characters in the 2001 video game '' NBA Street''. * In January 2001, 3LW appeared in an episode of the Nickelodeon series '' Taina'' as a fictional girl group (along with the same name of this episode) called ''Blue Mascara'' where the main character ( Christina Vidal) is overjoyed to become a member of the popular all-female singing group at school until they tell her that she must get rid of Renee (Khaliah Adams). * In October 2001, 3LW appeared on the

series '' The Jersey'' in the episode "Speaking of Coleman" where after freaking out at a debate competition, Coleman Galloway ( Jermaine Williams) gets a lesson in handling stage fright by jumping into the body of one of the three members of the group which in general was Kiely Williams. * In November 2002, 3LW appeared in an episode of the Nickelodeon sketch comedy series '' All That''.

Past members

* Kiely Williams (1999–2007) * Adrienne Bailon (1999–2007) *

(1999–2002) * Jessica Benson (2003–2007)

Discography

;Studio albums * ''

'' (2000) * ''

'' (2002) * '' Naughty or Nice'' (2002) * ''Point of No Return'' (shelved)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

3LW
on MySpace {{DEFAULTSORT:3lw Musical groups established in 2000 Musical groups disestablished in 2006 So So Def Recordings artists Epic Records artists American contemporary R&B musical groups American pop girl groups American girl groups Teen pop groups 1999 establishments in New Jersey