Andre Rison Film Featuring TLC Takes Actress Althea Heart From Singer Pebbles Planned Biopic

August 30. 2022

TLC, Babyface, L.A. Reid and Pebbles in 1991. LaFace Records made music history with the work they released through various artists.

Nearly a year ago former singer/songwriter/manager, Pebbles, famous for R&B hit songs in the 1980s and 1990s, announced she was making a film about her life. Pebbles posted a tweet about it on Twitter. Not long after "Love and Hip Hop" reality star, Althea Heart, revealed she was chosen to play Pebbles in the movie and made reference to working with the legendary singer.

A script was displayed in items posted on social networking. Pebbles later spoke of a battle to get the project going, but stated they had passed a big hurdle regarding it (she stated this in a Facebook video several months ago). The question is what happened.

Althea Heart wrote about starring in a Pebbles biopic, but has since removed some of the posts, and is now in the Andre Rison biopic as Pebbles.

However, now comes word there is an Andre Rison biopic being released called "Wide Open" and he has included Pebbles in the film, with Althea Heart playing the role. There is no more mention of the Pebbles film.

Rison used to date the late rapper, Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes, of the female music trio. TLC, which Pebbles put together, bankrolled, styled and used her connections to get them the top songwriters, producers and directors at that time for their debut. Pebbles also landed them a deal with her husband's LaFace/Artista/BMG record labels, when he stopped her from taking them to MCA Records, where she was signed as a singer.

Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes and Andre Rison

TLC made it big off Pebbles' vision, financing and connections. There would have been no TLC without Pebbles. Arista/BMG grossed nearly a billion dollars from TLC's albums and associated releases. However, trickledown economics were at play and the group were unhappy with the royalties they received (it was a standard royalty rate for any new artist).

Pebbles referred to herself as the fall guy in that scandal and she certainly was, as the lion's share of the TLC revenues went to the top, which is Arista/BMG. Pebbles (production company) and TLC (the recording artists) made the least amount of money in the deal. TLC needed paid touring and endorsements when the first album took off, as that would have provided income to pay all their bills, buy new vehicles and find more suitable places to live.

As the debut album was selling well (4,000,000 copies), Arista/BMG could have cut each member of TLC a check, as they had no money, but they were not about to do that. Labels don't even want to pay what they are legally obligated to issue.

For decades, many artists, songwriters and producers, have demanded audits and filed lawsuit over deliberately poor accounting at record labels, who do their best to conceal profits. Movies studios are much the same (for further reference see the Art Buchwald lawsuit against Paramount Pictures over the film they stole "Coming To America" where they lied in court that a $300,000,000 grossing film made no money).

TLC accused Pebbles of stealing their revenues. However, the majority of the money went to Arista (Clive Davis) and distributor BMG, before anyone else was paid. Even L.A. Reid (Laface) had to admit they waited a long time to get paid by Arista/BMG, about a year, and TLC became agitated (and took it all out on Pebbles). TLC's projects were also very expensive (their music videos cost millions more than the average artist, because they were trying to do big Michael Jackson level productions after they fired Pebbles) and the money had to be recouped by Arista/BMG before they saw a dime. That's the industry standard.

Once again, Arista and BMG could have given TLC more money (even a million dollars per member as a bonus, due to the fact their debut album made roughly $40,000,000). However, they chose not to, as most labels see new artists and their deals as a complete risk they are taking, spending six to seven figures on a debut for unknowns, who walk in off the streets with no money. Labels expect you to earn the bulk of your income from touring and endorsements, not music sales. The labels see touring and endorsements as  publicity as well, which in turn can sell music if done correctly.

Pebbles tweet last year about the movie she later discussed in Facebook video for her ministry

But back to the Pebbles movie. The biopic appears to be derailed and it's a shame. Certain people in Hollywood clearly do not want the project to get made. Pebbles should tell her story in film and clear her name in this matter regarding TLC.

Pebbles saw and did a lot while she was active in the industry. She brought most of the artists and producers to husband, L.A. Reid, whom he signed, but he got the credit as the CEO of LaFace (and Clive Davis got much of the credit as well). While Babyface wrote many of the hit songs on the label, LaFace, which he co-owned with Reid.

Pebbles was a pioneer in music. Pebbles achievements as a woman, and a female minority in America (African-American), were largely overlooked and severely downplayed, which is not right. She brought a few billion in revenues to Arista/BMG, via all the recording artists, songwriters and producers, she brought to her husband at Laface (TLC, Tony Rich, Outkast and Organized Noise, and she had a hand in the careers of other artists on the label as well, such as Toni Braxton, not to mention she helped Bobby Brown with the smash hit album "Don't Be Cruel"). However, Hollywood has a way of resenting, spitting on and disrespecting black women, while claiming to be so liberal, progressive and tolerant.

Deals Pebbles did back then are common today. She was also the one who put Atlanta on the map in terms of urban popularity in America and the entertainment industry. People weren't messing with Atlanta in Hollywood until she moved there, with L.A. and Babyface in tow. That's not an insult to Atlanta, as it is a very pretty place, but Hollywood was focused on Los Angeles and New York.

The entertainment industry really wasn't messing with places in the South such as Atlanta (until Pebbles, L.A. and Babyface moved there and set up the Laface label) and Miami, until the latter had hit TV shows such as "Miami Vice" and "the Golden Girls" as well as recording artists such as Gloria Estefan doing well internationally).

TLC blamed Pebbles for things they knew were out of her control to some degree. Some of it was also jealousy over her looks and money. They wanted to be rich and famous like Pebbles. I think there was some resentment on Pebbles' end as well, due to rumors that later sprang up stating TLC's Chili was messing with her husband, Reid, which is enough to put any woman off (and he was messing with Chili; that's how she got in the group when Reid brought her to Pebbles and told Pebbles to drop the original member, Crystal).

Some of the animosity was also TLC resenting anyone being in control of their careers. However, 99% of people can't storm into the industry and tell managers and labels, who are putting up all the money to make them stars (sometimes millions in funding), what to do.

You're coming into a deal broke, no experience, no connections to get the type of material or team together that you need. You are not going to walk through the door and start calling the shots. It does not happen that way (unless you walk in there already famous and with a lot of money, which is rare, and even then they demand a significant amount of input on your music project, as it is their label's name going on the product).

Groups like TLC have misled the public into thinking the music industry is a charity, when it's a business. Millions of dollars are invested in artists. Therefore, professionals from various areas of entertainment are hired to produce the best product available.

TLC used Pebbles to get their foot in the door. Once they did and the money wasn't coming in fast enough, they fired her. However, they still were contractually obligated to pay her back for the six figures she invested in getting them started and all the work she put in launching their career. Fair is fair. Once again, if it were not for her there would have been no TLC.

Even with Pebbles out of the picture, they still had to follow orders from LaFace, Arista and BMG, which they resented, and still had money problems. They resented that as well. However, it's not your company. You really can't tell labels what to do, as in essence they are acting as a bank financing your career and if you fail/flop on the charts they could be out millions of dollars, that you the artist, do not have to pay back.

Even TLC realized it in the end when they stormed Clive Davis' office at Arista in New York with guns pointed. That was very unprofessional, but Davis had done a lot of artists wrong and probably should have seen that one coming.

Even as big as Whitney Houston was, as a great female recording artist, she still listened to Davis on many things. He kept bringing her hit songs and songwriters/producers with talent. Davis guided her career. I've found many artists have talent to sing, but can't pick hits. Some people have a great ear for music and Davis is one of them. He can pick a hit.

You see it in the film industry as well. Actors/actresses with great stage presence and acting ability, but they pick the worst and dumbest films to star in and they flop one after another, damaging their careers.

In closing, women should be careful. Some men do not have integrity. You try to build them up, help them clean up their personal life and advance their business career, and some will take it for granted, take credit for all your hard work in their life, start going around acting like they are better than everyone else and cheat with other women (i.e. L.A. Reid). Men like this always fall.

My advice to women is work on you and your career. Build up your life and career. Spend time on you. A real man doesn't need you to pull him up out of the gutter. Not to mention, a real man would appreciate the help and show some class about it, rather than taking credit for everything and cheating on you.

I hope the Pebbles movie will still be made. She could have started her own company again after TLC and done big things, but this time inspirational, to compliment her faith (she is a minister now). However, she walked away from Hollywood and apparently entertainment as well. So many people have left Hollywood, as it is a very evil place.

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