TLC to release fifth and final album in 2017

Feb. 28 (UPI) -- Iconic girl group TLC will release their fifth and final album in 2017.

Surviving members Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins and Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas plan to release the Kickstarter-funded album in June, according to manager Bill Diggins.

"On behalf of TLC and myself I want to express our most sincere thanks for your patience on waiting for the album. I am thrilled to let you know that the album is tentatively scheduled to be released at the end of June," Diggins wrote in an update on Kickstarter.

"This album could not have happened without your support and your confidence in TLC has inspired us greatly to make the best album possible," he added. "We would have loved to have delivered this album sooner to you but we are confident that you will agree that it was worth the wait when you hear it."

"Tboz & Chilli were inspired to make a record that they could be proud of and they would not settle for less and sometimes you just cannot rush art," Diggins explained. "They demanded of themselves a record that would stand up to the great body of work created in the past and that you would be proud of."

Fans had contributed over $430,000 after T-Boz and Chilli launched the Kickstarter in January 2015. The pair said at the time that the album -- their first without late member Lisa "Left Eye Lopes -- will "stay true" to their original sound.

"Our final album will stay true to the TLC sound, always confronting the real issues and life experiences that we all must face every single day, everywhere. We write music that people relate to...timeless music. No matter the trends, we feel like our music is always relevant," the singers said.

"It is ESSENTIAL that we create our final album completely on our own terms, without any restrictions, with YOU," they explained of the fundraiser.

T-Boz, Chilli and Left Eye, who died at age 30 in 2002, formed TLC in 1991 and released their debut album, Ooooooohhh... On the TLC Tip, the next year. T-Boz celebrated the record's 25th anniversary this week on Instagram.

"Wow!! 25 years ago it all started!! Who still listens to this album?!! #TLC #tbeezy #Tboz," she wrote.