Broken Promises, Promises: The Rise And Demise Of 3LW

Naturi Naughton and Adrienne Bailon may be regular fixtures on our TV screens nowadays but we became familiar with both ladies when the R&B trio 3LW, which included Kiely Williams, joined forces in 1999.

While the ladies have all moved on from their pop star days, their issues were dug up recently when Naughton appeared on The Real, which Bailon co-hosts. The 33-year-old was there to promote her successful Starz’s show Power. While sitting down with the ladies, Bailon publicly acknowledged their old beef that was squashed. 

Soon after, Williams mother Michelle Williams jumped on social media to say her piece. Williams managed Joe and Jodeci before taking on her daughter’s group and was said to been a huge source of contention between the girls. 

So of course, we had to delve deeper into what fractured their relationship…

2000:

Bailon, Naughton and Williams became a popular group of the early 2000s and even went on tour alongside Destiny’s Child and Nelly. Their biggest hits were “No More” and “Playa’s Gon’ Play”. Their debut self-titled album was certified platinum by the RIAA, selling 1.3 million copies in the US. But things didn’t remain peachy for the trio for too long.

2002:

Rumors began to swirl that Naughton and Williams didn’t get along behind the scenes, and soon after the group released their summer 2002 hit “I Do (Wanna Get Close To You)”, it was being reported that Naughton had left the group. Due to the drama, 3LW’s second album, A Girl Can Mack, was even put on hold.

Right before the album was released, Naughton went on The Wendy Williams Experience (Williams’ radio show prior to her TV show debut) to set the record straight. 

She revealed to Wendy Williams that she got in an altercation with Williams that resulted in Williams throwing a “hot plate of food” at her, and that she was forced to leave the group. However, Naughton didn’t let the downfall dim the light on her future career. 

2002-2007:

After Naughton’s dismissal from the group, Bailon and Williams continued performing in 3LW and ended up replacing Naughton with Jessica Benson. After being approached by Disney, Bailon and Williams starred in the film The Cheetah Girls with Raven-Symoné and Sabrina Bryan. The success of the soundtrack prompted Disney to turn the girls into a real-life singing group who retained success until around 2008. Raven-Symoné didn’t join the group due to her solo career.

During the same time Naughton initially had hardship and eventually went back to school, easing her way into acting. 

2009-now:

Naughton’s big breakout role was playing Lil’ Kim in Notorious followed by a role in the 1980 remake film, Fame. She’s now playing the wife of James St. Patrick, a.k.a. Ghost (played by Omari Hardwick) on 50 Cent’s hit show Power. Currently she’s expecting her first baby with her longtime love, Ben.

After the disbandment of 3LW and then The Cheetah Girls, Bailon did various acting cameos and even had her own reality series with her friend Julissa on the now-defunct Style Network. In 2013, Bailon became a co-host of the daytime talk show The Real. She also married gospel singer Israel Houghton last November in Paris.

Williams went on to have a minor singing and acting career and also got married late last year. In a 2012 interview with Madame Noire, Williams said she was writing music through her creative direction company to help up-and-coming artists.