TLC fans are rallying around Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins after a painful sickle cell flare-up forced the R&B legend to miss a recent concert-and prompted an emotional public prayer from Jodeci's Dalvin "Mr. Dalvin" DeGrate.
T-Boz was noticeably absent when TLC appeared at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center in New York on August 27. Rather than cancel the performance, Rozonda "Chilli" Thomas bravely took the stage without her longtime musical partner and reportedly told the audience that T-Boz was suffering from a sickle cell flare-up.
Chilli carried the concert on her own, with some of T-Boz's prerecorded vocals reportedly incorporated into the performance. However, the sight of one TLC member performing without the other immediately raised concerns about the singer's condition.
Days later, Mr. Dalvin posted a deeply personal video asking fans to pray for his longtime friend.
"I'm asking you, everybody, under the sound of my voice, to ask God to touch her and heal her, that she may have a speedy recovery," the Jodeci star said. He also expressed his hope that T-Boz would regain her strength, return to doing what she loves and experience peace and good health.
"We all love you and we all appreciate you," he added.
The message carried particular weight because Mr. Dalvin and T-Boz have known each other for decades, dating back to the era when TLC and Jodeci dominated the R&B charts. His appeal was not presented as an official medical announcement but as the heartfelt plea of a friend asking fans to stand with T-Boz during another difficult health battle.
T-Boz has lived with sickle cell disease since childhood and has been remarkably candid about the pain and medical crises it has caused throughout her life. She previously revealed that doctors told her she would never live beyond the age of 30 or have children. Instead, she became a mother, a four-time Grammy winner and a member of one of the most successful female groups in music history.
Her health journey has nevertheless been grueling. T-Boz underwent surgery for a benign brain tumor and endured a lengthy recovery. In 2024, she was hospitalized with a severe abdominal blockage caused by scar tissue from an operation performed more than two decades earlier. That emergency forced TLC to cancel several performances, although Watkins later stressed that the blockage was unrelated to sickle cell disease.
Her latest absence has understandably worried fans, but no report has confirmed that T-Boz is currently hospitalized. Neither Watkins nor TLC has released a detailed statement about her present condition or announced when she will return to the stage.
For now, Chilli is holding down TLC's performances while the R&B community surrounds T-Boz with love and prayer. After defying frightening medical predictions for decades, the famously resilient singer is once again being encouraged to put her health first-and take all the time she needs to recover.
