Tameka Cottle facts for kids

Tameka Dianne Cottle-Harris (née Cottle; born on July 14, 1975) is an American singer. Many people know her by her nickname, Tiny. She became famous in the 1990s as a member of the popular R&B music group Xscape. Tiny also won a Grammy Award for helping to write the hit song "No Scrubs" for the group TLC. She is also well-known for her marriage to the rapper T.I.. She got the nickname "Tiny" because she is 4 feet 11 inches tall.

Early Life and Family

Tameka Cottle was born in College Park, Georgia. Her mother, Dianne Cottle, is white, and her father, Charles "Speedy" Pope, was African-American. Tiny's father and her uncle, Joseph Pope, were part of an R&B group called The Tams. Music runs in her family!

Tiny's Music Career

Joining Xscape

In 1992, Tiny joined the R&B group Xscape. She was attending Tri-Cities Performing Arts High School at the time. A music producer named Jermaine Dupri discovered Xscape. He heard them singing at his birthday party in Atlanta, Georgia. Dupri quickly signed the group to his new record label, So So Def Recordings.

Success with Xscape

As a member of Xscape, Tiny helped create three very successful albums. These albums sold millions of copies. The albums were Hummin' Comin' at 'Cha, Off the Hook, and Traces of My Lipstick. Xscape won two Soul Train Music Awards for Best New R&B Artist and Best R&B Album. They also won an A-Town Music Award. Tiny sang lead on several of Xscape's hit songs. Some of these include "Understanding" and "My Little Secret." The group also recorded songs for movie soundtracks like Soul Food and Bad Boys. In 1998, after their third album, the group decided to take a break.

Writing Hit Songs

In 2000, Tiny and her Xscape bandmate Kandi Burruss won a Grammy Award. They won for Best R&B Song because they wrote TLC's famous song "No Scrubs". Tiny also won awards from American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. She won for "No Scrubs" and for her work on the song "No Pigeons" by Sporty Thievz. Tiny has also worked with other artists like T.I., Lil' Kim, and Bow Wow.

New Projects and Reunions

After a five-year break, Tiny reunited with some of the Xscape members. They released a new album called Unchained in 2005. Tiny also started a project called the OMG Girlz with Kiesha Miles. Tiny's daughter, Zonnique, is a member of this musical group.

In 2017, Tiny helped write the song "Shape of You" for Ed Sheeran. In 2018, she took a break from promoting her group XSCAP3 to spend time with her daughter, Heiress. In 2022, Tiny performed with Xscape again at the Soul Train Music Awards. In March 2023, Tiny appeared in a reality television show on Bravo called SWV & Xscape: The Queens of R&B.

Tiny's Personal Life

Family Life

In 2001, Tiny started dating the rapper T.I.. They got married on July 30, 2010, in Miami Beach, Florida. Together, they have two sons, King (born in 2004) and Major (born in 2008). They also have a daughter named Heiress (born in 2016). Sadly, their first daughter was stillborn in 2007. Tiny also has an older daughter named Zonnique from a previous relationship. Through her marriage to T.I., Tiny has three stepchildren: Messiah, Domani, and Deyjah.

Reality TV Shows

In December 2011, Tiny and T.I.'s reality show, T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle, started on VH1. The show follows their lives and their family. In October 2014, another show called Tiny and Shekinah's Weave Trip premiered on VH1. This show followed Tiny and her best friend, Shekinah Anderson, as they traveled with a mobile hair salon.

Other Ventures

In 2016, Tiny and T.I. had some challenges in their marriage. However, they worked through them in 2017 and decided to stay together. In 2017, it was announced that Tiny would own a basketball team called the Atlanta Heirs. This team is part of a new league called the Global Mixed Gender Basketball league. In 2024, Tiny's daughter Heiress, who was five years old, worked with another young artist named VanVan on a song called Be You.

Discography

Tiny has released her own songs and has also written many songs for other artists.

• "What The F**k You Gon Do?" (2019)
• "I ... <3 U" (2019)

Writing Credits

Tiny has helped write many songs for other artists, including:

• "No Scrubs" for TLC (1999)
• "No Pigeons" for Sporty Thievz (1999)
• "Shape of You" for Ed Sheeran (2017)
• "SOS" for Avicii (2019)
• "What It Is (Block Boy)" for Doechii (2023)