Tameka Dianne Cottle-Harris (néeCottle; born July 14, 1975), known professionally by her nickname Tiny, is an American singer. She rose to fame in the 1990s as a member of the multi-platinum R&B vocal group Xscape. She received a Grammy Award for her writing contributions on the TLC hit "No Scrubs". Cottle is also known for her marriage to T.I. She acquired the nickname "Tiny" due to her small stature of 4'11".
Early life
Cottle was born in College Park, Georgia, to a white (European-American) mother, Dianne Cottle (b. 1945) and a black (African-American) father, Charles "Speedy" Pope (1936–2013). Cottle's father and her uncle, Joseph Pope (1933–1996), formed the R&B group The Tams.[1]
Career
Cottle joined the R&B quartetXscape in 1992 while attending Tri-Cities Performing Arts High School. Xscape was discovered by producer Jermaine Dupri while singing at his birthday celebration in Atlanta, Georgia. Dupri immediately signed the group to his then new record label, So So Def Recordings.
As a member of the group, Cottle has contributed to three of the group's platinum albums: Hummin' Comin' at 'Cha, Off the Hook, and Traces of My Lipstick. As a member of Xscape, she has received two Soul Train Music Awards for Best New R&B Artist and Best R&B Album and the A-Town Music Award for Best Duo/Group. Cottle sang lead vocals on six of Xscape's hit singles: "Understanding", "Do You Want To?", "All I Need", "Love's a Funny Thing", "My Little Secret", and "Am I Dreamin'". She has also recorded on soundtracks for Soul Food, Panther, Bad Boys, and Love Jones. In 1998, after the release of Xscape's third album, Traces of My Lipstick, the band parted ways.
After a five-year hiatus, Cottle reunited with sisters LaTocha and Tamika Scott and added a new member, Kiesha Miles, to release a Xscape album entitled Unchained as well as the single, "What's Up", in 2005.[3]
Cottle is involved in a project with Kiesha Miles called the OMG Girlz. Cottle's daughter, Zonnique, is a part of the musical trio.[4] She appeared in her husband's video for "Hello", along with their family and the OMG Girlz.
In June 2009, Cottle's reality series, Tiny and Toya, made its debut on BET.[5]
On July 22, 2014, Tameka returned to the music industry under her new label Pretty Hustle, with her first solo single "What The Fuck You Gon Do?". Within a few hours of "WTFYGD" being released it reached the number 5 spot on the iTunes R&B/Soul charts, and less than 24 hours after release it became the number one song on the charts for the genre.[6][7]
In 2018, Tiny Harris took a break from her XSCAP3 EP Promo to spend some quality time with her one-year-old daughter Heiress.[8] In 2022, Cottle reunited with Xscape for a performance at the Soul Train Music Awards.[9]
In 2001, Cottle began dating rapper T.I.[11] Cottle and T.I. married on July 30, 2010, in Miami Beach, Florida.[12] They have two sons together: King C’Andre Harris (born August 25, 2004), Major Philant Harris (born May 16, 2008) and a daughter (born March 26, 2016).[11][13][14] Their first daughter was stillborn in 2007, six months into a complicated pregnancy.[15] Cottle also has an older daughter named Zonnique Jailee Pullins from her previous relationship with Zonnie "Zeboe" Pullins.[16][17][18] Through her marriage to T.I., Cottle has three stepchildren, Messiah, Domani, and Deyjah Harris.[19][20]
In December 2011, T.I. & Tiny: The Family Hustle premiered on VH1. The series chronicles the lives of Cottle and T.I. plus their family.
Cottle's father, Charles Pope, died on July 11, 2013, at the age of 76 after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.[21][22]
Tiny and Shekinah's Weave Trip premiered on VH1 on October 13, 2014.[23] The series chronicles Cottle and her best friend, Shekinah Anderson, in a mobile hair salon across the country.
In December 2016, Cottle filed for divorce from T.I. after six years of marriage.[24] However, the couple worked on healing their marriage in 2017 after Tiny spent time with her group Xscape, and Tiny dropped the divorce files stating, "The divorce is off."[25][26]
In 2017, it was announced Cottle would own the Atlanta Heirs basketball team under the newly developed Global Mixed Gender Basketball league, which was founded by rapper Master P.[27] Cottle's team would be a part of its inaugural debut on September 23, 2017, in a neutral match at the Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada, against Master P's own squad, the New Orleans Gators.
In 2024, Cottle's daughter Heiress collaborated with five-year-old VanVan on a song titled Be You.[28]
Legal issues
On September 1, 2010, Cottle and T.I. were arrested following a motor vehicle stop in Los Angeles. The police reported that an odor of burnt marijuana was coming from the vehicle and the couple was found to be in possession of a controlled substance, ecstasy. They posted $10,000 bail.[29]
In 2021, Cottle and her husband T.I. faced sexual assault allegations, with attorney Tyrone A. Blackburn accusing the two and their associates of "forced drugging, kidnapping, rape, and intimidation" in at least two states, including California and Georgia. Blackburn sent letters to the state attorney general of California and Georgia asking them to open an investigation. Cottle and Harris denied the allegations.[30]
