An Ejyptian Story
Music has touched the hearts of millions worldwide for generations and has inspired listeners in numerous ways. Some, with a passion for discovering sounds that move them, while others with a dedication toward creating those sounds. For the group EJYPT, consisting of Joy Lonon and sisters Katrina “Kat” Gibson and Sophia “SoSo” Gibson, generating music is where their passion lies and is what their future holds, and thanks to their mentor Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes, they are dedicated toward bringing their dreams to life.
Katrina “Kat” Gibson, Sophia “SoSo” Gibson and Joy Lonon formed their musical trio when they were elementary school classmates in Philadelphia, Penn. Though young, their musical talents won them numerous awards, including the Coca-cola True Talent Artist Search. “I love music because I've been around it all of my life,” Kat said. Echoing each-others words, the three women agreed and said music is not just their talent, but their passion.
While growing up, Kat and SoSo met an older girl at their church by the name of Lisa Lopes. Both Lopes’ family and the Gibson family attended the same church and met one-another there. (Little did they know, Lopes would become their mentor years later).
As SoSo, Katrina and Lonon got older, their musical ambitions grew. At the time, Kyle Young, a celebrity clothing designer, who is also Lopes' uncle, managed the girls and reintroduced them to Lopes. (This was Lonon and Lopes’ first time meeting each other). "We met up with Lisa in New York City in 2001 at a restaurant to sing for her," Lonon said. "When I saw her, the first thing that came to my mind was, 'Wow, she is really small in person and very pretty.' I was a little nervous to sing for her but I pulled it together."
After their New York City meeting, Lopes instantly loved the girls and decided to fly them to Atlanta to start working on their first demo. Lonon, Kat and SoSo said Lopes was devoted toward their artistic talents and wanted to help them achieve their goals.
Though they worked hard, the four of them shared a lot of funny moments together.
"We played a joke on Lisa the first night we got to Atlanta," SoSo said. "Joy and Kat dressed me as a boy and had me knock on Lisa's door to pretend I was a rapper who really wanted her to hear me. She called the producers on me, not knowing they were in on it, and they pretended to beat me up. Then she was like, ‘Y'all playin' a joke,’ and was laughing.”
The laughs were endless and the music was real. Lopes looked out for the trio and cared for their well-being - both as artists and as three young women she loved deeply.
Soon after traveling to Atlanta to work on their demo, Lopes helped the group accomplish a goal they had been working toward since they were children: a record deal. Lopes got the group signed to DreamWorks Records, and in addition to that, she also gave them their name – EJYPT.
“[Lisa] said that EJYPT fit us well because of our image and strong harmony, which reminded her of the Egyptian woman,” Kat said. “She would say we reminded her of royalty, so the image that she had in mind for us had a lot to do with how the Egyptians would dress and carry themselves.”
EJYPT spent countless hours with Lopes perfecting their craft, but according to them, Lopes wanted more for them than just a musical career. She wanted the three young artists to have a career they enjoyed, and that meant finding fulfillment in life through health. “[Lisa] taught us a lot about how to eat healthy and stay in shape, and she did all of that in a positive way,” Kat said. “That’s part of the reason why she planned the trip to Honduras.”
“Her goal was to get us mentally, physically and spiritually ready for the music industry,” Lonnon added.
Lopes had a vision in mind for EJYPT and made sure Lonon, Kat and SoSo were equally involved in the brainstorming process. When the girls, along with other friends and family, traveled to Honduras with Lisa in 2002, EJYPT said they knew one of their goals was to go through the artistic development process, but never could have imagined the closeness they would gain – both as a musical group and on a sisterhood level with Lisa.
“When we were in Honduras, Lisa gave us all stage names that defined our character and mine was “Isis,” Soso said. “We split into groups to do one of the relay races she planned for us and I was on her team. [Lisa] yelled, ‘Yeah, we gon’ win. We got Isis on our team.'" This was one of many moments SoSo, Kat and Lonon described as being “extremely meaningful” to them because they knew Lopes was more than a musical mentor. They saw her as an older sister and looked up to her, and knew she loved them.
Though EJYPT had been harmonizing for years, their musical career was just taking off and the group’s every-day schedule was jam-packed busy. Yet while in Honduras, the women said they were reminded of the importance of reflecting on their every-day experiences. This was a valuable lesson Lisa taught them – not just through words, but through her actions. According to SoSo, they had never experienced such a unique trip and wanted Lopes to know how thankful they were. “We all snuck and wrote her nice letters to thank her for everything,” SoSo said. “To get her out of her room so that we could put them on her bed without her knowing, we told her that we saw monkeys in the tree outside of the huts. We had her looking for 3 minutes. Then, she went in and saw [the letters], and asked with excitement, ‘Y’all did this?”
The world knows of the heartache that happened to Lopes in Honduras, but has rarely been introduced to the positive, spiritual journey she helped create for friends and family she took there. Honduras was a special place to Lopes and she took EJYPT, along with other friends and family, to give them the same spiritual awakening she experienced before. Though EJYPT lost someone very special to them, they now had a new mission. Their goal no longer revolved around just a career in music. EJYPT was and is to this day dedicated toward honoring their mentor through everything they do as a group and as individuals.
Lonon, SoSo and Kat carry an abundance of memories of Lopes that will never leave their heart, and said they miss her, but will never forget the many lessons she bestowed upon them.
“The memories are always and forever, and I can't help but shed tears sometimes. We love her so much and she is forever in our hearts, and I thank God that we had a chance to know such a beautiful angel.” – Kat Gibson
“Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopes died in a tragic car accident going out her way to do something special for us. If I had a chance to talk to Lisa one last time, I would tell her ‘thanks so much for believing in us and loving us unconditionally.’” – Joy Lonon
“Thank you for teaching me the importance of taking care of my body, how to make it in this industry, how to be myself and for showing us that we were all equal in your eyes. Thank you for helping me realize that I am special. Thank you for our name. I love you.” – SoSo Gibson
Today, EJYPT is in the studio working on new music. Though their record deal with DreamWorks was short-lived, the group’s motivation has never revolved around a large platform. Their goal, along with Lopes’, was to create music with meaning and focus on touching as many lives as they could.
via Loving Left Eye
