Spice Girls

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Spice Girls

Spice Girls, vocal pop stars of the late 1990s. Membership: Mel “Scary Spice” B. (real name, Melanie Janine Brown) (b. Leeds, England, May 29, 1975); Mel “Sporty Spice” C. (real name, Melanie Jayne Chisolm) (b. Liverpool, England, Jan. 12, 1974); Victoria “Posh Spice” Adams (b. Hertfordshire, England, April 17, 1975); Emma Lee “Baby Spice” Bunton (b. Barnet, England, Jan. 21, 1978); Geri “Ginger Spice” Halliwell (b. Hertfordshire, England, Aug. 18, 1970).

One of the most popular English exports since the Beatles, between 1996 and 1998 the Spice Girls became a pop culture phenomenon. Their images were on girls clothing, Christmas ornaments, and tons of licensed products. However, like many other pop phenomena, the group quickly faded.

The group’s members had all been performing around London as singers or dancers since their preteens. They met at an audition, answering an ad for “lively girls for a pop act.” When that didn’t work out, they decided to form their own group and started writing pop ditties.

They took a house together in Berkshire and honed their act. Annie Lennox’s manager Simon Fuller signed them and in turn got them a recording contract with Virgin. The band was heavily promoted in the press. Their slogan “Girl Power” appealed to pre-adolescent girls everywhere, as did their colorful costumes. Their debut single, 1996’s “Wannabe,” with its incredibly catchy rap chorus of “tell me what you want, what you really, really want” debuted at #;1 in the English charts. They followed this with “Say You’ll Be There.” Their third single, “2 Become 1,” topped the English charts over the 1997 New Year. A month later, they broke in the U.S. “Wannabe” reached #;1 in just four weeks, and their eponymous debut zoomed to the top of the charts as well. They made their live debut before millions on Saturday Night Live. Soon, their videos were dominating MTV airplay.

The group followed their smash debut with a second album, Spiceworld, and the movie of the same name. Around this time they dumped their manager and decided to manage themselves. The movie Spiceworld opened to huge crowds over the 1998 New Year’s holiday. The hit “Stop” reached #;2 in the U.K., their first single to fall short of #;1. In the spring of 1998, Halliwell left the group to go solo, under somewhat mysterious circumstances. Only one single, “Viva Forever” has emerged from the band in her wake. Mel B cut a duet with hip-hop star Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliot, “I Want You Back,” which rocketed to the top of the U.K. charts. Halliwell’s solo debut, Schizophonic, was released in 1999. The singles “Mi Chico Latino,” “Bag It Up,” and “Lit Me Up” topped the U.K. charts; however, these songs barely made a dent in the U.S.