It鈥檚 the 90s, and girl bands All Saints, Eternal and the Spice Girls battle to become chart toppers. As girlband mania goes global, who will come out on top and at what cost?
Girlbands Forever explores the inside story from artists and management of being in a British girlband from the 1990s to the 2010s.
Here's what the girls had to say...
abigail.hill@multitudemedia.co.uk / isabelle.martin@multitudemedia.co.uk
Heidi Range
You joined Sugababes in its second iteration; how did it feel stepping into a group with an existing identity?
I loved the music from the first Sugababes record, so getting signed by a major record label and writing and recording songs together with the girls was just a dream come true. I had finally got my big break!
Why did you, Keisha and Mutya work well together as a group and what was the dynamic like?
Our sound was very much focused around the three part harmonies and our voices are very different, but blended really well together. We were just three teenage girls who passionately loved to sing.
Not long after you joined the group, the band had their first number one hit. What was it like being catapulted into the limelight?
I grew up singing my entire life and dreaming that one day I would 鈥榤ake it鈥�. It was only a matter of weeks from first joining the band, I was standing on stage at the MTV Awards in Frankfurt, presenting Eminem with an award. It was mind blowing how my life had changed overnight. Cut to a few months later and our first single together, Freak Like Me went in straight at Number 1! It was everything I鈥檇 ever dreamt of and more.
The lineup changed several times during your time, how did that impact your experience in the group?
Each lineup change happened for different reasons and each time it was difficult to deal with. I was part of the group for almost 11 years and I guess it鈥檚 inevitable that within any job over that period of time, people, their circumstances and their needs change and there鈥檚 nothing you can do about it if someone chooses that they want something else.
When you look back at your time in the band, what moment stands out as the highlight?
Looking back now, it was all a highlight really. I spent my twenties travelling the world, writing and performing music with so many incredible artists. I am really proud of what we achieved together.
One performance that really stands out for me though was performing at Nelson Mandela鈥檚 90th Birthday in Hyde Park. The night before the concert, all the artists were invited to take a guest to a pre-show dinner with him and I took my Nan. I asked our glam team to do her hair and makeup, she wore a fabulous dress and then we went to the dinner together. It was the most incredible evening and I鈥檒l never forget spending that special time with her.
Another stand out moment was being the first girl band to play the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury in 2003. We were terrified and there was a debate taking place on the radio about whether a pop band should be allowed to perform there as we were driving to the site. We thought we might get bottles of pee thrown at us, but it was absolutely mega. As soon as we came off stage, we all wanted to go straight back on and do it all again.
Amelle Berrabah
What was your favourite era or song of Sugababes to perform?
My favourite would be About You Now, because I felt like I earned my right to claim it, I was fully in the band. People would introduce it as a song by Amelle, Heidi and Keisha. In those moments I felt that I'd done it and I really came out of myself at that point. I loved performing other songs too but About You Now meant more to me than any other song.
You joined Sugababes in a bit of a whirlwind, what was that entry into the band like for you? And what was it like being catapulted into the spotlight?
The entry was absolutely mental. I was doing so many showcases, and I got a deal, then got dropped. I was on a rollercoaster and travelling back and forth from London. Then this guy that I knew who was a manager of a band called me and asked 鈥楥an you come in tomorrow? This opportunity is big, so huge babes鈥︹�� But he didn鈥檛 tell me what the job was. Once I got to Parsons Green, he told me what it was. I was in complete shock. He said 鈥楥an you go in the studio now?鈥�. It was so quick, and I never went home again. Even his wife had to buy me clothes and a toothbrush - I lived in a hotel!
Where was home for you at the time?
Aldershot, Hampshire, so quite a massive difference. Living in the hotel by myself was odd, I'd come from a very big family and we always had family over. I'm one of six children, and I am really, really, close with my mum. It was a very strange feeling, but I was also really excited and nervous.
Do you think the frequent lineup changes helped or hurt the group in the long run?
The band had been around for so long. Keisha had been in the band since she was a young teenager, and people change. People have different priorities in life. I don鈥檛 think it was a revolving belt constantly of different people, but on paper, it was too many. If one member didn't want to be in the band, but people still wanted to listen to the music, and the music was still doing so well, they weren鈥檛 going to say 鈥榞uys you need to give up your dreams forever鈥�. Mutya came and saw me at CD:UK, my very first TV appearance. She said 鈥榙on't worry, it's gonna be okay鈥�. I felt very at ease, because I kind of got her blessing.
I think maybe towards the very end, when it got a little bit messy, things started coming apart. That's what sparked something, it wasn't Jade, it had nothing to do with her. I feel sorry for her that she didn't get her real opportunity. I think me and Heidi were at that point of feeling like 鈥業 think we're done for a bit鈥�, and we weren't sure if we were ever going to come back, but it was something that we didn't want to do anymore at that point.
Reflecting on your career with the Sugababes, what stands out as your proudest moment?
There's so many! The feeling of just performing to a crowd, I鈥檇 be singing and looking at all these people and I couldn't believe it. It happened over and over and over again. Doing a performance for Nelson Mandela and meeting him was unbelievable, we got to meet the most incredible people. I loved doing lots for charity, travelling around the world, there's so many things for different reasons.
My mom loved visiting the cold countries with me, she hates the heat. When I brought my family away with me it would make my heart smile seeing them have a good time, like the look in my mom's eyes when I brought her to Switzerland. Her face would just light up, those are the little stitched memories into my heart, and my proudest moments.
Kelle Bryan
Eternal were pioneers for UK girlbands, especially as an interracial group, how did that shape your experience?
It shaped the experience the whole way through, from beginning to end. At the beginning I was quite naive to the knock on effects, because Louise was my friend from school, so I never really thought about her as anything other than just my mate. There was a disparity of interest towards Louise as opposed to us.
On stage, Louise was properly lit, we weren't. They would have makeup for Louise but not for us. Those kinds of disparities were very evident. But on the flip side, when we went to America, there were times where they would focus on the rest of us. The whole way through, it was peppered with all kinds of nuances and difficulties, racism and unconscious bias.
What was it like working with your school friend Louise?
It was so much fun. She was the oldest in class and I was the youngest, and we鈥檇 always joke that 鈥榳hen you're 70, I'll be 69鈥�. I have a picture at BeBe Winans鈥� house and you can see all of his awards in the background, which is where we sat around writing things like Crazy. It's quite something looking at those photos. Being with a friend and being able to have those experiences together was quite amazing. Our mums were close as well, they would talk and say, 鈥楬ave you spoken to the girls?鈥�, so from that perspective, it was really nice.
Musically, what set Eternal apart from the other girlbands at the time?
When we started there wasn't anyone before us. It was Bananarama, and Mel and Kim were on the scene. At the time, we proved that girlbands could be successful. Then a whole plethora of groups came after us. In the States, there were SWV and En Vogue, we met them when we started doing promotion in America.
It was quite a strange time, because you're not realising that you鈥檙e driving things forward for women, you're just doing the best you can to keep sane and keep working. The schedule was brutal, but you don't realise you're starting a trend, making history or starting a legacy. You're too busy working, because it was lots of hard work!
What legacy did Eternal leave on the girlband scene?
So there's an artist called Laura Mvula and she's amazing. It sounds weird but, for whatever reason she's inspired by what I did in my career, and she attributes some of her success to us. She invited me to go see her when she was doing a live performance for 蜜芽传媒 Radio 2 at Symphony Hall and I went with my kids. I've never witnessed anything quite so outstanding as her performance. I can't tell you how incredible she is. I left her a message thanking her so much for the tickets, and she sent me a beautiful and heartfelt voice message back which really affected me.
Another person who does that kind of thing is Emeli Sand茅, and Jessie J did just the other day. I can't bear the compliments because it feels surreal. Back in the day, we were just getting on with it, I was in the trenches. I really wasn't thinking about anyone other than get up, don't cry. When it was at its peak you鈥檙e thinking 鈥業 can鈥檛 sleep in this bed because though it's not my bed鈥� and the jet lag was so hard, we were just surviving.
When you hear kind stuff like that from Laura, you're just like, 鈥榳hat?鈥�. I think it's because there weren't very many people like us around at the time, and we had gospel roots and sang harmonies, and the music was very R&B led, and you just couldn鈥檛 break through the charts with that kind of music back in the 90s.
Reflecting on your career with Eternal, what stands out as your proudest moment?
After apartheid was abolished, we performed at a concert in Cape Town, although it's hard to call it a concert, because it was so much more than that. There were thousands and thousands of people there, it was like a sea of people as far back as my eyes could see, that were the majority black, which, again, is extraordinary, and there were posters saying 鈥楩ree At Last鈥�.
I remember just going, 鈥榳ow鈥�. I'd never experienced anything like that, this was pre Covid, all the wars happening in the world right now, so that kind of thing just was so alien. That's probably one of the memories that's really ingrained in my head, because it was just so starkly different to anything else. The people at the concert were so exuberant and joyous because the cloud that they'd been under for so many years was finally broken, and we were just there singing.
Kerry Katona
How did being in a girlband prepare (or not prepare) you for fame?
It didn't really prepare me. I didn't get used to the fame side of things until I was in my 30s. If anything, I still get a bit of PTSD from it. Back then I had so many skeletons in my closet, with the glamour modelling, the foster homes, the refuges, the drug abuse. You were made to feel almost like your career would be ruined, that you've f***ed everything up. You just hope that you鈥檙e going down the right road. I think it took me a long, long time to get used to fame because I was only in the girl band for one album, so after that, the pressures of fame got worse.
You left Atomic Kitten just as they had their big breakthrough, what was that experience like for you?
You鈥檝e got to generate a lot of press for an album to take off. I think me announcing I was pregnant to a boy band member and then announcing I was leaving generated press that they never could have got really. It was my number one, it was my vocals, it was my song. If I were to do it all again, I would have still left, I knew exactly what I was doing. I was grateful that I had a number one single, but I got a bigger number one, which was my daughter Molly. I always knew I wanted to be a mother and a wife. Once I fell pregnant with Molly, the press were surrounding that and my relationship with Brian, and it kind of overtook the band鈥� It wasn't about Atomic Kitten anymore, so leaving was the right thing to do.
Were you surprised when you left the band that the press interest carried on with you and Brian?
Yeah, I wish the girls nothing but love and joy and success, but interest in me and Brian was like a running thing throughout Atomic Kitten, really. I never expected in a million years that I'd be here today, after nearly 25 years, and it was more that my personal life and my downfalls followed me. If the press latches on to you, then there is not much you can do about it, but I still find it really bizarre. I left a million and one years ago, but it just kind of kept following me. Now I just know how to deal with it really.
Thinking back to your girlband days, what are you most proud of?
When I think of what I went through with those girls. We went through something so unique together, it was such a one off experience. I think being a kid from a foster home, I still get imposter syndrome, even now because I'm still doing what I do. Doing it with Tash and Liz was amazing for me. We were like sisters, we would fight and then kiss and make up.
I think it was creating the memories I made with the girls behind the scenes that was so special, we had so much fun together. I was always here, there and everywhere growing up, in foster homes and refuges, and then I found the girls. I felt like I was a part of something. To be travelling the world constantly but doing it with two girls who I fell madly in love with, my baby sisters. It was really, really special for me.
Melanie Blatt
How did you shape the All Saints鈥� sound and what made you stand out?
The All Saints sound grew very organically. We were listening to a lot of Hip-hop and R&B from the states, so that was always going to be a huge influence. Shaz and I also grew up listening to all sorts of music from Reggae to Funk to Jungle. Shaz has an amazing talent for writing, and once we met K-Gee, who we spent almost two years in the studio with before we got signed to London Records, it was a match made in heaven and with him we created that All Saints sound.
What鈥檚 something from your girlband years that you鈥檙e really proud of?
I鈥檓 proud of what we achieved without really having a game plan. We loved making music fundamentally and that led to a few years of craziness which changed our lives forever. We didn鈥檛 really play the game and I suppose that makes me proud!
Natasha Hamilton
Atomic Kitten had huge commercial success, what do you think made your group connect with audiences so strongly?
I just think we were 鈥楾he Girls Next Door鈥�. We were very raw and real. The Spice Girls had huge success being individual characters and that really appealed to people. On the other hand, we were wearing the same clothes as everyone else, the same hairstyles, we were very relatable. We were given just three hours of media training one afternoon, so people used to think we were silly and it was very apparent that we were just living our best lives. I think girls just loved that. We were girls hanging out with mates singing great pop songs, and that just really connected with the young people.
You became a mother during your time in Atomic Kitten, what are your thoughts on how the music industry deals with motherhood?
I can't really comment on how it deals with it now, because I don't know. I'm hoping people have learned from back then that to keep a young woman away from their baby, is probably not going to end in a very positive way. It's going to end in resentment, postnatal depression, and I'd like to think the duty of care towards women within the industry in general is now a lot more caring and understanding. It鈥檚 a multi-billion dollar business, but you're also working with human beings, so let's put the human first before the money.
What was the biggest misconception about Atomic Kitten?
That we were always fighting and there was a lot of bitchiness going on. I was on tour with my sisters. Yes, we argued. Who doesn't argue with their siblings? It came from a place of love and a place of being in each other's pockets 24/7, you're going to annoy each other. You need a bit of space, but you don't get it, so you're going to end up sniping. We always made up with each other, so it wasn't as bitchy as people thought. We were very much sisters.
Looking back, what are you most proud of from your girlband years?
Honestly, that I can still sit here in one piece and be a fully functioning person, because there was a time where I thought, 鈥榃ill I ever recover from this?鈥�. Physically and mentally it is really intense and it's overwhelming, but it just makes you more robust, and now I've come full circle. I've launched my own record label. I'm going to be looking after the next generation of young UK pop acts. I wouldn鈥檛 be able to do it properly if it weren鈥檛 for the experiences I鈥檝e had. The duty of care is huge for me.
Su-Elise Nash
Mis-Teeq blended R&B with garage, a sound that really stood out. How intentional was that fusion?
When we started, the fusion wasn鈥檛 calculated, it was organic. We were three girls who loved R&B harmonies, but we were surrounded by the UK garage scene that was exploding at the time. It naturally crept into our sound and gave Mis-Teeq that distinctive British edge. It was soulful but gritty, polished vocals over raw beats, and I think that鈥檚 what made us stand out both in the UK and internationally.
What was it like working with Alesha and Sabrina, and how did you balance creative input?
We were three very different personalities, but that鈥檚 exactly what made it work. We had huge respect for each other and learned to play to our strengths. Alesha brought her energy and rap flow, Sabrina had that powerhouse voice, and I was more about harmonies and the business side of things. The creative balance came from friendship, really. We didn鈥檛 always agree, but the love and respect was always there.
Do you think Mis-Teeq gets the credit it deserves in UK music history?
I think we helped open doors for a lot of British girl groups that came after us, especially women of colour in pop and R&B. We were blending genres before it was mainstream, and I鈥檓 proud that our sound still resonates today. Whether it鈥檚 artists referencing our tracks or people still shouting 鈥淪o Scandalous!鈥� in the crowd, that legacy means everything. Recognition comes and goes, but impact lasts forever.
When you look back at your time in the band, what moment stands out as the highlight?
Performing at the Brit Awards and hearing the crowd sing back our lyrics was surreal. It was one of those moments where you realise just how far you鈥檝e come; from three girls rehearsing in a small studio to standing on a stage representing the UK globally. That moment felt like the culmination of hard work, sisterhood, and belief. Since then, I鈥檝e channelled that same drive and creativity into my own company. It鈥檚 different from music, but it comes from the same place, empowering women to feel confident, strong, and original. Whether it鈥檚 through a song or a swimsuit, that鈥檚 always been my purpose.
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