The Spice Girls have spent 25 years almost getting back together. In this POP 101 finale, we break down the quiet end of the group, the R&B pivot, the scrapped third album, and “Forever”, the 2000 album that ended their imperial run. Then every reunion since: the 2007 Return of the Spice Girls tour, the 2012 Olympics (the last time all five performed together), the Viva Forever musical, the 2019 Spice World tour without Victoria, and Geri's emotional Wembley apology.
Timestamps:
- 0:00 - Album #3 Sessions Begin
- 3:37 - Christmas in Spiceworld 1999
- 7:32 - BRIT Awards 2000
- 11:49 - Album #3 Sessions Continue
- 15:48 - “Holler” / “Let Love Lead The Way”
- 18:58 - “Forever” album
- 24:40 - Failed Reunions
- 26:28 - The Return of the Spice Girls 2007-2008, Greatest Hits, “Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)”
- 39:50 - The Olympics Closing Ceremony in London 2012
- 42:38 - Viva Forever! The Musical
- 44:09 - GEM and Meetings with Simon Fuller
- 47:39 - The Spice World Tour 2019
- 55:30 - Reunions Since 2019
- 1:01:19 - The 30th Anniversary of “Wannabe” in 2026
- 1:05:07 - Discography Highlights
- 1:07:26 - Tarot Card Reading by Vanessa the Pop Prophet
References:
- Studio Sessions with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis 1999 https://youtu.be/74JF_n3nkQI?si=QVoZi5UkWZTQdIvQ
- Christmas in Spiceworld Live at Earls Court 1999 https://youtu.be/2v6BlAzxdtE?si=LNSYXrjZ1JPkzif
- “Say You’ll Be There” Live at Earls Court 1999 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nU_-EvuFi8E
- “Spice Up Your Life” and “Goodbye” Live at the Brits 2000 https://youtu.be/fRtwLanxFwo?si=-Oj1B-za-KxptYD2
- Geri Halliwell - “Bag It Up” Live at the Brits 2000 https://youtu.be/JQZOBKejSEc?si=0Ow6EjqZrRhrO5Sv
- “Give You What You Want” Demo https://youtu.be/xM4Uy_bWSMs?si=llfq-PIwg0B4fSLf
- “Pain Proof” Demo https://youtu.be/j2uoTlYj7oI?si=hTD5Mip51RK0OtBm
- “Holler” MV https://youtu.be/gFBWbH5CeRE?si=Fts7TlIY92p3YyYU
- CCTV dances “Holler” https://youtu.be/-03lmVDjlbc?si=0JU8wgb-UyjNk-MQ
- “Holler” Live at the EMAs 2000 https://youtu.be/wGgTgc92zu4?si=cpdebPaKoAbuUcvj
- “Let Love Lead The Way” MV https://youtu.be/RtczIm5XrNo?si=ZcZ8EaGc74UW3V4m
- Emma and Victoria promoting “Forever” in NYC 2000 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Fz1oOECDrM
- Interview backstage at EMAs 2000 https://youtu.be/EqjsUAcHE5U?si=fzCFtkTnkaHKvjY0
- AP Spice Girls Press Conference 2007 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W7TnQAQ9YgQ
- “Return of the Spice Girls Tour” 2007 EPK Announcement https://youtu.be/BLlPBvCE1MI?si=1ysvFx3mRlENkTtU
- Comeback EPK Parody by @masterpieceish https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vmSgn4aIkc
- “Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)” MV https://youtu.be/VMo6v_uFZKU?si=nmTPdL6Ekp4s5TwR
- The Return of the Spice Girls Tour Live in New York and Philadelphia 2008 https://youtu.be/KEhupIwe7VY?si=LieDvg_yR2GQyux9
- “Wannabe / Spice Up Your Life” Live at the Olympics Closing Ceremony in London 2012 https://youtu.be/PArTdhNda7k?si=ZYv5vGbpZn7H7lgf
- Viva Forever! The Musical Trailer https://youtu.be/5_0kyAoZzj0?si=EJckhujL3GU6X0lh
- Viva Forever! Press Interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jgV5Kyxnn0s
- Viva Forever! Premiere https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZjShWzR1TY
- GEM announcement https://youtu.be/QxZPC55SpmY?si=mHV0cd0w0pqY6UCn
- 2019 Spice World Tour Announcement https://youtu.be/YB6T4xC9GGk?si=HDt2DX0So3rTBYcc
- Spice World 2019 Tour Edit by @thelanozvideo https://youtu.be/BP4Oqj4yTJs?si=1aKbk9Vhr4doe00F
- Geri apologizes at Wembley Stadium 2019 by @buffyfan84 https://youtu.be/b-0xVqPCMfw?si=j1QR-LCIh9c_V9Zm
- “Holler” Live at Spice World 2019 Tour Edit by @LipeHall https://youtu.be/pz-YT8e6_v8?si=yDpYFqC_gDo4Gtx_
- Melanie C feat. Emma Bunton - “I Know Him So Well” MV https://youtu.be/7eO0hhfq5RM?si=vi4OB4opD5bWW4nr
- Melanie C and Emma performing “Viva Forever” at 50th Birthday Party - video by @Kevin Wyllie https://youtu.be/1tYVL0OIr_E?si=af860bIddvOzoNbc
- Melanie C and Mel B - “Spice Up Your Life” Live in Leeds 2026 - video by @John and Rob’s Concert Vids https://youtu.be/564R4N6Uh9A?si=PRBd18WHR5H6kOP3
- Emma and Mel B with ITZY - “Wannabe” on AppleTV’s “Kpopped” https://youtu.be/xlTZKsqP3_E?si=I54gNccCBZLdKY4n
- “Stop” at Victoria Beckham’s 50th Birthday Party https://youtu.be/p_CNHUN9raM?si=1Db12AYg1hN5TF3-
- “Viva Forever” with Cruz Beckham https://www.tiktok.com/@victoriabeckham/video/7603442048271666454
- “Step To Me” Live at TFI Friday https://youtu.be/JXv0H9saTLk?si=V5wLkAHtnBtMewkY
- “Never Give Up On The Good Times” Live on Spiceworld Tour in Arnhem https://youtu.be/16yqrvyzKlw?si=9lCxgNWHaLsgK5Le
- “Love Thing” Live in Istanbul https://youtu.be/16yqrvyzKlw?si=9lCxgNWHaLsgK5Le
- “If U Can’t Dance” Live in Istanbul https://youtu.be/V9x2yTH3rE0?si=s6Nm1Zq6ARPXb1sk
00:00:03 --> 00:00:26 jerry left and now she's solo and she launched schizophonic and started quickly racking up uk number ones on her own and mel c also put out solo material and was becoming quite successful on her own as well and then mel b and victoria were raising newborns and in the middle of all that the four piece that was mel b mel c
00:00:26 --> 00:00:56 Victoria and Emma properly began preparations for album number three. Yes, and the sessions began in summer 1999 at Abbey Road with their day ones, Richard Biff Standard and Matt Rowe, and then continued with Elliot Kennedy. And then came new collaborators, the American heavyweights, Rodney Darkchild-Jerkens, the man behind Brandi Monica's The Boy Is Mine, Desi Child's Say My Name, to name a few, plus the legendary Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who we love because we love Janet. Mm-hmm.
00:00:56 --> 00:01:17 And this was a real swing. The Spice Girls were pivoting to slick contemporary American R&B. And Jerry mentioned in her book that she knew the girls were heading in this direction artistically prior to her departure as well. And she did not agree with it. It does sound like that this little pivot in music direction was also encouraged by the execs at the label.
00:01:17 --> 00:01:46 which is a little whack. I mean, I forgot what I said about this album, but I remember being a little surprised with the sonics of it all. Yeah. The spunk was missing. Yeah. And then they always had like the flirty kind of vibe, but the fights was just gone. And I guess if you wanted to go back to the concept that they were created with in mind, it's kind of like the way that they wanted to go, question mark. I don't know. But when you're missing the cheek. That's what it was.
00:01:47 --> 00:02:16 You know, the cheek has already gone off and made her own album. I know. I know some fans who actually say Schizophonic sounds more like the Spice Girls than Forever. Yeah, absolutely. This is why I'm kind of just... I wanted to say something earlier. I was just like... I feel like a lot of that stuff she wrote for them and was like, it's mine now! It ran off like, you know what? And also to note, she did actually steal the Absolute boys. The Absolute duo chose to work with her instead of with the Spice Girls. You know...
00:02:17 --> 00:02:43 Suddenly, my mercy of her is, dang, she was not playing. And also, I cannot wait to get to Jerry's discography. Stay tuned. We will definitely do her albums because they're fun to talk about. For sure. Look at me. Exactly. Yeah, no, it's never. That's amazing. But yeah, I think looking back at this change in sound, I think obviously as a fan, I was kind of like, hmm, you know. Yeah.
00:02:43 --> 00:03:10 But, you know, thinking about where they were, I think, yes, they did like this type of music. Right. And, you know, they were getting older now. They're in their mid-20s. You know, they are questioning their identities a bit, you know, both individually and as a groom. So them trying to kind of turn to this cooler kind of slick situation, which is where music was going. It does make sense. Yes. Like business-wise. Yes.
00:03:10 --> 00:03:20 Oh, yeah. And kind of just looking at where they were in their lives. But obviously, the fun, the camp, the cheek, as you said, is gone. So I think...
00:03:20 --> 00:03:48 Yeah, it really does just show how important Jerry was, honestly, to their songwriting. Yes. But yes, so the sessions did start, but then they were paused because Mel C's debut, Northern Star, dropped in October 1999, and she went off to promote it. But the group did reconvene for the Christmas in Spice World tour. It wasn't really a tour. They did eight shows in the UK in December, where they did premiere three new songs. They did Holler, Right Back At Ya, and Woman.
00:04:06 --> 00:04:17 You know, Woman Not Making This... Okay, we're a little ahead of ourselves, but at this point, if you're a fan, you're not watching because you need to learn new information. Like, you're watching because you want to relive it, so let's go with it. Woman Not Making This Album is a shame. This is such a fun song.
00:04:20 --> 00:04:50 And for me, it is a natural, obvious progression from the whole, I say GP, the girl power because once a girl comes a woman. Oh, I guess. I mean, if they would have had too many disco songs on this newer album, especially after losing a member, it would have felt a little redundant and would have possibly been, I don't know, worse. I don't know. I feel like a balance should have been struck for sure.
00:04:50 --> 00:05:18 fun time yeah them having a run around that circular stage is insanity i'm like what the heck like what the heck um they well but they're like what 20 like late 20s right no mid i think it's just mid 20s at this mid 20s yeah they weren't even dude like it's it's it's still kind of just like it happened all so fast my math is not correct but i know yeah like dude i it's only three years after wannabe came out
00:05:18 --> 00:05:39 Yeah, it's a lot. And it's, oh my God, it's really accelerated. The songs that they premiered, the fun ones, Holler Woman, Right Back At You, they were good to kind of tease. I do wonder why two of those three ended up making it, why Woman was like, we don't like it. Not just because of the sonic, but what was the reception, you know? Right, right, right.
00:05:39 --> 00:05:48 I am curious to know if that was like in real time because I'm like, oh my God, they loved it. Yeah, the taping will show you, the producer will say cut the camera A and someone's like losing their effing mind. On camera B, someone's like,
00:05:49 --> 00:06:10 What is this? That's so funny. I mean, it's so funny because obviously this song still gets a lot of attention because it remains unreleased. But Mel C recently said in an interview, she thinks it's awful. She was like, that song sucks. It will need a genuine remix or something if they're going to put it out. So anyway.
00:06:10 --> 00:06:28 Jesus, not me praising it and her being like it was trash. That's why we got rid of it. That's the answer. I mean, I don't hate it. Hate it, right. I don't love it. No. I don't hate it. Right. And it deserves to come out because we know it exists as well. But anyway, I do love the Christmas in Spice World show. Mm-hmm.
00:06:29 --> 00:06:52 Because musically, I would actually argue it is their strongest concert. And this is nothing against Jerry. But vocally, all four of them were super strong. The harmonies were even more intricate than they were before. They were able to do more complicated dance routines at this point. And the set list was also pretty perfect. Yeah.
00:06:52 --> 00:07:22 But again, just musically, some of those harmonies are amazing. Like you have that Say You'll Be There intro acapella. Oh my God, yes. Mel C does added harmonies in Vio Forever and Stop. And they have horns and strings with them. So the band is just so full. And yeah, I think it's actually a really, really great concert. It's a shame that Jerry wasn't there. But honestly, if you just look at them musically, the show is actually very impressive.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:30 So I actually really enjoy it.
00:07:31 --> 00:08:01 So moving on. At the 2000 Brit Awards, the Spice Girls received the Outstanding Contribution to Music Award, the youngest act ever, to get what is essentially the lifetime achievement Brit previously handed to Elton John, the Beatles, and Queen. Jerry was, of course, in the building that night and had her own performance of Bagada. And Victoria did reveal in her memoir that she had gotten death threats prior to this appearance. And when the pyro exploded during the performance, her initial thought that they were gunshots. Yeah, she stood there like this.
00:08:01 --> 00:08:17 I know. You could tell, actually, like her expression was a little off. The camera was like zoomed out, but like she didn't move on the time that the girls did. Because I was anticipating it. I was like, holy crap. But yeah, it's, ugh, God. You know, people are crazy.
00:08:18 --> 00:08:45 And that's all I'm going to say about that. I don't need to go into detail about how wrong it is to write in people that you don't know. Most people listening to this are probably saying, if you're not, stay away from me. But yeah, life achievement for a girl group, it's not as crazy if you think about the lifespan of a lot of these girl groups. Right. Yeah. Unfortunately, they don't last long. White groups, too. I think after seeing what happened with Take That, too. You know, it's like, yo, we're at the end. Yeah.
00:08:45 --> 00:09:05 I don't know, but either way, they did make an outstanding impact. And to even think that they could keep it up for longer than five years is generous. So the fact that they lasted as long as they didn't and were able to receive it, it's awesome. But yeah, it's not sustainable to have like...
00:09:05 --> 00:09:32 a forever concept for them right it's like a it's a lot um but i'm glad they were celebrated for their work together as a group because they did accomplish a lot and they broke records like they said that they literally set standards um regardless if you like them or not they set the standard and they weren't afraid of anyone like that oasis dig love that like they weren't afraid of anyone yeah i mean they're so young so to get a lifetime achievement like that's crazy but yeah i agree with you this was the time to do it well
00:09:32 --> 00:09:53 They were kind of still active, at least. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, the performance was pretty good. You know, of course, now I do think of Victoria's horrific situation whenever I see it. But I think production-wise, you know, they grew a lot as performers just in those couple of years. Now they're doing this whole salsa dance routine for Spice Up Your Life. Uh-huh.
00:09:58 --> 00:10:20 They actually did perform Holler that night as well, which is interesting, right? Yeah. They used that opportunity, this huge opportunity, to debut a new track and almost prove that they're still going, right? Yes. It's like, we're not done yet. And I will say, during the acceptance speech, they, of course, did thank Jerry. Yes, they did. We've all got to say a big, big thank you to Jerry, because without her, we wouldn't be able to attend her.
00:10:21 --> 00:10:50 I love the way Emma was just like, regardless of everything else, this award is about the music. Doesn't matter what anyone else says, it's about the music. And I appreciated her kind of being so clear about that. Because as we have been saying, with all the brand endorsements and everything, people sometimes forget that at the end of the day that they're artists, right? Right. I do want to quickly shout out, though, Jerry's performance. Bag it up. It's honestly pretty iconic that night, too. Yeah.
00:10:51 --> 00:11:19 She said, oh, they're going to be there. Great. Love that. Be together, gather. And she just came out. Out of big inflatable legs. Yeah. Yeah. You know, it's crazy how she ended up being like so bold and bright. She took all the spice out of the girl. I know. I know.
00:11:20 --> 00:11:44 I'm so sorry. And as a pull, and as someone who does do pull, like her on the pull, I wish she would have done a little bit more. She couldn't have done that with the clothes. But it's just so funny to think about how she was legit like Miley Cyrus from Miley did bangers, you know? Yeah. She looked great. I wouldn't say she ate them up, but she kind of ate them up. She did her thing, for sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah. She kind of ate them up a little bit. She kind of ate them up.
00:11:45 --> 00:12:05 All right, so we'll move right along because that's exactly what Spice Girls did. Recording resumed in April 2000 in Miami with Dark Child and it wrapped that July. The Biff and Roe material was scrapped from the album entirely, including W-O-M-A-N. Man. A song that the fans are still asking. We've said it. Y'all are asking for it.
00:12:05 --> 00:12:22 just listen to the tour i guess i mean this this show yeah yeah elliot kennedy's only survivor was a track called right back at you but it was remade into an r&b version he himself described as a plotting boring bottom drawer r&b song golly
00:12:34 --> 00:12:59 Jesus. I mean, I kind of agree with you, Mr. Kennedy, because the pop version that has since leaked is amazing. Yeah. Like the song itself is not amazing. But if you compare the two, it's genuinely like an eight and like a five. You know what I mean? Like it's like, okay. Because the new version, the new R&B one that, you know, Dark Child and Team did, it just has no fire.
00:13:00 --> 00:13:10 We're coming right back at you. Come on. Like, where's the energy? You know? You know, I personally...
00:13:11 --> 00:13:34 Never really liked the whole UK recreating the whole American R&B thing. I think I've said it, and if I have, I'm going to say it now. I don't like it because it's already been done. So for you to work with producers that already did it, you know what it comes across as? Derivative. So, unfortunately, I feel like they kind of fell prey to that. And then with, you know...
00:13:34 --> 00:13:45 We didn't really get super, super, super into it just yet. But Mel B's album, she was working with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis as well. And it just ended up sounding like, you know. Yeah.
00:13:46 --> 00:14:10 We, listen, we reviewed the album. We have our opinion. Right. Watch it. But it's a little, ugh. I mean, listening to some of the Scraps songs, it is unfortunate that the old team could not figure out how to get the magic. But again, the magic went with freaking Jerry. Literally. Yeah. Freaking insane. But yeah, I mean, Give You What You Want. I did not dislike it. Yeah, that's the best of them. Yeah.
00:14:15 --> 00:14:36 It was a little too snatch Swedes. You know, it was like Swedish fish, you know, like it was just, oh, Max Martin's doing this. Let me try it. I didn't write that big mistake. You're right. Yeah. It's not a terrible song. The whole avoidant lover girl is a concept that they can handle. But the instrument, like I said, is derivative. Painproof does not make sense. Oh, my gosh. Not good.
00:14:41 --> 00:15:07 But how fun it would have been for them to have gone into like this little funky, like even when they do their live performances, it has a little bit of a rock element. How can we never figure out how to translate that into their pop performance? So I feel like there was options, there was opportunity, but I don't know. Maybe they were just like, we have to put something out really fast. They have the biggest names. Yes, the biggest names means that everyone knows them. If everyone knows them, everyone knows what they sound like. Therefore, if you do something like that,
00:15:09 --> 00:15:32 you get our album review from about five years ago. Enjoy the episode. No. Yeah. I think, you know, look again, I mean, we'll talk about forever in a second, but I think again, they kind of lost their identity as a group, you know? And I think part of that, yes, is Jerry leaving. Part of that is just kind of where they were in the stage of life. And yet like they were just kind of reaching the candle was burning out, you know? Yeah. Yeah. And so, yeah. Uh,
00:15:32 --> 00:15:59 I agree with you. The Scraps songs are fine. Yeah, they're fine. But yeah, again, the spark is just gone a little bit. Yeah, a little bit. But it's not just because of Jerry. Like you said, it's their life. They're burnt out, period. Right, exactly. Yeah. So the double A side, Holler and Let Love Lead the Way was released in October 2000, and it went straight to number one. Their ninth UK number one, tying ABBA and setting the record for a girl group.
00:16:04 --> 00:16:28 Part of me left, part of me cried, part of me cried. Yes, you know how I had the girl on me. I think everyone. Yeah, you didn't love it during the interview, during the review that we did. Yeah, because I still stand by my comment about it being for the rosé all day. Ooh, ooh, in the crowd unironically, you know, people. However, I enjoy the moms at the club vibe of it.
00:16:28 --> 00:16:53 holla holla you know i enjoy it um it's the same thing with like um i'm trying to think of an artist like megan trainor is she like revolutionary no but this girl can write a little jingle i appreciate her up and down but it's not like she's like writing a masterpiece um unfortunately she's gotten pigeonholed in it but i can appreciate her whoop whoop and in writing meme songs and making it you know trendy it's the same thing with holler holler is
00:16:53 --> 00:17:14 Cooler, obviously. And the girls sound really nice. Emma sounds great on an R&B track. Love that for them. I think it is very much like, oh my God, I love this song. Let's go to the dance floor vibes. And I'm like, sure, I guess. We did end up dancing to it. So we ended up being... We've now performed it. Again, stop waiting for the Spice Girls and give it to Seasons. We are Seasons.
00:17:20 --> 00:17:50 It's grown on me. It's not amazing. Yeah. I'm glad it didn't sound like Destiny's Child. Yeah. But it sounded like something that Tony Braxton could have done. You know what I'm saying? So it's just like, but Tony wouldn't really do this, really? Yeah. Well, it's interesting, right? Because obviously it did come out after Say My Name and stuff. But I believe, someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I think this was actually written before. They worked with Destiny's Child, actually. Destiny's Child. Oh, really? Yeah, yeah.
00:17:50 --> 00:18:18 That's interesting. I do think Holler is pretty great. You know, it's sexy. Like you said, the girls sound awesome. I do enjoy the melody of it. I think it's fun. And at least it does have some of that confidence that the Spice Girls were known for. Right. So I at least appreciate that. It does stand out a little bit. If you listen through their singles, it does kind of, it's a little bit jarring. What do you mean? I have to stop right now. Holler, holler. Holler.
00:18:19 --> 00:18:43 But like you said, at least vocally, all four of them kill it. Yeah. So I'm happy with that. And Let Love Lead the Way has grown on me over the years. Not as good as some of the other ballads for me. But again, it does have a beautiful melody to it. And the performances throughout the years have been really nice as well. So it makes sense that these were kind of the two chosen as the lead singles from this album. Yeah. Yeah.
00:18:44 --> 00:19:13 Because I'm not sure what else you really could have gone with, really, out of this list. Are you having fun? That is a first single. No, I was just being a jerk. Yeah. Yeah, so Forever, the album, was released in a head-to-head chart battle with Westlife's Coast to Coast, which the media covered like a title fight. But the Spice Girls did lose, debuting at number two with 71 copies, more than 160 copies behind Westlife. Yeah.
00:19:13 --> 00:19:37 And in America, it limped only to number 39 on the Billboard chart. Reviews were lukewarm. Worldwide sales landed in the low millions, which is only a fraction of Spice and Spice World. And the promo was quite minimal as well. The only major performance of Holler was at the MTV Europe Music Awards in November, which would actually be their last appearance before a very long hiatus.
00:19:42 --> 00:20:09 Yes, and in December 2000, the promotional campaign abruptly stopped. There were rumors of Tell Me Why being the next single, with remixes commissioned and singles pressed. And promo singles were also pressed for If You Want to Have Some Fun and We Can Love. And Mel C has since said that the group was just very much over it. And the girls all went back to their solo careers. Eventually, the group announced an indefinite hiatus to focus on solo careers while explicitly stating that they were not splitting up.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:38 This is not a breakup. What is it? What is that from Friends? We're on a break. Yeah, they're on a break. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So we did review this album quite a few years ago now. Yeah. But as we've been mentioning, of course, I've just been listening to their whole discography again over the last week or two in preparation for this. And it's interesting listening to this album right after the other two. Yes. Because as you mentioned, it is really missing that energy, that cheek.
00:20:39 --> 00:21:00 But the writing in general is just a lot more serious. Yeah. You know? Like, it's just not as fun. Like, the lyrics and stuff are just not as clever. Mm-hmm. As we've been saying with the singles, they do sound great. Like, Emma and Victoria especially, they were really pushed to use their full ranges. You get a ton of ad-libs from all four of them that are really well executed.
00:21:00 --> 00:21:22 You can tell that Mel C took a step back, right? She's missing from some of the writing credits. She's not as prominent in some of the songs. But I will say, listening to all three albums together, the most jarring change, especially with these new American producers, it's the group harmony dynamic. Completely gone. Yeah. Because...
00:21:22 --> 00:21:47 You know, as I mentioned with the first two albums, you can hear the other girls all over it. You can hear Victoria doing the lows. You can hear the kind of call and response between the lead, whoever's saying lead, and the others. With this album, though, that's completely gone because I think the style that Dark Child and team and these people have is that you kind of do harmonies over yourself. Mm-hmm.
00:21:47 --> 00:21:55 And then choruses are just kind of led by one member who kind of just layers over herself as well. So a lot of these choruses are just one person layered a few times.
00:21:56 --> 00:22:19 So that's why you have these songs where Mel C, literally she only shows up to sing like three lines and then we'll do one chorus where she gets to ad-lib over it and you don't hear her at all throughout the rest of the song. That is a very jarring change to their sound. And I think it actually shows how important that group vocal blend, how important that was to their first two albums. Just talking about...
00:22:19 --> 00:22:36 progression in terms of like pop to R&B because I always feel like when an artist gets older they either go for like R&B or like rock when they're in pop or or they go to like EDM but like this really serious commentary commentary style um but
00:22:37 --> 00:22:54 I think the biggest issue was that, yes, you have a white background, right? You know, it's still Spice, but the Spice logo became this thin font. It wasn't this big blocky thing anymore. It didn't look like impact bold anymore. It, um, it, it,
00:22:54 --> 00:23:10 It was weird. It was very weird. Like the Spice Girls, like the logo had the O for forever and their name was in it. And I'm like, what is it? And then they're wearing all black. Like I said, they're at a funeral where on the previous covers, even if they were wearing black, it was like a black bra and pants. Yeah.
00:23:10 --> 00:23:35 you know, Mel C would wear an all-black outfit, but she was, like, challenging the camera. There was something missing. There was no color. And it's so weird because, like, listen, listen, listen, listen. Terry Richards is a brilliant photographer, but the photo shoot was not good for this album. It was just too much, like, we might be moms now or whatever. Like, you saw us like this before, but now we're mature. And I think the biggest issue that people...
00:23:35 --> 00:24:04 even now to this day, they think that R&B has to be like this sexy, mature, like all black, I don't have emotions type thing. Like, no, it's just a genre of music that color people were relegated to because we couldn't do pop music. I mean, now the genre has changed and could take its own life, but even still there's color. Even still there's a palette that they could have followed and just going straight black was not the way. Like everyone had taken on a black form of outfit, you know,
00:24:04 --> 00:24:25 And I was like, okay, where are we going? It looked like the corporate chic dress code that was created in the club where my sister was going. And it's crazy because Esquire did a photo shoot for solo shots. And it's a collectibles edition. And those girls were wearing like golds, browns, neutrals. And they looked flipping hot. Why was that not the concept?
00:24:25 --> 00:24:49 Why was it this, you know, it was just void of color, void of personality and individuality because of the, even with the black ensembles, it was just not great. And then you add on the whole Emma and Victoria going to promote only in the U.S. and then Mel, both Mel's in the U.K. It does, it's not giving, y'all don't care. That's what it's looking like. Sorry. Like, it's giving y'all don't care. So why would a fan...
00:24:49 --> 00:25:00 care or what would someone new listening to it that might I'll take them seriously I wouldn't take y'all seriously because I don't take y'all seriously but yeah evolution of an artist is tough to figure out regardless of
00:25:00 --> 00:25:20 in fighting or whatever, but like the shifting trends and the soundscape, it is hard to navigate. And I think they got lost in the sauce of the names that they were working with, for sure. Yeah. Yeah, watching the promo and interviews from this time is so fascinating because I haven't watched a lot of this in a long time. Yeah, okay. And you can just tell the energy is kind of awkward. Like, Melissy's totally just being performative. Like, she's so fake.
00:25:20 --> 00:25:49 Yeah, and she's like, we're just not hungry anymore. We're not hungry anymore. We're just putting something out that we really like to... I was like, girl, calm down. The hit dog hollers, honey. The hit dog hollers. The energy is just so muted. You know? Oh, man. So anyway, we are focusing on the group here, so we will not be discussing the solo careers. Because honestly, they each deserve their own 101s. They do. So stay tuned. And we're going to, of course, review all their solo albums, too.
00:25:49 --> 00:26:18 Yeah. Anyway, let's skip forward a few years. So the reunion rumors swirled constantly with the girls being asked in literally every interview. Yeah. And it seems that Melanie C was kind of the main holdout during a lot of this period. Like she was constantly emphasizing that she preferred being a solo artist. But reunion rumors did peak around Bob Geldof's Live 8 in 2005, where a Spice Girls reunion was heavily speculated
00:26:19 --> 00:26:31 but it never happened. And then organizers of the 2007 concert for Diana also tried to get the five-piece back together, but that also fell through. So then, on June 28, 2007...
00:26:32 --> 00:26:54 The girls were now being managed by Simon Fuller again. So Simon's back. And now all five Spice Girls stood at a press conference at the O2 Arena in London and announced a reunion tour and greatest hits album. Yeah. And this album would then hit number two in the UK and included two new songs, the single Headlines, Friendship Never Ends, and Voodoo.
00:26:55 --> 00:27:18 and Headlines was released as the official BBC Children in Need single. And apparently, George Michael was actually going to help with their comeback song originally, but he took too long. And Jerry was apparently very mad at him about this, but that's why we ended up with Headlines, I guess, instead. Yeah, commercially, though, this actually became their first single ever to miss the UK top 10, peaking at number 11. Yeah.
00:27:23 --> 00:27:52 Okay. I'm sorry, but good. You don't deserve to come back with that mediocrity. It's all right. I was being sassy, but not toward you. But yeah, headlines is a snooze fest, okay? The most exciting thing is that music video because Jerry's abs and, you know, Mel C's bangs and Victoria's blonde bob. One thing I will say I remember about this era, I would say is Victoria's hair. Yeah.
00:27:52 --> 00:28:10 And I know. Oh. Right. I would say, I feel like people are like, what? But I think about this time, right? She had hit the LA scene as like a socialite. Correct. You know? So I was familiar with her. But still, my childhood self did not concept, sorry, did not peep the concept that she was the same
00:28:10 --> 00:28:32 Quancy Bob lady from the movie. I was just like, oh, I love her. I like short hair on women, and her face just fits it. She just has a way about her. But she should have been like, I'm Victoria Chantel. I didn't realize it was her. But yeah, I feel like that song was really just tired, honey. It was tight. It was tight.
00:28:33 --> 00:28:57 Yeah. So my sister defends it. She will say that melodically, it actually makes sense as a Spice Girls song. Yeah. I think just given the whole situation at the time, like this as their big comeback song was like, really? Like, this is what you came back with. Yeah. And I think melodically, it's actually not bad, but it just doesn't have the same, I
00:28:57 --> 00:29:20 I don't know what the right word is, but there's something about those first ballads from those first couple albums that this is just missing. You don't come back with the ballad. You don't come back with the ballad. Yeah, but they're not going to release Voodoo because Voodoo sucks even more. Okay, I don't hate Voodoo. Really? I think for me, Voodoo, and Mel C will agree with me here, possibly their worst song on their entire discography. Because I think it just doesn't sound complete.
00:29:26 --> 00:29:47 No, it does not. But it does have spunk and energy. Sure. I mean, it is from the Spice World sessions. Yes. Yes. It just sucks. My thing is, like, I think people get a little too binary in terms of concepts because they're expecting other people to not understand. They don't understand. They don't get it. Like a song can be really bright and fun without it being goofy. Like Voodoo is a goofy song.
00:29:47 --> 00:30:17 right and then headlines it's a little too sleek you can be sleek without being boring um like you guys have all the crazy thing is picture picture this every single one of these women have had a solo album right yeah and in each one of these solo eras they've worn all black right but they've had personalities like emma's probably had like the most personality because she did a whole like you know uh bob fossey thing by that time right it doesn't mean you sit there
00:30:17 --> 00:30:37 you could have done the whole comeback without looking housewives that's all I'm saying yeah so this is a Roberto Cavalli he was kind of their main styler for this entire era I'm sorry I sounded so passionate I apologize I was just like why are we doing this I agree with you I have the same note it's all very serious it's too polished like they look too old
00:30:37 --> 00:30:59 That's what it is. And that's what kills me. I hate. I hate it. Y'all, listen. I'm going to say it once. I'm probably going to say it later on in the future. I hate how media, how everyone, once you pass 25, you're old. It doesn't make sense to me. I mean, at that time, it wasn't like, you know, like we have Charlie XCX, 37 years old. We have Kylie. It's different. I get it. But like, stop.
00:30:59 --> 00:31:19 dressing like principals. We deserve better. But, you know, I mean, Roberto Colvalli was the guy at the time, right? I get it. But like, ugh, come on. Thank you to Jerry for her abs, I guess. I will say, just going back to before this reunion was announced, I do remember how annoyed especially Mel C was with everything. Like, if you...
00:31:19 --> 00:31:37 I'm excited to go through her discography because especially in Beautiful Intentions, there's very clearly songs about her not wanting to go back to that environment. And now we've learned how toxic the environment was for her, you know, at the time. And I, of course, do remember the Live 8 rumors as well. It sounds like that actually was very close to happening.
00:31:37 --> 00:31:57 I don't remember what happened that made it fall through, but it's, I believe, and again, fans, please correct me if I'm wrong. I think the greatest hits was kind of going to happen regardless of whether they were going to support it or not. So I think they were all kind of like, okay, well, we might as well come together. And I think Mel C didn't want to be the holdout, you know? Yeah.
00:31:57 --> 00:32:17 But seeing all five of them together for that Greatest Hits album and for that press conference, it definitely was an exciting moment as a fan, of course. And I was living in Hong Kong at the time, and it was on the original tour dates list, so I was extra excited at that point. But yeah, looking at it, the timing of this reunion is pretty interesting because...
00:32:18 --> 00:32:30 Looking at where the girls were in those solo careers, the interest in all of them was definitely waning, right? Like Victoria doing that whole LA socialite thing, like she was struggling to figure out what to do with her life.
00:32:30 --> 00:32:57 And all their solo careers, you know, had varying levels of success at that point. So it makes sense that they all were kind of at a point where it was like, okay, I think we need to come back together again. They don't know what else to do. Right, yeah. So that's interesting for sure. Yeah, let's get to the tour. The return of the Spice Girls tour, which ran for 45 shows across Europe and North America from December 2007 into February 2008.
00:32:57 --> 00:33:16 But then it did end early because they had originally announced tour dates in cities like Sydney, Buenos Aires, Beijing, and Hong Kong, but they were all canceled. They said officially that this was just due to personal and family commitments. And honestly, that very last show in Toronto, it ended without any...
00:33:18 --> 00:33:39 any excitement. It just ended with a whimper, this whole tour. But Mel B did later point out that her own marital situation at the time was a big reason as to why this tour kind of fell apart. But the creative direction of the tour, notably, was also led by Jamie King, who is known for being Madonna's longtime show director. Yeah. So the tour...
00:33:40 --> 00:33:54 What we ended up getting was very much what we've been saying. You get a very polished, choreographed, arena spectacle production. Yeah. Very different from kind of the looser, kind of scrappier charm that the first tour was. Yeah.
00:34:01 --> 00:34:18 Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I get it. I guess if you've spent your whole career being a caricature and it's always been colorful and the pendulum has to swing back another way in order for it to come back to center. So this is we're on the opposite side now where it's like, oh, my God.
00:34:19 --> 00:34:43 Jesus. It's like the difference between Mrs. Turnbull. Is it Trenchbull? Trenchbull. Trenchbull and Miss Honey and Matilda. It's like one super sweet. It makes you feel good things. Other one's just like, I mean, it's effective for what you need it to do. Like, he's just... But yeah, I mean, I think things that stood out to me was definitely that Viva Forever tango moment during the show. Because I think about Gabriela, Dance Break, who? Who?
00:34:48 --> 00:35:07 It's just so funny how Spanish guitar is everywhere. But yes, I think after watching the Victoria documentary, it's also a shame to see, like, this is, like, one of the last times we see this lady on stage. One of the last. And it's so interesting, because I'm wondering, like, like, yes, you are a fan of her.
00:35:08 --> 00:35:30 And we've always said, you know, sometimes the negative voices are louder. But I do wonder, like, how do you guys feel as fans? Because a lot of people are like, are you posh fans? Do you guys really like her? Do you like the concept of her? What is it? You know? Because she looked like she was really owning the States. She looked like she was up there living her best life. And granted, there is no way to sit there and say that.
00:35:30 --> 00:35:52 the love of the fans is enough to medicate someone's, you know, social conditioning to not think that they're good enough. But yeah, I mean, I think the, the set design was fabulous for all the blackness that there was and all the just, you know, you know, but the colorlessness, there were spikes, sparks,
00:35:52 --> 00:36:20 spark splashes of color here and there um the ladies were giving you know mel b had a glitter on her abs again we hadn't seen in a while um but yeah it's the same about all the uh the um issues that she was going through with the dv and such um and also shout out to the solo moments i love those i will say reigning men is iconic but jerry why like look at me would have been a moment too oh just saying i know like i know don't do a cover sis come on
00:36:21 --> 00:36:47 Yes, I will always say I, of course, have a grudge against this tour because I didn't get to go. And that joke advertisement that someone made where they edited it to be the real tour dates where they just have Melanie C just going London, London, London 17 times instead of doing the other cities. That always makes me laugh. It's so funny. London, London, London. That's a lot of world.
00:36:47 --> 00:37:14 Now that I understand the whole situation with Mel B and, you know, everything that was going on with her man at the time, I understand that, you know, they needed to end it there. That's okay. I will say, though, we are, again, quite lucky as a fandom because the screen footage from two of the shows from this tour, Philadelphia and New York, have since leaked. So we put that together with, like, the broadcast on radio of the show. We have as close to an official recording... ...
00:37:14 --> 00:37:41 As we can get of this tour because they didn't record it for official release, which is stupid. But yes, the tour is an interesting one. Like Jamie King, obviously, is iconic. Like Madonna's tours are spectacles, right? Like amazing, amazing pop shows. So to have him do a show for them is really cool. And the storytelling in it is beautiful. Like that whole sequence from Viva Forever. Or actually starting with Who Do You Think You Are? With them and their caricatures. Then you go to Viva Forever. You have Jerry dramatically disappeared.
00:37:41 --> 00:38:11 pier and the four re-emerge in their leather to do holler and then you get solo moments and then reunite for mama like the whole that storytelling is beautifully done and i love that um but i will say again the show is still lacking some of that fun because it's so choreographed and honestly it's so interesting watching this because obviously jerry had mentioned for the last tour that she felt like she had to work really hard to keep up this had way more blocking and choreography than
00:38:11 --> 00:38:20 Two Become One had the pole dancing choreography. Yeah, like you mentioned the Salazar or whatever and Viva Forever. Like there was a lot going on.
00:38:20 --> 00:38:42 In the choreography for the show. So she was able to keep up, which is awesome. But I'm amazed that this is what they wanted to go for. Mm-hmm. And the music direction is interesting, too. Like, we do have Simon Ellis back, but now we get a lot of samples and remixes in here. Like, they do the full Humpty. Yes. You know, that whole situation for If You Can't Dance. If You Can't Dance, yeah. There is a very divisive, too much cabaret version. Yeah.
00:38:43 --> 00:38:56 But I will say the final encore version of Spice Up Your Life with all the different genres from around the world mixing together. That is an amazing, amazing version of that song. Yeah. For sure.
00:39:02 --> 00:39:29 And then going to the solo moments, Victoria's runway moment was, of course, iconic. But I do wish she used that moment to reclaim herself as the singer that we know that she is. Yeah. I'm not such an innocent. Yeah. Or let your head go. Yeah. Yeah. Because she sounds great, actually. You know, these recordings that we have, they are the raw vocals. We got fully unedited raw vocals from these tours. And she sounds really good.
00:39:29 --> 00:39:49 Every time she sings. And she's holding it down in some of the harmonies as well. So, yeah. It also makes me sad that her confidence kind of had dwindled so much. Yeah. At that point. Yeah. Oh, tough stuff, man. Tough stuff. But in 2010, it was announced that the Spice Girls had teamed up with Simon Fuller once more to develop a jukebox musical from their songs. Mm-hmm.
00:39:49 --> 00:40:08 And the 2012 London Olympics closing ceremony would be the last time that all five Spice Girls have performed together as of this recording. They have performed Wannabe and Spice Up Your Life on top of illuminated black cabs in the Olympic Stadium in front of a huge global audience. So that comeback was a comeback for sure.
00:40:15 --> 00:40:43 If that's the last time that we get all five, that was an epic way to close this all out. Because this performance is so perfect. You finally get that spunk back. Yeah. Them on top of the cabs just driving really fast. Those cabs were going really fast around that gigantic stadium, which we actually were just in to see Take That. That was the Olympic Stadium. And just the joy that was coming out.
00:40:44 --> 00:41:13 like emanating from this, from the stage here. Yeah. Was so beautiful to watch. And, you know, Victoria was very clear that this would be the last time she went on stage and we'll see if that ends up being the case, but she did have panic attacks leading up to it. Right. You know, this is a huge profile. Like the entire world is watching, you know? Oh my God. And I did wake up super early in the morning to watch this. Cause obviously it wasn't confirmed, but we all knew it was happening, you know? Oh yeah. And yeah, I would like woke up at like 3am or something to, to watch it. Cause I was in, I was in Asia at the point.
00:41:13 --> 00:41:27 But, um, what an epic moment. I still watch this every once in a while because it just, it's a good dopamine hit, you know? I think I watched it in the library of my school because I used to go to, like, lunch. I, I was, I'd eat my lunch and go to the library to just sit up there and watch K-pop videos. Oh.
00:41:27 --> 00:41:48 So the origin story there too. But yeah, I think, let me think. Yeah, I think I watched it on YouTube and it was nice to see them in their outfits as grown women. Again, looking a damn mess. When I say they look a mess, I mean, they're not coordinated. I mean, they look terrible. But honey, them outfits did not match a lick. But what they did do is match the spirit of those women.
00:41:48 --> 00:42:07 And that made me happy. And that was all I needed. Shout out to freaking Mel C with the ponytail and the butt. Her style as a woman is my style since birth, apparently. Because, you know, little tomboy vibes. But, you know, they just looked really good and really confident and happy. Yep.
00:42:07 --> 00:42:37 It wasn't like, oh my God, this is like the best performance ever. But for the four minutes that we got to see them, it was fun. Yes. I do feel bad that Victoria was having such a hard time for four minutes. Yeah. But that is a testament to what they've been through. Like during very formative adult years of your life where you start to kind of either set in stone that you're going to be this kind of person or that kind of person. You were told you were a piece of crap. Yeah, I'd be a little scared too. So, yeah. Shout out to her for popping out.
00:42:37 --> 00:43:00 Yes. So four months after the Olympics came Viva Forever, the jukebox musical written by comedian Jennifer Saunders and produced by Mamma Mia's Judy Kramer. And it opened at the Piccadilly Theater in December 2012. Unfortunately, it was panned by critics and it closed in June 2013, barely six months in, becoming one of the West End's famous expensive flops.
00:43:06 --> 00:43:29 Oh, God. You know, when we have moments like this and the word flop around the discography happens, it ruins things. Like, y'all, I need the moments for the legacy. Okay? Okay? Yeah. I do hope one day we get a full leak of this show because I didn't get to see it. Yeah. I'm just curious. Like, was it really that awful, you know? Why would it be awful? Because of the acting? Because we saw bad acting. But the show is still running, you know?
00:43:29 --> 00:43:40 Right. So we know that the story is based around a girl group auditioning for a TV show. Which, I mean... What was it called? Viva Forever? Viva Forever. And her name was Viva.
00:43:42 --> 00:44:09 Like the girl's name was Viva. She was in this girl group, the audition for a TV show. And I think she'd like go solo or something. Oh. You know, I've heard some of the recordings of the cast versions of the songs and they weren't terrible, you know. And Jennifer Saunders, she's funny, you know. So I'm really curious. I wish I could see what this was. Yeah. I want to see the train wreck too. I'm curious. Yeah. Yeah.
00:44:09 --> 00:44:28 Oh, man. So then in July 2016, Jerry, Melby and Emma released a video teasing a project, a subunit, if you will, as a three piece calling themselves Spice Girls Gem. You're invited! Thank you so much. The project fizzled without an official release, though.
00:44:29 --> 00:44:49 The song for her did leak eventually, so he did get to hear something from these sessions, which is interesting. This is a song for her. You know you light it up. And then, fast forward a bit, in February 2018, all five members came together at Jerry's house with Simon Fuller. Yeah.
00:44:50 --> 00:45:07 Reportedly, they had discussed some new commercial and licensing type opportunities and projects rather than a full reunion. But of course, that picture that they posted went viral. Okay, you know, I think I saw the gem video that they had. Oh gosh, that announcement. Yeah. Okay.
00:45:09 --> 00:45:25 Okay, got it. All right. I mean, I didn't... You're here for it? I didn't have any strong opinions. I just thought, oh, Gem is a clever name. That's all I thought, I think, because I was just like, oh, that's cute. But yeah, shout out to Mel B&M being the defibrillators for a while and trying to revive the group. Yeah.
00:45:25 --> 00:45:45 I mean I feel like they really did serve as like a defibrillator type I mean Emma's always kind of at the root of like shall we do something I haven't seen it recently but like I feel like every single time there's like a Spice Girls are doing something she's like there yes I think that's correct she's one pad of a defibrillator she just needed somebody else to jolt the rest of them yeah
00:45:45 --> 00:46:09 But yeah, I mean, uh, song for her is okay. But yeah, I feel like, thanks for getting back together. I'm glad you guys don't hate each other's guts, but like, I don't think it had to be done. Well, I think the issue is like that announcement video where they just did it like in someone's hallway or bedroom. Yes. It just all felt so cheap, you know?
00:46:09 --> 00:46:33 Like, I feel like if they had actually done it with a label or just a proper plan and there was kind of a real. Yeah. And that was weird. Like, we're looking at each other. Yeah. And so it'd be great. Right. We think. We hope. Song for her isn't terrible. It's not great. It's definitely quite basic. It sounds very juvenile. Like, it sounds like a Disney song a little bit. Yeah.
00:46:33 --> 00:47:03 But again, you know, we know that they're good songwriters. So if they had just taken a bit of time to develop their sound, I'm sure we could have gotten some decent bops out of them. Yes. But I will say, listening to Song for Her just shows the importance in Elsie's voice as well. Because that chorus sounds so thin. You know, they need a little bit of the... I don't know where she's from. But she talks... Liverpool. She's from Liverpool. Yes. Because when she sings, you know, it's very thick. Yeah.
00:47:03 --> 00:47:29 I love it. Yeah. I will say the picture of the five of them together. Come on. What a tease. What a tease. Cause nothing came out of that. Well, I guess something came out of that, but not, you know, what we really wanted. Here's the thing. The fans, you stop thinking that every time these girls get together, they talk about making a tour. We just want to see each other. No, because we knew Simon was there. That's what it was. Because we knew Simon was there. We knew it was a business conversation. That's valid. That's just so funny. This wasn't them sitting around a table, which they do later.
00:47:29 --> 00:47:58 I know, but maybe they just want to sit down and tell them how much I hate him. Like, sorry, buddy. You know, they're all parents now. They got to talk about it. Fine, fine, fine. But yeah, it's moving right along. In November 2018, a reunion stadium tour was announced with four members. So something did happen eventually. Maybe not what you guys wanted and when you wanted it, but it came. But Victoria was the one to sit out to focus on her fashion business. And initially just six-state, the tour expanded to 13 upon demand that broke record sales.
00:47:58 --> 00:48:15 La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la
00:48:15 --> 00:48:34 with reports at the time that Jerry was furious. And this tour opened in Dublin in May 2019, and the run was a triumphant 13 sold-out stadium shows and the Billboard Live Music Award for the highest-grossing engagement of the year. So they had accolades, they had love, and they had praise. Oh.
00:48:34 --> 00:49:02 We were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling, we were feeling
00:49:09 --> 00:49:23 And I want to say that it's just so good to be back with the girls that I love. She finally apologized. Yeah. Oh.
00:49:24 --> 00:49:51 I knew that I had to travel for this show because you couldn't tell from these past, you know, 10 whatever years. Yeah. It takes some time for them to get it together and it rarely happens. So I knew this. I needed to capitalize on this opportunity. So I did travel and go to two shows. I went to Edinburgh and Bristol. And honestly, the experience was magical. Like it was actually pouring during the show in Bristol. Yeah. And I was in the pit.
00:49:52 --> 00:50:20 But having the girls directly in front of me, I remember especially during Stop was when I was really like, oh my God, this is like, especially because that's near the end of the show as well. I was like, oh my God, this might be the last time I'm ever like in the same room with them, like celebrating these songs. And I was just very grateful for that experience. And I treated it with a lot of closure because I was kind of just like, if this is the last time, this is the last time. And so let me like really be in this moment.
00:50:20 --> 00:50:44 Yeah. So, yeah, I'm really glad that I traveled for the show. And the show was perfect because I think, like you mentioned, the pendulum finally swung back because they did an amazing job. Like, huge shout out to the team involved. I think there was Lee Lodge, there was Paul Roberts, there was the Burroughs team. Like, they did such a good job with their research. There were so many references to the old imagery. Yeah. Yeah.
00:50:44 --> 00:51:01 The references to the movie, the set list was pretty perfect. And they referenced the old tours like you had, if you can't dance, going into Who Do You Think You Are. You had Never Give Up on the Good Times going to We Are Family. Like you had all these brilliant moments and then you had the dancers being put in the houses.
00:51:01 --> 00:51:16 So now you've turned the caricatures into full houses and the dancers are all like dressed, you know, in that. And it was choreographed and it was polished, but it was raw as well. Like they had a lot of opportunity to kind of just jump around. So it was a really, really good show for sure.
00:51:16 --> 00:51:36 Oh, that's amazing. I mean, I remember you saying that you went and I was like, oh, lucky. And I just said lucky. Watching it and hearing you talk about it sounds like an awesome experience. I mean, if you guys were there in the audience, please let us know where you were sitting. Or maybe you saw Chris back in the day. I think many people have seen Chris and now realize that it was him. Well, it's him.
00:51:36 --> 00:52:06 This guy is always on barricades. At all the Spice Girls events. Right. He's a barricade bae. He's always there. But yeah, I think it's interesting to kind of, I think we're able to put all this together. And it's so, so very interesting to see how Jerry was dressed. I think I made a comment about that to you as well. I was like, why does she look like such a stick in the mud? Like a diamond stick. Don't get me wrong, honey. It's giving like, you know, Swarovski stick, but it's still a stick.
00:52:06 --> 00:52:27 a very structured dress and it's just such an is it's a testament to the evolution of her temperament toward fashion she didn't look bad but it was a little bit more rigid than i was expecting um she did show a little bit of leg toward like the the more disco we we are family vibes i was like oh there's a leg oh snap um but yeah it is very interesting uh to say the least um
00:52:27 --> 00:52:52 I mean, Jerry's whole personality change, I guess, has been an interesting thing to watch for sure. But I think watching all the footage, again, you do get sparks where you see the old ginger kind of come back out. But in general, she is definitely way more reserved than she used to be, which is interesting as ginger spice. And, you know, I think for her...
00:52:52 --> 00:53:18 You know, obviously we'll get into this more when we talk about her and her whole journey, but her self-confidence also has suffered quite a lot through the years. And so she also lip-synced quite a lot on the show, which is interesting. Like, If You Can Dance Rap. I think the weirdest part that she lip-synced was during Love Thing, she lip-synced her part of that back-and-forth rap with Mel B. But Mel B was live. Yeah, that was like Monica and Brandy, though. Exactly! Oh!
00:53:18 --> 00:53:36 Sorry guys. If you didn't know, Brandon was lip syncing. Right. So that was a bit weird. And I will say the only complaint, I guess the two main complaints that the fans had, the sound engineering overall was not great. Yes. I remember listening to like the, I mean, whether they sell phone recordings, but it doesn't sound good.
00:53:36 --> 00:54:03 Yeah, and depending on where you were in the venue as well is a big difference. And there were times when there was a heavy backing track. Yeah. And I couldn't tell if the girls were meant to be lip syncing or if they just had a backing track as a backup because the way the sound was set up, they just couldn't get the four mics feeding correctly or whatever. I don't know. It's like a bit weird, I would say, the sound. And of course, this also wasn't filmed professionally as well. That's insane. Girls, just come on. Yeah.
00:54:04 --> 00:54:29 come on okay hang on wait wait raise your hand if you would rather the beyonce way where it's like yeah we filmed it but you're never gonna see it or we didn't film it because both i think at least the former i think there's potential eventually yeah so the hope is there it's like woman yeah yeah hope is there but knowing that they literally didn't film it on purpose like the stupidest thing
00:54:30 --> 00:54:49 That is so weird. Especially when they weren't sure if they were going to do more, which they didn't. So anyway. I agree. It's a little dumb. Yeah. And of course, we should mention Victoria being missing. I've been there. Yeah. She really was genuinely missed. Like, especially in songs like Sailly There. Mm-hmm. Oh, my God. Her pre-hook.
00:54:49 --> 00:55:14 Right. And her low harmony is so important to how full the Spice Girls sound is. So you could definitely feel it missing throughout. And it's unfortunate that she didn't go to any of the shows as well. I believe Victoria's parents did go to support. But I think David said that it was just really difficult for her to kind of watch this happen. So, yeah.
00:55:14 --> 00:55:42 Oh, what a hard time. What a hard time. But, Jimmy, she was taking care of her own kind of business. Again, if you haven't, I'm pretty sure a lot of you have watched the documentary. But she was taking care of herself. But, yeah, since 2019, the Spice Girls have existed in a permanent state of almost reunions. We have gotten a lot of new merch and anniversary releases of their albums, at least. So, though the quality is not great, at least you can be a little grateful. Like me, Wannabe, those shirts are trash. Yeah.
00:55:42 --> 00:56:12 Oh, these new ones? Yeah. Yeah, I agree. What is happening? I don't know. Okay, at least they're not expensive. I would have been mad. Mel C has really been the group's greatest connector over the years, though, and has brought out every member of the Spice Girls out at her own solo shows over the years. She and Emma recorded a duet, I Know Him So Well, back in 2012, and have sung it together live a few times. Emma has appeared at a few of Melanie's shows, including her 40th and 50th birthday concerts.
00:56:12 --> 00:56:41 She sang To Become One with both Victoria and Jerry at small private gigs. And most recently, in May 2026, she surprised the lead crowd of her album launch. Oh, sorry, at her album launch with Mel B on stage for an impromptu rendition of Spice Up Your Life. And Mel B and Emma also appeared on Apple TV's K-Pops, which we also reviewed with our sister channel, Right Back Atcha. Which is obviously, you know, a nod to Right Back Atcha, the song. Mm-hmm.
00:56:41 --> 00:57:09 And on K-POP, they performed Say You'll Be There and Wannabe with brand new K-POP remixes with K-POP girl group Itzy. And the whole thing of them coming back together and doing things here and there is nice. We've met Mel B. You've met all of them at some point in time in your life, which is crazy. Oh, no, not all of them. Well, not all of them. I've gotten three. Three. If you guys can guess which one Chris hasn't met, I will give you absolutely nothing but a comment. But...
00:57:09 --> 00:57:26 Guess which one Chris hasn't met. Just guess. Yeah. I will say, obviously, Mel T is my favorite. Yeah. And I'm very grateful that she's changed her tune, I think, because it was a little sad, you know, through those kind of 2000s where she was very clearly not very...
00:57:26 --> 00:57:56 happy you know looking back at the spice girls but now you know she's really changed her tune and has become quite proud of the spice girls legacy um i think to be fair also she's realized that she also wouldn't be where she is right and none of them would be where they were if it weren't for the spice girls and i think it's that realization as well that has led to more of a genuine appreciation for um the music and kind of the fans that have stuck by all of them but yeah
00:57:56 --> 00:58:18 I noticed y'all get real lit. Okay. Cause we'll take the crumbs. Yeah. Y'all get lit. Yes. So in April, 2024, there was a viral moment at Victoria's 50th birthday with all five singing stop together. And this was posted by David Beckham.
00:58:19 --> 00:58:48 And Mel B spent the following years as the group's self-appointed reunion hype woman, teasing something in interview after interview. And Nelsie and Emma also seemed up for a reunion whenever asked as well. But Victoria has stated quite consistently that she will never perform again and that her focus is now solely on her fashion and makeup brand. Though, to be fair, this opinion has seemed to have softened slightly recently. Because after attending Oasis at Wembley Stadium, she posted an Instagram story with the word, Tempting.
00:58:48 --> 00:59:18 And tagged all the girls. Yeah. But Jerry, as we mentioned, she has had quite a shift in her persona over the years. She's become much more muted in her public appearances. She's only wearing white. Yeah. She's very serious in her interviews. She's constantly saying that she's just focused on her YA book series, Rosie Frost. So if rumors are true about what's kind of holding up a future reunion, it's actually more Jerry than Victoria, which is interesting. Yeah.
00:59:18 --> 00:59:35 And in February 2026, Cruz Beckham posted a video of his mom, Mel C, Emma and Jerry singing Viva Forever around a table. And Mel B was unfortunately absent due to her being on her honeymoon. Viva forever, I'll be waiting.
00:59:37 --> 01:00:02 Jerry's is all about the image because she understands that how people perceive her is how people receive her work. So in terms of her trying to be a serious author, all white, super clean, super neat. Bam, there it is. So I think right now she because she is focused on that. That's what we're going to get. You know, with Victoria, like maybe she would, but I doubt it. I don't think it would be super huge. I don't think we're going to get a whole take that moment.
01:00:02 --> 01:00:31 Um, no, but, uh, yeah, I think, I think the reunions that we get now, which is the girls being, being together. And I think unselfishly, the best thing is to be like, I'm glad that they're actually comfortable around each other and still have love for each other. Um, fans are like, I want this. I, I get it. I get it. But these are not your lives. Um, and these women have been through so much. So I'm just like, they might be really done. And that is literally okay. Um,
01:00:31 --> 01:00:54 support them, purchase things that they are doing, go see them when you can, buy tickets for Mel C's concert, things like that. And just appreciate the moments you've had. It's not easy. It's not coming from a place where I know more. Just as an artist myself, I would hate for people like, well, why aren't you doing this? It makes me happy. Girl, what about me? I'm like, you know,
01:00:54 --> 01:01:22 For sure. Some fans get a little like, we deserve this. I'm like, they've done as much as they can. You know? They don't need to make another album. They don't need to, like, prove anything else anymore. They've done everything. They are the standard. So I'm glad that right now it's kind of just like, y'all want to get some royalty checks? Yeah! Go ahead. But make better merch. Yeah. And speaking of right now, we are now here at the 30th anniversary, July 2026. Yes.
01:01:24 --> 01:01:52 And it doesn't sound like the group will really be celebrating, right? Emma and Melcy did do a little radio special together. All five girls did post on Instagram as well. Yes, news reports and rumors through the years have consistently mentioned various projects with months of active negotiations supposedly involving all five. A lot of different rumors and concepts on the table here. There are live shows, possibly at Wembley or at the Sphere in Vegas. Yeah.
01:01:52 --> 01:02:12 There's rumors of a headlining slot at Glastonbury, an ABBA Voyage-style hologram production, a Netflix documentary, even an animated film produced by Paramount. Mel B. has recently publicly stated that the Netflix documentary is not happening because, quote, it has to be honest and not everybody wants to be honest. Ha ha.
01:02:12 --> 01:02:41 As of this recording, there's been a lot of drama on Instagram because Jerry and Mel B did not follow each other on Instagram for a while. But then Mel B started following her again after she wasn't tagged in Jerry's anniversary post. Oh, my gosh. Victoria actually does not follow Jerry or Mel B either. So make of that what you will, I guess, of the current dynamic here. Oh, gosh. It does also seem some live reunion shows actually got really close to happening earlier this year. Mm-hmm.
01:02:41 --> 01:03:08 But in March 2026, it was reported that those discussions collapsed. So per The Sun, the group failed to reach an agreement and Mel C confirmed to an Australian radio show very bluntly that no, there is no reunion. And she had actually been teasing quite a lot prior to that statement. And she even held off on announcing her solo tour for a while. You know, she constantly was kind of like, well, this London show is the only one I'm doing. So...
01:03:09 --> 01:03:38 This is very possible that this is correct. Yeah. Yeah. Oh. There is still some buzz, though, that discussions are still going. So who knows, right? I'm going to stick to my guns. Like, you know, I had the feeling about the girls allowed. I kept saying it every episode. Okay. What's your feeling with this one? No. For the foreseeable future, I'm getting a no. Yeah. Only because of the behavior that was happening in their lives. I feel like something has to happen.
01:03:39 --> 01:04:07 big for them to change their mind. Because, you know, something about realizing your mortality changed people's minds. We've had this conversation before. I don't like doing that. I'm like, if we're good, I'm healthy, let's figure it out. Cool. Right, right, right. And also, how honest do you need to be? We did this. We did that. It was hard. Don't sit down into the interpersonal stuff you don't have to. Really. I mean, it's important if it affected the story of the group, I would say. True. But if you know that's the one thing she doesn't want to talk about, F it.
01:04:08 --> 01:04:27 I know. Oh, she didn't let me munch her box. Like, come on, move on. Yeah, look, I think for me, just as a fan, right, it's more just sad knowing that there is so much drama within the camp still. Yeah. Like, even after all these years, they're all older. Like, it's a little sad that they can't kind of just...
01:04:27 --> 01:04:40 Listen, y'all. Yeah. Yeah, the girls are fighting. Yeah, but it's okay. Like, again, as a fan, I got my closure, I think, from the 2019 tour. I will, of course, be there if they do do anything together. I will continue to support...
01:04:40 --> 01:05:05 I'm not buying all this merch because it's not great. But I did buy the Legos that came out a few years ago. So certain things, you know, I'm still here. And I will, of course, support the solo careers where I can as well. I'm very excited for Mel C's concert later this year. Yes. But yeah, let's see what happens. I'm very grateful for what they've done for us. They will always remain like my favorite group ever, you know. So here we are.
01:05:05 --> 01:05:30 30th anniversary. Exactly. And you know what? They've had discography of amazing music, of course. So we have some listeners, some supporters of our show that have chimed in about their favorite discography highlights. And starting with Edward, his favorite song is Stetimi. And he said that Stetimi deserves so much more. Their live performance of it on TFI Friday, right before Jerry Love is one of his favorite live performances of theirs.
01:05:36 --> 01:05:52 Yes. And then Candice, another listener, said, never give up on the good times, the canceled single that wasn't to be. Like, what would have happened? Were we going to get a single mix? Were we going to get a fun video? She loves the chill disco groove and encouraging message to keep going and choose joy. Yes.
01:05:57 --> 01:06:14 Yes. So what is your choice if you had to choose one discography highlight? One discography highlight? It's kind of tough because I love too much so much. Like that's the song I would love to cover one day. But if I had to think about a song that really just kind of cracks me up because of like just my own songwriting. I wrote a song when I was about 12 years old called.
01:06:14 --> 01:06:38 You're too slow for my beat. It's not good, but it was about a guy not being able to dance and it not being good enough for me. So if you can't dance, the live version goes off. And I still do the step step. If you can't dance, if you can't step step, if you can't like, I literally, so for me, I would say. Punch, punch. Yeah. I unashamedly will list that as my number two.
01:06:44 --> 01:07:07 Oh man, there's so much to choose from. I had If You Can Dance on my list. I had Denying on my list. But I will choose Love Thing because it really is a perfect girl group song. So much sass. The harmonies are beautiful. I love Mel B and Jerry going back and forth with each other. And we get so many versions too. We have the 7-inch version. We have the Istanbul Live version as well. All perfect. It is a perfect girl group song.
01:07:13 --> 01:07:35 So definitely let us know what your discography highlights are And before we end the class We do have a special prediction A special message from our prophet Of pop, Vanessa We are here To spice up your life With a prophetization That's not a word, but You know who's real?
01:07:35 --> 01:08:00 The prophet that we have here, the pop prophet is here. Vanessa is here to give Spice Girls a reading. We did not get an anniversary, but that doesn't mean that there's nothing in the future or in the cards. Prophet, please tell us what you see. All right, let's find out. So are they doing a comeback? Please. All right, let's find out.
01:08:01 --> 01:08:22 pull a card for the for a comeback for the girls let's okay a comeback is a definite possibility i don't know if it'll be all five of them but ace of wands is like the first fire so it feels like there's a sparkle within a few of them to really want to go and do it again and
01:08:22 --> 01:08:49 Page of Pentacles says a couple of them really, really want to feel that magic again. And I feel like maybe they could convince a few of them. I don't know if our girl Jerry is going to be wanting to join back. Sorry. And I don't know if Victoria will want to join. But I feel like the Mels and the Baby will definitely want to do it. That is the feeling that I'm getting from...
01:08:49 --> 01:09:05 just looking at them and pulling the cards. But anything is possible. It feels like if all five of them do something, it would be some like, and I'm getting goosebumps thinking about it, some special occasion type situation, like a big British...
01:09:05 --> 01:09:32 100 year anniversary like some something like that where like the one and one and done victoria and jerry back on stage you know that's what it's feeling like that but for the most part if they did a tour three of three of pentacles again this is the work card i feel like it would only be three of them to actually give you the the tour that you guys uh would be looking for which i think would be
01:09:32 --> 01:09:45 They love each other. They do. I feel like there's other things happening with the two that won't join that there's reasons why they would not want to go on on tour.
01:09:46 --> 01:10:12 Again, for Victoria, she's like, I'm rich. Valid. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean. Do you know who my husband is? I don't need to do this. Okay. That's the energy she's giving. And for Jerry, for Jerry, it's feeling maybe a little medical-
01:10:12 --> 01:10:39 keeping it real with you. And I'm not, you know, I'm not a medical witch over here, but like, and the cards aren't even saying it. It's just like what I'm hearing, because I also hear stuff. It feels very much like health-wise, I don't know if she would be able to stamina it at the moment, but the two Melanies will give you a show and baby will just be happy to be there.
01:10:40 --> 01:11:10 That seems to align, actually. That aligns with what's going on. And look at this. Yep, this feels very much Three of Cups. Mama, I love you. Mama, I care. Yeah, that's what you're going to get. We're going to get three. But look, it's kind of like legit. You got Scary in the Middle, Baby, and then there's Porny on the end.
01:11:10 --> 01:11:31 Wow. That makes sense in a way. I mean, listen, if I'm wrong, I'm wrong. But that's what the Oracle's feeling today about the Spice Girls and any kind of comeback that we might get from them. And it's even possible they were going into a single as well. Oh.
01:11:31 --> 01:11:45 in the studio, they would like, they would be able to go in and do a little song, little sing, sing, maybe one or two songs. Um, but other than that, that's what, that's what we're going to get. All right. Wow. Wow. Wow.
01:11:46 --> 01:12:10 That was a read if I ever did hear one. Because I love them girls. I love Spice Girls as well. They are legends of girl group. And it would be so magical if the five of them did, you know, come back. But unfortunately, life. Well, that's okay. Amazing. Well, thank you. Yes, thank you for your reading.
01:12:12 --> 01:12:37 Listen, Spice fans, tell us what you think about all of this, okay? What are your highlights? What are your downfalls and your sad moments? Whatever. What is next for these ladies? Let us know in the comments and let us know what other artists or albums you want us to review next. We can do Spice Girls stuff. Just tell us. And to shout out to our CCTV crew on Patreon, that's Hillary, Lily, Emily, Juliet, George, Julianne, Jonathan, Janelle, Darius, Ren, Luke, Phoenix, Ivana, Ryan, Chase, PB, Indiego. We have more names. Holy smokes. Yeah.
01:12:37 --> 01:12:51 You can follow us everywhere at CCTV Pops. And if you are watching on YouTube, don't forget to like, subscribe, and turn on that notification bell. And if you are watching on a podcast app, a follow-up rating really helps. Five stars. Until next time, that's Chris. That's Chantel. And we're signing off from CCTV, the Not Stuff Pops show.