Line #88 Music/SpiceGirls


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5	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spicegirls.png]]
6	[[caption-width-right:350:Clockwise from top-left: Scary, Baby, Sporty, Posh and Ginger.]]
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8	->''"Girl Power!"''
9
10	The Spice Girls are an English GirlGroup formed in 1994 who played a huge role in the pop culture of [[The90s the 1990s]] on a global scale. With 105 million records sold worldwide, they are the single highest-selling girl group and one of the highest-selling music acts of all time, as well as the most successful British pop act since Music/TheBeatles.
11
12	The group's famous five-girl lineup consists of:
13	* Geri "Ginger Spice" Halliwell [[labelnote:*]]named for her red hair[[/labelnote]]
14	* Melanie "Scary Spice" Brown [[labelnote:*]]named for her boisterous personality[[/labelnote]]
15	* Emma "Baby Spice" Bunton [[labelnote:*]]named for her being the youngest in the group, 18 years old at the time of formation[[/labelnote]]
16	* [[Music/MelanieC Melanie "Sporty Spice" Chisholm]] [[labelnote:*]]named for her athletic fashion sense and {{tomboy}} personality[[/labelnote]]
17	* Victoria "Posh Spice" [[UsefulNotes/DavidBeckham Beckham]] (née Adams) [[labelnote:*]]named for her sophisticated demeanor and high-end taste[[/labelnote]]
18
19	The group's sound and image were created to appeal to a young female fanbase of preteens and teenagers alike. Their songs, co-written by the girls themselves alongside producer/songwriters Richard Stannard and Matt Rowe, used familiar riffs and somewhat suggestive lyrics, and the girls regularly promoted feminist empowerment and sisterhood with their "girl power" slogan, which has been credited with popularizing the phrase on a mainstream level. As a result, not only were they catapulted to the cultural forefront of their native country, but they were one of the most prominent British acts to break through to the [[UsefulNotes/TheUnitedStates American]] market. They can also be credited as a major factor in shifting the tide of the time's popular music from AlternativeRock to teen pop (later solidified by additional girl groups and {{boy band}}s as well as singers like Music/BritneySpears and Music/ChristinaAguilera).
20
21	One of the biggest things that set the Spice Girls apart from other pop groups is that they have never been the "lead singer and her glorified backup singers" type of act; the girls take turns singing lead, plus each girl has her own distinct look and style. This led to British media coining their famous "___ Spice" nicknames. These names are unofficial -- the girls themselves don't actually use them in any official capacity -- but they're so inextricably tied to the Spice Girls that the group has leaned into them for their public image.
22
23	Despite most European pop bands finding it difficult to break into the American mainstream, the Spice Girls' very first single, "Wannabe," shot straight to number one in more than 30 countries, including the United States. Oddly, though, in the UK, it actually entered the charts at number 3, before going on to spend 7 weeks at number 1. Their 1996 debut album ''Spice'', which contained "Wannabe", went on to sell more than 23 million copies worldwide, becoming the highest-selling album by a female group in history. Their second album released the following year, ''Spiceworld'', sold more than 14 million copies worldwide. Both albums produced three number-one singles: "Say You'll Be There", "2 Become 1" and "Mama"/"Who Do You Think You Are"[[note]]The two singles were released as a double-A side[[/note]] from ''Spice'' (in addition to "Wannabe"), and "Spice Up Your Life", "Too Much" and "Viva Forever" from ''Spiceworld''.
24
25	In 1997, the group made their live concert debut, starred as themselves in the film ''Film/SpiceWorld'' (which still stands as the highest-grossing film based on a music group), and performed at the launch of Creator/Channel5. They suffered a setback the following year after a relatively short run (considering their phenomenal success) when Geri Halliwell left the group just days before they were due on stage to perform a sold-out concert at Wembley Stadium, citing exhaustion, depression and {{creative differences}}. Still, the show went on, and the remaining four released a third album without Halliwell, ''Forever'', in 2000. After numerous denials of the group's disbandment, they eventually announced an indefinite hiatus so the girls could focus on their solo careers at the end of the year, with which they insisted that they were not splitting up.
26
27	Sure enough, this wasn't the end of the Spice Girls. In 2007, it was confirmed that all five members would return for a reunion tour, which sold out in every single country they visited. The tour grossed over 100 million USD and was accompanied by a successful GreatestHitsAlbum, which featured the new single "Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)". In 2012, they reunited again for a performance in the closing ceremony of the year's Summer Olympics, which became the most-[[Website/{{Twitter}} tweeted]] moment of the entire event. In 2018, a second reunion tour was announced, albeit without Victoria Beckham's participation due to her choosing to focus on her fashion label instead.
28
29	In the 2020s, the Spice Girls released [[MilestoneCelebration 25th-anniversary]] reissues of the "Wannabe" single and both of their albums with additional content.
30
31	!! Discography:
32
33	* ''Spice'' (1996)
34	* ''Spiceworld'' (1997)
35	* ''[[NewSoundAlbum Forever]]'' (2000)
36	* ''{{Greatest Hits\|Album}}'' (2007)
37
38	----
39	!! "Trope Power!":
40
41	* AloofDarkHairedGirl: This is Victoria's reputation and gimmick. Somewhat averted by Melanie C who, while camera-shy, came across as friendlier than Victoria.
42	* AmbiguouslyGay: Music/MelanieC, not helped by the fact she had a butch look. This was a fabrication by the media, as she is actually straight. (Mel B was the one who went public about having a relationship with a woman.)
43	* BoyishShortHair: Victoria sported this from 1998 to the band's split in 2000. Melanie C sported this from mid-1999 to 2000 in addition to bleaching her hair blonde.
44	* BreakUpSong: "Goodbye", the first single released after Geri's departure.
45	* BrieferThanTheyThink: 3 albums, 2 with the original group, 5 years releasing, 3 tours, yet spearheaded the whole Teen Pop movement and opened the doors for many artists in the late 90s and early 00s. Their first "era", from their first single up until Geri's departure and accounted for the majority of their success, spanned less than two years!
46	%% * CatchPhrase: "Girl Power", of course.
47	* ChildhoodFriendRomance: The theme of "Viva Forever", a LoveNostalgiaSong.
48	* {{Cloudcuckoolander}}: All of them play up to this in ''Spice World''. Geri tends to come across as a mild version in her interviews.
49	* CulturalRebel: At least at the beginning, when they presented themselves and behaved in ways completely unexpected for girl groups of the time. After they became massive superstars and sold out for countless advertising deals, this effect was lessened considerably.
50	* CuteBruiser: Mel C. Emma, too, as her mother is a karate instructor and she was a trained Green Belt.
51	%% * CuteClumsyGirl: Geri.
52	* TheCutie: Emma's appeal/gimmick, making her a perfect KidAppealCharacter.
53	* DaddysGirl: Geri, who was very close to her much older father, who was separated from Geri's mother.
54	* DeadpanSnarker: Victoria. Various people who've worked with her, such as Damon Dash and press officer Alan Edwards, have stated that she has a very dry sense of humour, and is the funniest member of the band.
55	* DontYouDarePityMe: ''Guess I'd rather be hated then pitied'' in "Naked" from their first album, "Spice".
56	* EdgyBackwardsChairSitting: The Girls perform the song "Naked" all sitting on high-backed chairs turned backwards, which also serve to protect their modesty, as they are apparently naked. [[spoiler: Actually wearing flesh-coloured bodysuits.]]
57	%% * ElementalMotifs: Holler (Fire - Mel B, Earth - Mel C, Water - Emma, and Wind - Victoria) and "Let Love Lead the Way" (first two roles swapped with the latter two)
58	%% * EmotionlessGirl: Victoria (at least to the public).
59	* EmbarrassingNickname: Geri alluded to this in one interview, saying that Emma got, "Aww, it's Baby Spice" while she more often heard, "Oy, Ginger!"
60	%% * EveryoneLovesBlondes: Emma.
61	* FailedAuditionPlot: Completely subverted ''and'' averted by Geri. She showed up to the auditions for the band ''after'' the first round had already been screened and decisions were being made. She wasn't prepared and had very little idea what she was even auditioning for, yet she managed to get a spot as one of the five on the strength of her personality and determination.
62	* TheFashionista: Victoria was called "Posh Spice" because she was the one that dressed in the most luxurious way (in contrast to the other four, who dressed sporty or sexy or "childish" or "weird".
63	* FieryRedhead: Geri is a redhead, and called "Ginger Spice" to refer not just to her hair, but also her character.
64	* {{Flanderization}}: All of them. Documentaries and interviews with them before they ever signed a record deal show that the styles and personalities they became known for were always there, but after they got some fame and money behind them, and more importantly were given their nicknames by the British media, things quickly went up to eleven.
65	** Comparing their early TV appearances when they were more or less just being themselves, to their appearances in late 1996 after Top of the Pops magazine gave them their nicknames when they were hamming it up, then to their peak Flanderization around the time of Spice World in 1997, when they had fully embraced the nicknames and were essentially playing cartoon characters of themselves.
66	* ForgotFlandersCouldDoThat: Especially egregious with Victoria, who seemed to turn into the one that was just meant to stand there and look pretty. Despite singing on almost every track on all three albums, she is often touted as "the one who never sings" because she ''doesn't'' a have a solo part in Wannabe, the song which the girls perform most (she missed the session when the song was written because she had to attend a family function). She even parodied this perception of herself during the reunion tour when she walked the runway as a fashion model instead of singing a solo like the others.
67	* TheFourChordsOfPop: The chorus of "Wannabe", starting unconventionally with V.
68	* GenderFlip: unlike most previous manufactured [[GirlGroup Girl Groups]], which didn't typically bother to differentiate their members all that much, the Spice Girls nicked the Boy Bands' trick of giving each member a distinguishing character trait and 'role' in the group. It's been speculated that this is one of the reasons they broke through so strongly in the BoyBand-dominated nineties. As a result, the five of them fit the traditional BoyBand archetypes very neatly:
69	** '''The Heartthrob:''' Geri (Ginger).
70	** '''The Bad Girl:''' Mel B (Scary).
71	** '''The Quiet One:''' Victoria (Posh).
72	** '''The Big Sister:''' Mel C (Sporty).
73	** '''The Cute One:''' Emma (Baby).
74	* GenkiGirl: Geri. Mel B has shades of this too.
75	* TheGimmick: The "characters" and individual styles of each girl was a major part of their success. Though they were ''not'' manufactured personas assigned to them by the record company, once the marketing potential in their own characters became clear they played it up for all it was worth. Which was a lot. Toned down after Geri left for a more uniform look between the remaining four, as Geri was the main proponent of the more exaggerated outfits they wore.
76	* GirlGroup: They are one of the most famous girl groups of all time.
77	* GirlishPigtails: Emma, especially in the early years.
78	* GirlyGirlWithATomboyStreak: GirlishPigtails and inclination toward pastel motifs + trained martial artist = Emma. (Emphasized in "Say You'll B There," which had her billed as "Kung Fu Candy.")
79	* GratuitousSpanish: The rap that makes up the second verse of "If U Can't Dance".
80	* HeadbuttingHeroes: According to the girls themselves, there was ''a lot'' of tension between Geri and Mel B.
81	** According to Mel B, she and Mel C had "a few punch-ups". In her first autobiography Geri also alludes to Mel C and Mel B having physical "sibling scraps".
82	* HiddenDepths:
83	** It's a common misconception that the band was entirely manufactured by a record company and thus had no input into their careers, but this was not the case. After being brought together in auditions for a girl group, the five of them left to seek out management on their own, and always insisted on maintaining their own personalities and styles. They also co-wrote all of their music, with a clause in their contract stipulating that they each receive an equal share of the songwriting credit along with their regular writing/producing team, "Absolute".
84	** On an individual level, it was often pointed out that Geri was... not the most gifted in terms of vocals or dance ability, having charmed her way into the group through sheer force of personality and becoming known for her flamboyant dress sense and old nude photographs of her doing the rounds. But she also had a degree in business, and came up with a lot of the branding, costuming and marketing ideas that made them such a success, as well as being their primary songwriter. After she left, her absence is clear in more ways than one.
85	* HotterAndSexier: The "Say You'll Be There" video featured the girls in sexy black leather outfits, and provided far more {{Fanservice}} than that of "Wannabe". Emma jokes at that being the point they started attracting male fans.
86	* IconicOutfit: Geri's [[WearingAFlagOnYourHead Union Jack dress]] at the 1997 Brit Awards is the biggest example, though they all have recognisable looks; Victoria's bob and LittleBlackDress, Emma's pigtails and babydoll dresses, Mel B's afro and leopard-print ensembles and Mel C's ponytail and tracksuits.
87	* ImportantHaircut:
88	** Geri dyed her signature fire-engine-red hair a much more muted strawberry blonde after she left the group, not going ginger again until a reunion tour more than 20 years later.
89	** Mel C also got her hair cut short and dyed it blonde for her solo career (though later outgrew it to chin length) and Mel B had her hair straightened.
90	* IntercourseWithYou: What sounds like a silly arse kicking song in childhood sounds like a sex song in adulthood; ''2 Become 1, Holler, If U Can't Dance'' and many more. There were also two unreleased songs which attempted this (both were eventually deemed too rude for airplay). The first one was called ''Feed Your Love'' and was allegedly about giving a blow job and the second one was called ''C U Next Thursday'', which if you look at [[CountryMatters first letters of each word ...]]
91	* {{Irony}}:
92	** The "one who never sang" Victoria ended up as the one who remained in the public eye the most. It should be noted, though, that Victoria didn't remain in the public eye because of her music. Also, Posh Spice married a footballer instead of Sporty.
93	** Mel C was thought to be a lesbian, but Mel B turned out to have had relationships with women, including an (alleged) one night stand with the extremely straight-laced Geri.
94	** Baby Spice was the most innocent looking of the girls, but she was the daughter of a karate instructor.
95	** Halliwell was considered the fiery one, but also the one who ended up dealing with depression.
96	** On their official calendar of 1998, Geri appeared on the May page, despite leaving the band just before that very month.
97	* ItWillNeverCatchOn: Sort of. Even the Girls themselves, much less their producers, never expected the wild success they wound up having -- it was more of a case of good timing, as on both sides of the Atlantic, the alt-rock and {{Britpop}} scenes [[https://music.avclub.com/in-1996-alternative-rock-died-a-messy-forgettable-dea-1798251472 were both basically collapsing in on themselves]] for various reasons (Britpop in particular had run into an identity crisis), while the rap scene was undergoing the East Coast/West Coast wars and subsequent reconfiguring; the Girls' style of bright, fun pop music was able to break through the dourness and gained momentum from there.
98	* KidAppealCharacter: Emma is the youngest. She's a type 2 and her nickname even plays this for laughs.
99	%% * LargeHam: Mel B, hence the nickname "Scary Spice".
100	* LittleBlackDress: Victoria was a big fan of these, to the extent that any imitation or parody of her invariably includes one.
101	%% * LovableJock: Sporty Spice, presumably.
102	* MinorWithFakeID: Geri writes in her autobiography that when she wanted to see the film ''Film/DesperatelySeekingSusan'' at the age of twelve, she padded out her chest with her brother's football socks to make herself look fifteen.
103	%% * TheMovie: ''Film/SpiceWorld''.
104	* MsFanservice: The Girls were arguably a ''collective'' example. Each of them had their own distinctive style that could appeal to particular fans.
105	* TheMusical: [[JukeboxMusical 'Viva Forever']], announced by the girls in June 2012 and being written by Creator/JenniferSaunders for a December 2012 premiere.
106	* MyFriendsAndZoidberg: Victoria has become this in relation to the others in recent years, having distanced herself from the group and the music industry in general to focus on her fashion career.
107	* NewSoundAlbum: ''Forever'' introduced a very American R&B sound, which led to it not being very well received (in the collective minds of British public it has been mostly forgotten). Their previous albums had been more rooted in pop and 90s dance music.
108	* NotSoStoic: Victoria very rarely smiled during her run with the band. In fact, she smiled so little that any time she was caught grinning, it was almost shocking to anyone seeing it for the first time. Particularly because she has an absolutely ''adorable'' smile.
109	* NumberOfObjectsTitle: Before they came up with name "Spice Girls", originally "Spice", their original management team suggested names such as "Take Five", "Plus Five", "Five Alive", which were firmly vetoed by the girls. The same team later went on to produce a band called 5ive.
110	* OneSteveLimit: Averted with Melanie Brown and Melanie Chisholm. This is why they shortened their full names to avoid confusion.
111	* TheOner: "Wannabe"'s video is a one-take shot.
112	* OopNorth: Mel C is from a suburb of Cheshire near Liverpool, while Mel B is from Yorkshire (Leeds to be exact). In fact, when she appeared on ''The Masked Singer'' with her voice disguised, some were able to guess it was her because of the way she pronounced 'show' in her northern accent.
113	* PersonalityPowers
114	* PowerOfFriendship: Theme of ''Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)'' and one of their major messages in general.
115	* PrankPunishment: In her autobiography, Geri Halliwell writes that she stapled the sleeves of a colleague who kept reporting her to management, just before she resigned.
116	* PrettyInMink: Three of the remaining four in the ''Goodbye'' music video (Mel C is the exception).
117	* ProgressivelyPrettier: The girls described their initial image as being relatable to the average girls who might be listening to their music - a lot of them dressed very casually, with only Victoria being TheFashionista and Geri being MsFanservice. As they spent more time in the public eye, their appearances became more fashionable and polished. Mel C for example was the tomboy, but received a huge GirlinessUpgrade by the time of their 2007 reunion.
118	* RealLifeWritesThePlot:
119	** As mentioned previously, the reason Victoria doesn't have solo lines in Wannabe is that she missed the recording session to attend a family function.
120	** "Christmas Wrapping", the B-side to "Goodbye", only has vocals from Emma and Mel C, because the other two were heavily pregnant at the time. "Goodbye" itself was also originally written to be about a relationship ending. With Geri's sudden departure, the lyrics became about her instead.
121	* RedOniBlueOni: Geri/Mel B VS Emma/Victoria, whilst Mel C is a purple oni.
122	* RollerbladeGood: In their live shows in 1998, there was a sequence involving Geri on roller skates; this only lasted until she left the band the same year, with the other girls reportedly glad this sequence was no longer there. Geri also wrote in her autobiography that the manager of a luxury hotel had to deal with complaints when she and Mel B rollerbladed through the corridors: girls will be girls.
123	* SassyBlackWoman: Mel B.
124	* [[ScaryBlackMan Scary Black Woman]]: Mel B, who was indeed nicknamed "Scary Spice".
125	* SeriesFauxnale: Many, including the girls themselves, believed that ''Goodbye'' might be their last single. Obviously, it wasn't.
126	* SheCleansUpNicely: Since she was "Sporty Spice" Mel C was always dressed in a very simple and tomboyish style. She is so well known for it, it's always a little strange to see her [[http://images2.fanpop.com/image/photos/9700000/-This-Time-promotial-photos-melanie-chisholm-9739263-1772-2360.jpg more dressed up.]]
127	* {{Shorttank}}: Justified with Melanie "Sporty Spice" Chisolm.
128	* SpokenWordInMusic: "Naked" has this at the beginning of the song, after the first chorus, and the middle is done as a phone conversation heard on Emma's end: "Hello...it's me...I thought you'd understand...well, maybe I should give it my best shot...I keep seeing such a pretty picture...But I don't want to be hated or pitied either...maybe I should leave it up to your imagination...I just want to be me..."
129	* TechnicianVersusPerformer: The group was made up of a mixture of these, playing to each other's strengths. Victoria with her musical theatre training was a Technician, Mel B and Geri were more performers who made up for their vocal limitations with stage presence and charisma (Geri especially had no professional training at all), Mel C and Emma were able to do both; providing heavy lifting on a lot of songs, but still able to perform excitingly.
130	* TomboyAndGirlyGirl: The Mels are the Tomboys, while Emma and Victoria are on the Girly Girl side. Geri seems to be halfway between both types.
131	* TookALevelInBadass: Mel C went from being a cute, sporty chick who wore very little makeup comparatively to sporting a gold tooth and a nose ring, dyeing red streaks in her hair and doing backflips and karate moves on stage.
132	* WardrobeMalfunction: Geri famously had one when the girls accepted their BRIT Award in 1997. She was wearing a strapless dress and accidentally exposed one breast when climbing the stairs. Mel C helped cover it and she'd readjusted the dress by the time they got up again.
133	* WearingAFlagOnYourHead: Geri and her famed Union Jack dress (which became her signature outfit of sorts) from the Brit Awards. For their 2007 reunion she had a new dress made with a similar pattern, after unsuccessfully trying to buy back the original, and for the 2019 tour she upgraded to a floor length version.
134	* WinterRoyalLady: The girls evoke this appearance in the ''Goodbye'' music video, though Victoria makes it a somewhat black version.
135	%%* {{Zeerust}}: The music video for "Spice Up Your Life".

Context Music / SpiceGirls