Spice Girls

Spice Girls are a British girl group from London, active from 1994 to 2008, with a reunion period later in their career. The group consists of Melanie C, Geri Halliwell, Victoria Beckham, Melanie Brown and Emma Bunton, and is associated with contemporary R&B, dance-pop, pop and teen pop.

Formation and image

The group forms in 1994 through auditions organised by Heart Management, which is looking to create a girl group to compete with the British boy bands of the period. After leaving Heart, they hire Simon Fuller as manager and sign to Virgin Records. The members are also given public nicknames: Mel B as Scary Spice, Melanie C as Sporty Spice, Emma Bunton as Baby Spice, Geri Halliwell as Ginger Spice and Victoria Beckham as Posh Spice. Their image becomes closely linked with the phrase “girl power”, and they are associated with the teen pop revival and the Cool Britannia movement.

Commercial success

Their debut single, “Wannabe”, reaches number one in 37 countries. Their first album, Spice, sells more than 23 million copies worldwide and includes “Say You’ll Be There”, “2 Become 1” and “Who Do You Think You Are”/“Mama”, all of which reach number one. Their second album, Spiceworld, sells over 14 million copies and includes the number-one singles “Spice Up Your Life”, “Too Much” and “Viva Forever”. The group sells over 100 million records worldwide. Their music combines dance-pop with shared songwriting and vocal contributions from the members, and their work helps define 1990s pop.

Performances, film and later activity

The Spice Girls make their live concert debut in 1997 and release the feature film Spice World in the same year. The 1998 Spiceworld Tour becomes the highest-grossing concert tour by a female group at the time, with around 2.1 million attendees. Geri Halliwell leaves during the tour. After the number-one single “Goodbye” in 1998 and a successful 1999 tour, they release their third album, Forever, in 2000. This album includes the number-one single “Holler”/“Let Love Lead the Way”. The group then pauses activity to focus on solo projects, before reuniting for tours in 2007, at the 2012 Summer Olympics closing ceremony, and for the Spice World — 2019 UK Tour.

Awards and legacy

The Spice Girls win five Brit Awards, three American Music Awards, four Billboard Music Awards, three MTV Europe Music Awards and one MTV Video Music Award. In 2000, they receive the Brit Award for Outstanding Contribution to Music and become its youngest recipients. Their tours earn awards for highest-grossing live engagements, and they rank among the top-grossing all-female touring acts from 1998 to 2020. Their endorsement deals and merchandise generate an estimated $500 million to $800 million by May 1998. Distinctive parts of their public image include Halliwell’s Union Jack dress and the media nicknames attached to each member.