FEATURE:
The Digital Mixtape
PHOTO CREDIT: Conor Clinch
The Divine and Legendary Melanie C At Fifty
_________
IT might be a little insensitive…
IN THIS PHOTO: Spice Girls
to mention a woman’s age - especially if they are approaching an ‘important birthday’! In the case of Melanie C, she is such a legend and important music figure, that I needed to celebrate it. Melanie C is a terrific solo artist and, of course, a fifth of Spice Girls. I would love it if they were announced as Glastonbury headliners this year. Melanie C (Chisholm) herself is open to it. The group – Melanie Chisholm, Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Geri Halliwell (now Horner) and Victoria Adams (now Beckham) – formed in 1994. This year is a big one for them. There is a lot to love about Melanie C who, by the way, has always been my favourite Spice Girl. Someone who I admired (and, frankly, had a crush on) from a young age, she is such an impressive person! From putting up merchandise and interesting stuff up for auction for Shelter, to talking about her mental health in a frank and open way, you know she has inspired so many girls and women (and other people too). A true icon who is beloved and could well be a politician (someone who would attack the Conservatives and really speak for those alienated and ignored), there is so much to admire when it comes to Melanie C. Born on 12th January, 1974 in Whiston, Merseyside, Chisholm has co-written eleven U.K. number-ones. That is more than any other female artist in chart history. Chisholm remains the only female performer to top the charts as a solo artist, as part of a duo, quartet, and quintet. That is a staggering feat! With twelve U.K. number-one singles, she is the second female artist – and the first British female artist – with most singles at number one in the United Kingdom.
A true treasure and queen, here is some biography about the phenomenal Melanie C. I am going to end this feature with a playlist containing some of the best Spice Girls number, together with her amazing solo/collaboration work. I can’t really overstate how much I admire Melanie C. One of our very best people:
“The start of Melanie’s career really needs no explanation at all, as it is rather well documented…
After the iconic 1996 debut single ‘Wannabe’ topped the charts in 37 countries, Spice Girls’ debut album ’Spice’ went on to sell more than 31 million copies worldwide, becoming the best-selling album of all time by a female group. The girls went on to sell more than 85 million records, releasing three studio albums, 13 singles and winning a host of awards including a BRIT for Outstanding Contribution to British Music.
Melanie’s first solo venture was her featuring on the hit single ‘When You’re Gone’ with Bryan Adams. As a solo artist, Melanie has achieved over 3 million album sales, two Number 1 singles, and six Top 10 singles, including the iconic hits ‘I Turn To You’ and ‘Never be the Same Again’ featuring the late Lisa ‘Left Eye’ Lopez. In 2005 her track ‘First Day Of My Life’ was to become one of her biggest hits to date, selling over 400,000 copies in Germany alone. It also went on to chart at Number 1 in Spain, Sweden, Austria, Switzerland, and Portugal where it helped to propel the album ‘Beautiful Intentions’ to double-platinum status and kept it at Number 1 for 9 weeks.
n 2012, Melanie reunited with the Spice Girls for what she described as the highlight of their career as a group – performing at the Olympic Closing Ceremony in London. In one of the most anticipated appearances and in front of a global TV audience of billions, the world could never look at black cabs in the same way again!
2019 Saw the return of the Spice Girls on their sold-out Stadium tour, which served as a joyous reminder of the spell that ‘90s girl power still casts on pop.
Within days of waving goodbye with three nights at Wembley, Melanie was continent-hopping on a very different, if no less glamorous tour, performing at Pride parades with the LGBTQ+ club collective Sink The Pink.
From hosting a float in Sao Paulo – the first international artist ever invited to do so – and performing in New York’s Times Square for World Pride’s closing party to storming everywhere from Stockholm, Santiago, Amsterdam, London, Cologne, Berlin, Brighton, Belfast, and Dublin, the tour proved pivotal to Melanie’s future plans. “Being a Spice Girl again was like a fairytale and I loved every moment,” says Melanie, “but being on that float in Sao Paulo, with three million people out in the streets, was like nothing I’d ever experienced before. It was one of those highs you hope never to come down from.”
Melanie released her latest album “Melanie C” in 2021, including bangers such as ‘In And Out Of Love’ also hits ‘Blame It On Me’ & ‘Who I Am’ and her very anticipated memoir “Who I Am, My Story” in 2022”.
Her debut album, Northern Star, turns twenty-five later this year. Spice Girls have that thirtieth anniversary this year. Ahead of her fiftieth birthday on 12th January, I wanted to spend some time with her music and career. I cannot include all the interviews and videos that people need to check out. I would recommend people check out Melanie C’s autobiography, Who Am I? It is a must-read. I am going to end with a quote about the book:
“When you're a woman, though, that power can be easily taken away by those around you, whether by pressure, exhaustion, shaming, bullying or a constant feeling like you aren't enough. I have been known as Sporty Spice, Mel C, Melanie C or just plain old Melanie Chisholm, but what you will read within the pages of this book is who I truly am, and how I found peace with that after all these years.
I have really enjoyed reminiscing and getting everything down on the page, and, though revisiting some of my darkest times was hard, I hope this book can be inspiring and empowering as well as entertaining and give you a bit of a laugh”.
Many happy returns to Melanie C. Even if Spice Girls are not announced as Glastonbury headliners – I have a sneaky suspicion they may be in the mix! -, 2024 is a massive year for them. I know we will hear new music from Melanie C and maybe podcasts/books and other things. She is always so busy, so do keep your eye out. On 12th January, one of our most adored and respected people turns fifty. I wanted to mark that. There is no doubt that Melanie C is dear…
IN all our hearts.