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BuzzJack Music Forum _ Spice Girls _ How did you get into the Spice Girls?

Posted by: Jade-o-Lantern🎃 Oct 10 2017, 11:16 PM



The Spice Girls had so many iconic moments. Storming to #1 with their debut single, the above Brits performance, Spiceworld the Movie... but what was THE moment that got you into the Spice Girls, if you can remember? ohmy.gif

Sadly I was born on 4th August 1997 so was obviously not even born/far too young to remember their heyday laugh.gif my Spice obsession began at the age of 10 in mid-2008. I had a vague knowledge of them before then but didn't really know much about their music except their "if you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends" song. I discovered more about them in year 6, my final year of primary school, when we were rehearsing for our leavers assembly, and we watched a DVD of the leavers assembly from a previous group of year 6s from my school - it was 90s themed! One of the songs that was incorporated into a dance for their assembly was 'Spice Up Your Life' and I thought it sounded fab *.* so I then looked up the music video when I got home and then started to binge all of their vids and the rest is history. 'Spice Up Your Life' remains a fave of theirs for me to this day. I soon became a fangirl who started listening to them constantly/watching Spiceworld the Movie all the time and buying merchandise from eBay. I was GUTTED that I got into them mere months after their Return of the Spice Girls tour had finished cry.gif what makes things worse is that my parents actually went to it but I had no interest in them at the time </3 in my tween/teen years I got VERY obsessive about things and continued to grow my Spice collection for a few more years! I remember emailing Liz West (owner of the biggest Spice Girls collection ever ofc) years ago and I think she might have been a little taken aback by my age at the time haha - the Spice Girls still had 12 year old fans in 2009? kink.gif Rewind to now and I'm not really the mega stan I was back then but I still adore their music and enjoy hearing about what the girls are doing.

So, what about you guys?

Posted by: Jay ☆ Oct 11 2017, 12:28 AM

Aww! wub.gif I think it's great that their appeal could stretch to those who weren't even born when they first came on the scene! What a pity you got into them slightly too late to experience The Return of the Spice Girls! cry.gif I remember seeing a pic of your collection. *.*


Well for me, it was from the very start! I was 8 years old in the summer of 1996, and pop music hadn't particularly interested me up to that point - I liked some random songs, but I wasn't knowledgeable about who these songs were by - I wasn't a fan of anybody. Then the Spice Girls came along and changed everything. *_*

The first time I became aware of them would have been seeing them on a kids show, because I always watched shows such as Live and Kicking. I was enthralled by them - they just seemed so exciting, their vibe was infectious! It was pretty crazy, because when 'Wannabe' became a hit it was as if my entire primary school was taken in by them overnight. I remember reading some information about them on teletext ( laugh.gif ) and making sure I remembered certain facts to be able to impress my friends with. They really were a huge talking point, and which girl was your favourite was an important discussion. x Mine was Emma. *.*

For a few months, my access to the Spice Girls was restricted to TV shows I caught them on, and kids magazines. For some reason I wasn't yet aware of the concept of buying singles/albums. I remember a friend brought a tape of 'Spice' into school to show off, and it was like a revelation to me that they had more songs to be heard! Don't even ask how I remember this so specifically, but I eventually bought the Spice cassette on 2nd January 1997 in Cardiff Woolworths. kink.gif (Clearly a momentous occasion in my life x). I played that tape soooo much. <3

1997 was an amazing time to be a fan of theirs, because it seemed like they were literally everywhere - TV, magazines, merchandise... on packets of crisps, cans of Pepsi and chocolate wrappers. :') (Spice Girls made me fat x). When they released Spice Up Your Life, I somehow became even more obsessed with them... I absolutely adored that song, and it's still one of my favourite songs. wub.gif Then I received the Spiceworld album on CD for Christmas - my first ever CD.

My classmates' obsession with them began to wane in 1998... suddenly acts like All Saints, B*Witched and Aqua were cooler (can you believe it x), but I continued to regard Spice Girls as my favourites. Sadly by 2000 (when I was in secondary school, Year 8) it was pretty much social suicide to admit you still liked them, so I had to keep my excitement for their 'Forever' era to myself. cry.gif

I didn't get to see them on tour until their 2007 reunion - I saw them once at London O2, on 15th December 2007. biggrin.gif I was 19 at the time. A dream come true, particularly because I'd feared for a few years that they were never getting back together.

I doubt I would have anticipated back in my childhood days that I'd still be a fan of theirs and interested in their solo ventures, for 20+ years and counting. They'll always have a special place in my heart! I think there's certainly an element of nostalgia and sentimentality there, but ultimately their music/performances etc makes me feel happy. heart.gif


(Sorry, I went on a bit there heehee.gif )

Posted by: Sonia Fowler Oct 11 2017, 12:34 AM

I first enjoyed their music when I got older because I was born around the time when Wannabe came out and dominated so ovbs I was quite young when they first came out etc. I think Wannabe was the first thing I heard of them most likely because It was on a music channel as it's still regularly featured a lot there. I wouldn't say I am a stan of theirs but they have such a strong singles discography (I need to hear their albums at some point)

Posted by: Jay ☆ Oct 11 2017, 12:37 AM

^ We'll have to have an album listening session! cool2.gif

Posted by: colinn Oct 20 2017, 07:41 AM

I was born in March 1996 so I missed the girls at their peak. However, they were present ever since I can remember. I have two older sisters so of course they were fans. I remember one my siblings getting the Mel B Concert Collection Doll for her birthday in September 1999, that could be where my obsession stemmed from (I still remember the smell of the roll on wub.gif).

I then started to collect the dolls and any CD I could find (my poor Dad getting dragged by a four year old to HMV every weekend for a Spice Girls CD lol) and even managed to snag old Pepsi posters from my local newsagent.

The Forever era was the first time I can remember seeing the Spice Girls active as a group and not just from old VHS/CD's. I recall watching The Box in hopes that the girls would come on and when the music video for 'Holler' came on I praying that Geri would make an appearance haha. My parents also bought me the album for Christmas and I have memories of listening to Tell Me Why before Christmas dinner. I also have a vague memory of reading the newspapers and seeing Mel C on the front cover (at the album launch party) sticking the fingers up to the press.

My love for the girls has stayed throughout the years and the impact they've had on my life is undeniable. They were my introduction to pop music and what a group to begin with.

Posted by: »ïïïïïïïïïïïïï. Oct 22 2017, 09:23 PM

Got more aware and interessed in music around the time 'Wannabe' got released. I really enjoyed the track but not a fan (yet). That quickly changed when the next singles got released. 'Say you'll be there' is the first single I ever bought and since then..Spice fever wub.gif I blame them for my girlband fetish tongue.gif! Bought their music and quite some merchandise. Almost got to see them live in '97, but tickets were sold out JUST when it was our turn..

Still love them today and they got a special place in my heart heart.gif

Posted by: Spiceboy Oct 22 2017, 11:35 PM

I was a little late getting into them, it wasn't until they released 1 hour of Girl Power. Before that I had no interest in music as I am deaf and so have always found it quite difficult to listen to songs (it takes me a while to work out words using lyrics and some heavy songs I just can't hear they are just noise - tends to be more rockier stuff). Due to this the only interest I had shown in music was from the film American Tale and their soundtrack was my only cd. (Diddy diddy dum) laugh.gif

I was at my cousin's house and she was a huge fan at the time and basically forced me to sit and watch the 1 hour of girl power video with her. Well that's it I was hooked! I loved it, loved them, their craziness, the music videos, the Brit Awards performance everything! I made her put it on at the beginning as soon as we were finished to watch again, and as soon as my mum came to pick me up I told her was HAD to go to ASDA on our way home to buy the VHS. Mum was really taken aback as I showed so little interest in music so we did exactly that and she decided to buy me the album too at the same time.

From then on I was obsessed with them. I was so lucky I got pretty much everything apart from the dolls (that was a step too far for my mum buying dolls for her son lol). I got a 'Spice Girls Christmas' in 1997 where my parents basically bought everything Spice related at ASDA (they had the deal with them that christmas), the album, the Istanbul concert, the bean bag, the giant card, the stationary set, the lunchbox, the light shade, the bed covers... it was just amazing. wub.gif

My dad made it a habit to go and buy me the Spiceworld singles as they were released on his lunch break from work, we saw the movie 3 times in the cinema, I got tickets to see them at Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield, mum somehow tracked down the Spice singles and bought them for me. My mum loved them too and my dad hated their music but really admired how hard working they were so both were happy to buy into the craze.

The girls were / are actually incredibly important to me. First of all they got me into music as from them I went on to loving Steps, S Club 7, Atomic Kitten, Blue, Britney, Christina Aguilera... and then branched out to exploring past artists like Madonna, Kylie, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Cher, Elton John... Who knows whether I would have ever made the effort had I not watched that vhs (because it does take some effort to get to know a song, until I know the song it is just noise and it takes time).
Second I really took their message to heart. 'Girl Power' was very much targeted at girls but as a young confused boy who was the only deaf person in his family and school, who had some inkling that he wasn't straight although was very confused by that, who alot of people assumed wouldn't achieve much in life because of my disabiilty, I really believed their 'you can do anything you want to do if you just work hard' and that it's ok to be different and we should embrace and be proud of our differences. I have kept that with me all my life and I went on to get great exam results, went to university twice, became a teacher, came out as gay to my friends and family as a teenager. Alot of that is thanks to my parents but alot of it is thanks to those five they truly inspired me to aim high and be myself. wub.gif

(Wow that turned into an essay and a half, sorry lol)

Posted by: Alberto! Oct 23 2017, 01:46 AM

I saw the Pepsi advert with Spice Up Your Life and asked for the album, but my uncle bought me the Live In Istambul videocassette instead so I fell in love with them by watching the show repeatedly until the point of deterioration =)
I the bought the Spiceworld album on cassette a few months later and the deal was sealed lol

Posted by: missingyou Oct 23 2017, 07:34 AM

I was six years old and had up until this point been a 'fan' of Gina G's 'oooh aah...' and then watching her on TOTP one day, there was this bizarre song at number three. It kept coming up on the Box and one day I listened/watched it. The very next day I had the cassette out of Woolies and that Sunday it was announced as the number one.

From that point on (like a lot of others) it was buy Smash Hits, TOTP Mag... watch The Box and TOTP and whatever else in the hope the video would come on, buy every single thing that had their name on... blah blah blah. '2 Become 1' was probably the start of the peak for me that lasted until 'Too Much', in that time it seemed everybody was a fan. Then in 1998, I got to go to the NEC Birmingham on 3 May to see the Spiceworld tour.

Throughout 98 I continued to be a huge fan, following every step of the US tour in the press and during the second half absolutely hating Geri for leaving.

It felt like Forever for 2000 to come around, see what I did there...., I'd grown up a little, I was now a 10/11 year old, off to secondary school. Realised I was gay. I also had become an S Club fan (something that didn't last forever, despite how into them I was at the time) and Forever was such a polished and mature collection. I remember being a bit disappointed that RBAY had changed from the tour, and I was really hurt about Melanie Cs appearance. I actually hated that she had gone so buzzing.

I always remained a fan, despite the 'teenage years' and bought all the solo records. By 2001, i'd forgiven Geri. I guess Melanie C was now the one i avoided and I didn't buy Beautiful Intentions at all. Emma sought of kept the Spice alive for me with Free Me. Geri too with Passion.

In 2006, a year that will forever be a special year. I remember it being 10 years since the Spice Girls became big and I spent a whole day just listening/watching and reminiscing and thinking what a lucky person to have found something that connected with me so well. I also felt like I was who i'd become thanks to those five girls.

Of course, i was extatic at the 2007 reunion and it seemed that the whole world was too. I bought This Time, unlike the rest of the world, fell in love with Headlines, embraced that winter, the opportunity to follow the tour in the media, see them live (three times), buy The Greatest Hits, see them on TV doing adverts again... it was incredible. I childishly thought they would stay together and make new music... and so it was so sad to see it all end again.

2012 was the iconic for me. That Olympics performance cemented their place in history as musical legends. Viva Forever! may not have been the roaring success the girls wanted, but i'm glad they had a brief moment on the West End. 2012 was great for band pics, feeling like they are always there in some form.

Of course, I was all for the GEM project in 2016, but I respect that they decided against it. I will always blame Melanie C for not taking part in a reunion that she seemed so comfortable with for years before 2016.

Anyway, its now fall 2017 and it will be soon time to have a daily listen of 2B1, TM and Goodbye.

I reset my iTunes plays on 1 January every year, and in my Top 150 Most Played, 2 Become 1 is sitting proudly at the number 2 position, having been played 226 times since January 1 2017.
'

Posted by: Jay ☆ Oct 23 2017, 10:48 AM

Really lovely to read through all of your personal stories, and how we all connected with them. wub.gif

Posted by: Maurice Oct 23 2017, 10:57 AM

I was a fan since Wannabe was released, it was also the 1st single i ever bought. When i heard the song the 1st time i was sold! I loved it so much. The Spice Girls were always there when i needed them during my childhood.
I cried when Geri left but supported her solo career. There was a small period in 2002-2003 my love for the girls was on a low but when 2003 came and Emma and Victoria released music again i loved them again.

Posted by: Jade-o-Lantern🎃 Oct 23 2017, 12:49 PM

I want to reply to all of these responses but it would turn into a ridiculous wall of text laugh.gif so just know that all of these replies have been wonderful, I love when passion is shown by others about something that I have also been passionate about. No need to apologise about essay responses either, this topic is a perfect opportunity for essays really!

Posted by: breezyspice Oct 25 2017, 03:47 PM

It's so cheesy but... you know when someone asks, "do you remember where you were and what you were doing when such-and-such happened?" This is one of those for me and it was at the very beginning.

I was 11 or 12 when Wannabe was released and it was a Friday afternoon... haha! My Mum and I were driving to the video store as we did every Friday and the radio was on. It was the "premiere" of this new single by a group - but I had completely missed the name when the radio DJ said it. However, I remember telling my Mum to be quiet and turned up the volume within the first few seconds because I was completely enthralled. When we got to the video store I stayed in the car until the song was over and after that moment, I was already obsessed.

I saved my allowance for when the album was out in stores and bought it the day it came out, went to my friends house where we opened the album together and put the CD in while we fawned over the album insert. The exact moment I opened it and saw the red background with this girl in a black dress - I was done for. Victoria has been my favorite since that exact moment.

Awh, that gave me all the feels. heart.gif

Posted by: Spiceboy Oct 25 2017, 05:28 PM

This is such a fantastic thread I’m loving reading the responses. wub.gif

Posted by: melaniejclover Dec 13 2017, 10:37 PM

My sister listened to them when she was young and I followed suite, she must have "grown out" of listening to them cause I forgot about them for several years, the last thing I remember now thinking back, she was upset Geri left, and upset that Melanie C dyed her hair, I was in Elementary when I had last heard them, then when I was a senior in high school I just happen to come apon Melanie C's Wikipedia page and at that time she had already Released Better Alone and hadn't Released FDOML yet, I remember Listening to Better alone On Yahoo Music page over and over, Then I remembered fantasying about getting Northern Star then around 2008, 2009 I had gotten a used on at a music store, that was my prize position at the time.

Posted by: Fulvio84 Dec 15 2017, 02:45 PM

i dont really remember anymore, I just remember I started be in love with Spice up ur life and totally f***ed up with Stop. In the very begining I liked them but nothing special, maybe I was to young, but after that both me and my sister start like them more and more and now I am where we all are....lost in memories ahaha

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