Wish Viva Forever was in their top 5 most streamed

Be fun to toma top 10 or 20 of the girls solo music?

Unfortunately I've never noted down their solo music streams count at new years. :( The last time I did that was on 22nd May 2022... it might be a bit random but I could always make sure that I do a solo update on 22nd May 2023 and have it be a countdown of how many streams they got in the space of 12 months, even if it isn't within one calendar year. :thinking:

 

Wait. Are you saying ... that the Morales Mix is now "in demand", Jay? If so, I will have to amend my Forever25 tracklist. Please advise. :teresa: :rofl:

:rofl: It is, you must include it :teresa:

 

Dragging this out Jay! I'm desparate to know the top 2 cant for the life of me guess what they are #oh

I know, it's going to be a massive shock when I reveal them!! Sorry for the delay but I'm going to do it in a moment. :cool:

 

Wish Viva Forever was in their top 5 most streamed

:wub: I wish it was too, it deserves it!

2nd: Stop

 

'Stop' ended the Spice Girls' consecutive streak of UK #1 singles when it reached #2 in March 1998. Not only that, but it also sold significantly less copies than their other 90s hits - it certified Silver, while their other eight singles from the 90s achieved Platinum status. What went wrong? We've discussed & shared our theories about this many times over the years. Despite the relatively muted reception to 'Stop' at the time of its release, it has experienced a major rise in popularity in the digital era, which has been very rewarding to see! The song now firmly feels like one of their most iconic and remembered singles. The introduction of streaming contributing to sales figures helped 'Stop' finally certified Gold in the UK, and then Platinum in 2020! It's their 2nd most streamed song of 2022 by quite a distance, as well as all-time.

 

2022 Streams: 27,194,550

Total Streams: 142,553,992

 

----------

 

1st: Wannabe

 

'Wannabe' really needs no introduction - what a monster of a hit this song was, and continues to be! It topped charts all over the world throughout 1996 and 1997, launching the Spice Girls to global superstardom. It has always been their biggest selling single, and over a quarter of a century later it continues to be their most successful song on streaming. Just look at those streaming numbers at the bottom of this post! In 2022 alone it was streamed more times on Spotify than 'Stop' has been in total. It's fantastic that they have a song that continues to resonate with new generations, although I wish some of their other singles would get more of a spotlight - they're extremely overshadowed by 'Wannabe'. Its combined stream count of 823 million is more than the rest of their songs have managed overall, with 809 million. Although in 2022, almost 147m streams of 'Wannabe' didn't quite manage to outdo the rest of their songs combined, almost 156m.

 

2022 Streams: 146,899,732

Total Streams: 822,894,080

Thanks everyone for your patience, and your replies! :cheer:

 

In summary...

 

 

Spice Girls most streamed songs of 2022 on Spotify - combined:

 

01 - 146,899,732 - Wannabe

02 - 27,194,550 - Stop

03 - 21,883,834 - Spice Up Your Life

04 - 20,166,625 - Say You'll Be There

05 - 19,987,602 - 2 Become 1

06 - 14,467,257 - Who Do You Think You Are

07 - 13,007,603 - Viva Forever

08 - 6,307,243 - Mama

09 - 5,267,002 - Too Much

10 - 4,746,334 - Christmas Wrapping

11 - 4,475,452 - Goodbye

12 - 3,467,481 - Holler

13 - 2,029,413 - Never Give Up on the Good Times

14 - 1,395,954 - Saturday Night Divas

15 - 1,268,544 - Love Thing

16 - 1,021,833 - If U Can't Dance

17 - 1,004,715 - Move Over

18 - 947,090 - Last Time Lover

19 - 826,628 - Do It

20 - 822,333 - Something Kinda Funny

21 - 694,494 - Let Love Lead the Way

22 - 637,613 - Naked

23 - 523,934 - Denying

24 - 458,584 - Step to Me

25 - 436,848 - Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)

26 - 367,494 - The Lady Is a Vamp

27 - 327,651 - Tell Me Why

28 - 267,148 - Sleigh Ride (B Side Version / Jack Frost Version - Combined) *

29 - 241,859 - Right Back at Ya

30 - 114,943 - If You Wanna Have Some Fun

31 - 104,953 - Wasting My Time

32 - 103,972 - Get Down with Me

33 - 88,285 - Feed Your Love

34 - 78,173 - Outer Space Girls

35 - 76,850 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World

36 - 70,856 - Weekend Love

37 - 70,661 - Take Me Home

38 - 66,626 - Oxygen

39 - 64,068 - Walk of Life

40 - 63,672 - Time Goes By

41 - 62,832 - Bumper to Bumper

42 - 58,483 - One of These Girls

43 - 58,157 - My Strongest Suit

44 - 57,823 - Ain't No Stopping Us Now

45 - 49,754 - Voodoo

46 - 35,720 - Spice Girls Party Mix

47 - 31,880 - We Are Family

48 - 30,816 - Spice Chat 2 "Shall We Say 'Goodbye' Then?'

49 - 23,890 - Baby Come Round

50 - 18,001 - Spice Invaders

51 - 16,013 - Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves

 

~~~~

 

Spice Girls most streamed songs of 2022 on Spotify - individually:

 

01 - 146,566,791 - Wannabe

02 - 27,128,376 - Stop

03 - 20,795,300 - Spice Up Your Life

04 - 19,851,312 - 2 Become 1 (Album Version / Single Version - Combined)

05 - 19,698,806 - Say You'll Be There

06 - 13,687,407 - Who Do You Think You Are (Album Version)

07 - 12,111,546 - Viva Forever (Album Version)

08 - 6,073,849 - Mama (Album Version)

09 - 5,010,068 - Too Much (Album Version)

10 - 4,746,334 - Christmas Wrapping

11 - 4,291,162 - Goodbye (Album Version)

12 - 3,243,192 - Holler (Album Version)

13 - 2,029,413 - Never Give Up on the Good Times

14 - 1,395,954 - Saturday Night Divas

15 - 1,194,688 - Love Thing

16 - 975,500 - If U Can't Dance

17 - 936,433 - Move Over

18 - 896,479 - Last Time Lover

19 - 826,628 - Do It

20 - 805,248 - Something Kinda Funny

21 - 798,405 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Radio Mix)

22 - 725,803 - Viva Forever (Radio Edit)

23 - 641,028 - Let Love Lead the Way (Album Version)

24 - 637,613 - Naked

25 - 618,424 - Who Do You Think You Are (Radio Version)

26 - 523,934 - Denying

27 - 436,848 - Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)

28 - 429,876 - Step to Me (7" Mix)

29 - 374,257 - Say You'll Be There (7" Radio Mix)

30 - 367,494 - The Lady Is a Vamp

31 - 307,093 - Tell Me Why

32 - 267,148 - Sleigh Ride (B Side Version / Jack Frost Version - Combined)

33 - 241,859 - Right Back at Ya

34 - 198,113 - Holler (Radio Edit)

35 - 185,269 - Too Much (Radio Edit)

36 - 163,823 - Mama (Radio Version)

37 - 141,818 - Wannabe (Junior Vasquez Remix Edit)

38 - 125,474 - Goodbye (Radio Edit)

39 - 122,599 - Viva Forever (John Themis Ambient Mix)

40 - 122,350 - Spice Up Your Life (Live in Arnhem, Netherlands / 1998)

41 - 122,007 - 2 Become 1 (Orchestral Version)

42 - 114,943 - If You Wanna Have Some Fun

43 - 104,953 - Wasting My Time

44 - 103,972 - Get Down with Me

45 - 88,285 - Feed Your Love

46 - 82,318 - Who Do You Think You Are (Demo Version)

47 - 78,173 - Outer Space Girls

48 - 70,856 - Weekend Love

49 - 70,661 - Take Me Home

50 - 68,855 - Wannabe (Dave Way Alternative Mix)

51 - 68,282 - Move Over (Live in Istanbul, Turkey, 1997)

52 - 66,626 - Oxygen

53 - 64,068 - Walk of Life

54 - 63,778 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Havana FM Radio Mix)

55 - 63,672 - Time Goes By

56 - 62,832 - Bumper to Bumper

57 - 58,483 - One of These Girls

58 - 58,157 - My Strongest Suit

59 - 57,823 - Ain't No Stopping Us Now

60 - 56,801 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Perfecto Edit)

61 - 53,466 - Let Love Lead the Way (Radio Edit)

62 - 50,960 - Love Thing (12" Unlimited Groove Mix)

63 - 50,611 - Last Time Lover (Demo Version)

64 - 49,754 - Voodoo

65 - 47,646 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Carnival Club Mix)

66 - 47,265 - Mama (Biffco Mix)

67 - 46,333 - If U Can't Dance (Demo Version)

68 - 44,757 - Say You'll Be There (Live)

69 - 43,027 - Wannabe (Motiv 8 Dubslam Mix / Motiv 8 Vocal Slam Mix - Combined)

70 - 42,588 - Who Do You Think You Are (Live)

71 - 35,720 - Spice Girls Party Mix

72 - 34,974 - Goodbye (Orchestral Mix)

73 - 32,635 - Who Do You Think You Are (Morales Club Mix)

74 - 31,880 - We Are Family

75 - 30,816 - Spice Chat 2 "Shall We Say 'Goodbye' Then?'

76 - 27,221 - Too Much (Orchestral Version)

77 - 26,235 - Stop (Morales Remix)

78 - 25,459 - Wannabe (Demo)

79 - 24,641 - Too Much (SoulShock & Karlin Remix)

80 - 23,890 - Baby Come Round

81 - 23,842 - Goodbye (Single Version)

82 - 22,896 - Love Thing (Live from Istanbul)

83 - 22,306 - Mama (Live from Istanbul)

84 - 20,822 - Stop (Live in Madrid, Spain / 1998)

85 - 20,558 - Tell Me Why (Jonathan Peters Edit)

86 - 20,260 - Viva Forever (Tony Rich Remix)

87 - 20,143 - Wannabe (Junior Vasquez Gomis Dub)

88 - 19,803 - Too Much (Live in Toronto, Canada / 1998)

89 - 19,704 - Wannabe (Instrumental)

90 - 19,552 - Say You'll Be There (Junior's X-Beats / 2007 Edit)

91 - 19,256 - Viva Forever (Live in Manchester, UK / 1998)

92 - 18,001 - Spice Invaders

93 - 17,972 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World

94 - 17,085 - Something Kinda Funny (Live from Istanbul)

95 - 17,040 - Step to Me (Demo Version)

96 - 16,013 - Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves

97 - 14,194 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Cuba Libre Mix)

98 - 13,942 - Spice Up Your Life (Ralphi's Radio Edit)

99 - 13,935 - Wannabe (Soul Seekerz Radio Edit)

100 - 13,440 - Stop (Morales Remix / Edit)

101 - 11,668 - Step to Me (Extended Mix)

102 - 10,723 - Spice Up Your Life (Stent Radio Instrumental)

103 - 9,005 - 2 Become 1 (Dave Way Remix)

104 - 8,139 - Viva Forever (Tony Rich Remix Instrumental)

105 - 8,068 - Say You'll Be There (Instrumental)

106 - 7,530 - Say You'll Be There (Spice of Life Mix)

107 - 7,459 - Holler (MAW Remix)

108 - 6,817 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Drums and Dub Mix)

109 - 5,990 - Say You'll Be There (Junior's Main Pass)

110 - 5,677 - Stop (Stretch n Vern's Rock & Roll Mix)

111 - 5,503 - Holler (MAW Tribal Vocal)

112 - 5,278 - 2 Become 1 (Georgie Porgie's Radio Edit)

113 - 4,843 - Say You'll Be There (Linslee's Extended Mix)

114 - 3,885 - Who Do You Think You Are (Morales Dub Mix)

115 - 3,775 - Holler (MAW Spice Beats)

116 - 3,586 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Beat)

117 - 3,559 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Sugar Cane Dub)

118 - 3,534 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Spider Beats)

119 - 3,520 - Holler (MAW Dub)

120 - 2,978 - Holler (MAW Remix Instrumental)

121 - 2,941 - Holler (MAW Tribal Instrumental)

122 - 2,822 - Say You'll Be There (Junior's Dub Girls)

123 - 2,077 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Perfecto Remix)

124 - <1,000 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Instrumental)

124 - <1,000 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Match of the Day Instrumental)

 

~~~~

 

Spice Girls most streamed songs of all-time on Spotify [up to 31st Dec 2022] - combined:

 

01 - 822,894,080 - Wannabe

02 - 142,553,992 - Stop

03 - 117,233,580 - 2 Become 1

04 - 108,864,883 - Say You'll Be There

05 - 104,247,735 - Spice Up Your Life

06 - 67,160,750 - Who Do You Think You Are

07 - 60,175,875 - Viva Forever

08 - 31,973,705 - Mama

09 - 29,324,961 - Too Much

10 - 22,445,516 - Holler

11 - 19,294,832 - Goodbye

12 - 10,879,160 - Never Give Up on the Good Times

13 - 8,609,223 - Saturday Night Divas

14 - 7,349,493 - Love Thing

15 - 6,779,100 - Move Over

16 - 6,740,777 - If U Can't Dance

17 - 6,107,157 - Last Time Lover

18 - 5,996,982 - Something Kinda Funny

19 - 5,916,548 - Christmas Wrapping

20 - 5,721,928 - Do It

21 - 5,257,108 - Let Love Lead the Way

22 - 4,705,649 - Naked

23 - 4,105,470 - Denying

24 - 3,578,067 - Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)

25 - 3,402,603 - The Lady Is a Vamp

26 - 3,123,624 - Tell Me Why

27 - 2,332,874 - Right Back at Ya

28 - 2,076,645 - Sleigh Ride

29 - 1,574,357 - Wasting My Time

30 - 1,309,696 - Get Down with Me

31 - 1,295,081 - If You Wanna Have Some Fun

32 - 1,007,924 - Weekend Love

33 - 905,720 - Time Goes By

34 - 864,445 - Oxygen

35 - 699,579 - Outer Space Girls

36 - 689,214 - Bumper to Bumper

37 - 642,878 - Voodoo

38 - 604,312 - Feed Your Love

39 - 511,431 - One of These Girls

40 - 458,584 - Step to Me

41 - 441,561 - Walk of Life

42 - 431,088 - Ain't No Stopping Us Now

43 - 269,391 - Take Me Home

44 - 268,569 - My Strongest Suit

45 - 267,159 - Baby Come Round

46 - 236,417 - We Are Family

47 - 203,787 - Spice Invaders

48 - 160,625 - Sisters (Are Doing It for Themselves)

49 - 76,850 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World [3 versions out of 5]

50 - 57,062 - Spice Chat 2 "Shall We Say 'Goodbye' Then?'

51 - 35,720 - Spice Party Mix

 

~~~~

 

Spice Girls most streamed songs of all-time [up to 31st Dec 2022] on Spotify - individually:

 

01 - 820,634,382 - Wannabe

02 - 142,338,412 - Stop

03 - 116,253,991 - 2 Become 1 (Album Version / Single Version - Combined)

04 - 106,864,883 - Say You'll Be There

05 - 101,984,004 - Spice Up Your Life

06 - 61,566,990 - Who Do You Think You Are (Album Version)

07 - 52,254,837 - Viva Forever (Album Version)

08 - 29,195,707 - Mama (Album Version)

09 - 26,614,770 - Too Much (Album Version)

10 - 18,646,950 - Holler (Album Version)

11 - 16,894,983 - Goodbye (Album Version)

12 - 10,879,160 - Never Give Up on the Good Times

13 - 8,609,223 - Saturday Night Divas

14 - 7,446,410 - Viva Forever (Radio Edit)

15 - 7,064,244 - Love Thing

16 - 6,710,818 - Move Over

17 - 6,578,647 - If U Can't Dance

18 - 5,916,548 - Christmas Wrapping

19 - 5,912,734 - Last Time Lover

20 - 5,865,916 - Something Kinda Funny

21 - 5,721,928 - Do It

22 - 4,779,685 - Who Do You Think You Are (Radio Version)

23 - 4,705,649 - Naked

24 - 4,213,358 - Let Love Lead the Way (Album Version)

25 - 4,105,470 - Denying

26 - 3,578,067 - Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)

27 - 3,402,603 - The Lady Is a Vamp

28 - 3,094,632 - Holler (Radio Edit)

29 - 2,826,730 - Tell Me Why

30 - 2,455,919 - Mama (Radio Version)

31 - 2,382,051 - Too Much (Radio Edit)

32 - 2,332,874 - Right Back at Ya

33 - 2,076,645 - Sleigh Ride (B Side Version / Jack Frost Version - Combined) *

34 - 1,864,154 - Goodbye (Radio Edit)

35 - 1,574,357 - Wasting My Time

36 - 1,309,696 - Get Down with Me

37 - 1,298,555 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Radio Mix)

38 - 1,295,081 - If You Wanna Have Some Fun

39 - 1,043,750 - Let Love Lead the Way (Radio Edit)

40 - 1,007,924 - Weekend Love

41 - 905,720 - Time Goes By

42 - 864,445 - Oxygen

43 - 853,705 - Say You'll Be There (7" Radio Mix)

44 - 699,579 - Outer Space Girls

45 - 689,214 - Bumper to Bumper

46 - 655,073 - 2 Become 1 (Orchestral Version)

47 - 642,878 - Voodoo

48 - 634,723 - Wannabe (Junior Vasquez Remix Edit)

49 - 604,312 - Feed Your Love

50 - 511,431 - One of These Girls

51 - 441,561 - Walk of Life

52 - 437,757 - Say You'll Be There (Live)

53 - 431,088 - Ain't No Stopping Us Now

54 - 429,876 - Step to Me (7" Mix)

55 - 402,980 - Wannabe (Instrumental)

56 - 397,891 - Wannabe (Junior Vasquez Gomis Dub)

57 - 348,426 - Say You'll Be There (Junior's X-Beats / 2007 Edit)

58 - 343,711 - Wannabe (Motiv 8 Dubslam Mix / Motiv 8 Vocal Slam Mix - Combined)

59 - 338,599 - Who Do You Think You Are (Live)

60 - 309,525 - Who Do You Think You Are (Demo Version)

61 - 305,309 - Goodbye (Orchestral Mix)

62 - 296,894 - Tell Me Why (Jonathan Peters Edit)

63 - 269,391 - Take Me Home

64 - 268,569 - My Strongest Suit

65 - 267,159 - Baby Come Round

66 - 236,417 - We Are Family

67 - 230,386 - Goodbye (Single Version)

68 - 220,478 - Viva Forever (Tony Rich Remix)

69 - 203,787 - Spice Invaders

70 - 202,783 - 2 Become 1 (Dave Way Remix)

71 - 198,318 - Wannabe (Dave Way Alternative Mix)

72 - 194,423 - Last Time Lover (Demo Version)

73 - 191,880 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Havana FM Radio Mix)

74 - 190,197 - Too Much (Orchestral Version)

75 - 182,234 - Mama (Biffco Mix)

76 - 171,946 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Carnival Club Mix)

77 - 169,765 - Love Thing (Live from Istanbul)

78 - 168,942 - Holler (MAW Tribal Vocal)

79 - 163,741 - Spice Up Your Life (Ralphi's Radio Edit)

80 - 162,130 - If U Can't Dance (Demo Version)

81 - 160,625 - Sisters Are Doing It For Themselves

82 - 154,282 - Wannabe (Soul Seekerz Radio Edit)

83 - 139,845 - Mama (Live from Istanbul)

84 - 135,000 - Who Do You Think You Are (Morales Club Mix)

85 - 131,646 - Holler (MAW Spice Beats)

86 - 131,066 - Something Kinda Funny (Live from Istanbul)

87 - 127,793 - Wannabe (Demo)

88 - 124,432 - Holler (MAW Remix)

89 - 122,926 - Stop (Morales Remix)

90 - 122,599 - Viva Forever (John Themis Ambient Mix)

91 - 122,350 - Spice Up Your Life (Live in Arnhem, Netherlands / 1998)

92 - 121,733 - 2 Become 1 (Georgie Porgie's Radio Edit)

93 - 118,140 - Too Much (SoulShock & Karlin Remix)

94 - 115,484 - Love Thing (12" Unlimited Groove Mix)

95 - 112,295 - Viva Forever (Tony Rich Remix Instrumental)

96 - 104,083 - Say You'll Be There (Spice of Life Mix)

97 - 102,712 - Holler (MAW Dub)

98 - 98,913 - Say You'll Be There (Linslee's Extended Mix)

99 - 92,590 - Holler (MAW Tribal Instrumental)

100 - 87,481 - Spice Up Your Life (Stent Radio Instrumental)

101 - 83,612 - Holler (MAW Remix Instrumental)

102 - 69,165 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Cuba Libre Mix)

103 - 68,282 - Move Over (Live in Istanbul, Turkey, 1997)

104 - 58,392 - Stop (Stretch n Vern's Rock & Roll Mix)

105 - 57,062 - Spice Chat 2 "Shall We Say 'Goodbye' Then?'

106 - 56,801 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Perfecto Edit)

107 - 56,583 - Say You'll Be There (Junior's Dub Girls)

108 - 49,510 - Say You'll Be There (Instrumental)

109 - 47,964 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Drums and Dub Mix)

110 - 44,920 - Spice Up Your Life (Morales Beat)

111 - 36,171 - Say You'll Be There (Junior's Main Pass)

112 - 35,720 - Spice Girls Party Mix

113 - 34,332 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Spider Beats)

114 - 31,397 - Spice Up Your Life (Murk Sugar Cane Dub)

115 - 30,951 - Who Do You Think You Are (Morales Dub Mix)

116 - 20,822 - Stop (Live in Madrid, Spain / 1998)

117 - 19,803 - Too Much (Live in Toronto, Canada / 1998)

118 - 19,256 - Viva Forever (Live in Manchester, UK / 1998)

119 - 17,972 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World

120 - 17,040 - Step to Me (Demo Version)

121 - 13,440 - Stop (Morales Remix / Edit)

122 - 11,668 - Step to Me (Extended Mix)

123 - 2,077 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Perfecto Remix)

124 - <1,000 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Instrumental)

124 - <1,000 - (How Does It Feel to Be) On Top of the World (Match of the Day Instrumental)

 

 

* Sleigh Ride had to be a combined figure because in January 2022 Spotify had combined the stream count of the two versions, even though they would eventually separate them again... so I couldn't work out how many streams the two versions managed individually in 2022.

Step to me (7 inch mix) has already done 27.5k this year in 8 days. Be interesting to see how it does over the whole of this year.

Thank you, Jay for this much appreciated 👏♥️

Yeah thank you Jay!! :friends:

I think we all need to look at Wannabe differently, it getting less playlisting or exposure I don't think would mean the other songs getting more tbh. I think a lot of these playlists it would be Wannabe or nothing by the girls and that is it.

 

Also obviously new music would garner interest in their whole discography, as new music would suck people into exploring their older albums not just think Spice Girls = Wannabe.

Viva Forever :heart:

Edited March 16, 20232 yr by Just_Jack

What DID go wrong with Stop??

 

It sold like Hollier, but in thr middle of blockbuster singles...

What DID go wrong with Stop??

 

It sold like Hollier, but in thr middle of blockbuster singles...

 

I guess it's like that, and that's the way it is.

I guess it's like that, and that's the way it is.

 

I still don't understand Stop's initial lower sales in the 90s though. The chart position, well it was always going to likely they would miss the top spot at some point (and how iconic to stop the run of number ones with a song called Stop lol), but the sales being that low (for them of course) silver when both Too Much and Viva forever were platinum sellers on either side of it has always surprised me. It's easily their most loved song after Wannabe and it's the song that people who don't even like Spice Girls say "oh I love this song" due to it's retro motown feel, yet the initial sales did not reflect that at all... streaming has done it wonders.

I still don't understand Stop's initial lower sales in the 90s though. The chart position, well it was always going to likely they would miss the top spot at some point (and how iconic to stop the run of number ones with a song called Stop lol), but the sales being that low (for them of course) silver when both Too Much and Viva forever were platinum sellers on either side of it has always surprised me. It's easily their most loved song after Wannabe and it's the song that people who don't even like Spice Girls say "oh I love this song" due to it's retro motown feel, yet the initial sales did not reflect that at all... streaming has done it wonders.

 

I'm guessing that part of it might've been that they didn't ship/produce more copies of it than they did initially + the lower sales climate in March. It actually had a fairly long chart run (17 weeks).

 

Plus, I feel like once it failed to hit number one stores probably stopped featuring it in a prominent position, something that probably affected sales in what would normally be its biggest sellings weeks bar the first week.

Edited March 19, 20232 yr by tommie

Don't forget that there was also a big backlash against them after Simon's firing. People were starting to go agaisnt them and the press had filled day after filled day against them as a band. It also was a song that denoted they as a band were singing about wanting to slow down... It was quite meta to be honest.

 

It was bound to happen. Viva Forever turned it around because of the Geri leaving drama, it became an emotional angle and the song's own emotional take on teh end of a loving relationship for the summer.

 

It's just great that Stop has become an enduring and loved smash hit, probably their second biggest song in the long run!

Stop also didn't do that much for Spiceworld, relatively speaking. Spice spent time at #1 when Mama/Who Do You Think You Are was charting, yet Spiceworld was only #17 in the week Stop went to #2... so the single didn't even help to create a significant boost for the album. In fact #17 was a fall, it was #16 in the week before Stop's release.

 

To be fair Viva Forever didn't do a whole lot for Spiceworld either, it managed to climb to #15.

 

 

Comparing Stop's chart run with Spiceworld's chart run -

 

02-04-07-11-12-17-29-36-53-52-55-58-57-59-70-82-69-52-86 [stop]

17-16-19-15-12-14-22-21-26-30-27-24-26-32-36-22-22-23-24 [spiceworld]

 

(Spiceworld's climb to 15-12-14 was more likely due to the Spiceworld tour beginning in the UK rather than Stop. Interestingly the album fell when Geri left, rather than getting a boost. The 26-32-36 part of the chart run directly follows Geri's departure, so in the week after she left it fell from #24 to #26. The eventual climb to 22-22-23-24 was while Viva Forever was promoted/getting airplay).

 

 

Viva Forever with Spiceworld -

 

01-01-03-08-08-14-21-28-38-47-50-53-61-00-00-00-82-85-99 [Viva Forever]

21-16-15-23-23-24-30-32-38-40-39-43-49-65-77-83-86-94-85 [spiceworld]

 

(The 32-38-40 part of this chart run is when they played Sheffield / Wembley Stadium!)

 

 

Viva Forever outsold Stop in just 2 weeks. Viva Forever sold 390,000 in a fortnight (and 623,000 in 1998 overall), whereas Stop sold 331,000 in the whole of 1998.

 

Goodbye outsold Stop in just 1 week (its first week sales were almost 381,000) and then it overtook Viva Forever in just 3 weeks (2nd week sales: 208,000 / 3rd week sales: 92,000 = 681,000 in 1998). It's funny to think that it's an inevitability that Stop will overtake both of these singles in a few years from now.

VF was massively helped with sales because of Geri’s departure!

 

Similar thing happened when Take That released How Deep Is Your Love after Robbie went!

Thank you, Jay

 

Really interesting read plus it was interesting to see how the Spiceworld album was doing alongside the singles, Geri leaving and the tour.

 

Such a shame the album didn’t spend more weeks in the Top 10. If Celine Dion hadn’t released an album at the same time and people had just purchased the titanic soundtrack in the new year it would have had more weeks at No.1 as Spiceworld spent a few weeks at No.2

Unfortunately I've never noted down their solo music streams count at new years. :( The last time I did that was on 22nd May 2022... it might be a bit random but I could always make sure that I do a solo update on 22nd May 2023 and have it be a countdown of how many streams they got in the space of 12 months, even if it isn't within one calendar year. :thinking:

The time has (almost) come. Are you gonna do it? ;)

I can do! I'll try not to forget :kink: