Manufactured Rubbish? (Boyband/Girlbands)

Name: Princess Pea

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Product:	Boyband/Girlbands
Date:	19/06/02 (375 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fun, happy music., Nice-looking people.

Disadvantages: Not 'real' music.

I’ve always been a fan of pure pop, particularly boy/girl bands. Their cheeky, fun songs and easy-to-learn dance moves have made them a hit with people of all ages and backgrounds. Although most popular with teenagers, these pop groups can be enjoyed by everyone, because they provide a bit of light entertainment in our lives.
Ok, so they’re not the most talented people in the world. But Pop Gods such as Pete Waterman and Simon Fuller have created some of the best pop groups in the history of British music, including the Spice Girls.

**The Spice Girls- a success story?**

In their heyday, the Spice Girls notched up number 1 hits after number 1 hits, and they had the time of their lives: They travelled the world, promoting their music and extensive collections of merchandise, and became famous world-wide. It was phenomenal. The press dubbed it ‘Spice Mania’, and the 5 girls were idols to teenage girls, and goddesses to teenage boys.
But the success was fairly short-lived: For almost 3 years, they were continuously at the top of all the music charts in the world, but a group of 20-something women with nicknames such as ‘Baby’ and ‘Sporty’ had to wear thin at some point. In her bid for ‘artistic freedom’, Geri (‘Ginger Spice’) left, which left the remaining 4 girls in turmoil. Since then, their record sales slowly but surely diminished, and are now completely out of the music business (apart from solo projects).

Every Spice Girl’s face is still recognised throughout the world, due to their massive success. However, fame can corrupt and ruin people’s lives:
- Geri Halliwell has suffered from depression and bulimia since she left the Spice Girls. However, she has been the most successful ‘Solo Spice’, with 4 number 1s under her size-6 belt.
- Victoria Beckham (‘Posh Spice’) has also suffered from various eating disorders,
but now lives happily in ‘Beckingham Palace’ with her super-rich footballer hubbie David Beckham.
- ‘Sporty Spice’ Melanie Chisolm has also had a pretty tough time since the group’s reign as the world’s biggest girl group ended. Like Geri, she has suffered from depression and problems with her weight.

In my opinion, the Spice Girls phenomenon was just too much too soon: The pressures of fame damaged three of the girls’ lives as I’ve mentioned above. Many people will argue that they bring it on themselves, by desperately seeking fame and fortune, but surely they deserve to live normal lives?
The problem with being in a successful boy/girl band is the public and media attention which comes with it: Paparazzi invading lives, stalkers…All these people want to do is entertain!

Robbie Williams, who is now Britain’s favourite male solo artist, was part of the 90s boy band Take That. He joined when he was just 16 years old. I’m 17, and I couldn’t imagine being able to cope with continuously being in the limelight at that age. And neither could he: A few years later, he was supposedly sacked from the band, after dabbling in drugs and regularly going to wild parties.
Most of these teenagers just can’t hack it: They are brought into such an elusive business at such a young age, and it not only takes away their childhood, but possibly their sanity too.

Ok, so not all boy/girl bands end it tears. Like I’ve said, the Spice Girls were huge, as were Take That. There have been a number of success stories:
-All Saints
-a1
-Westlife
The list is endless. But there has also been a fair share of ‘wannabes’ too. TV programmes like Popstars have encouraged this new fad in recent years. Of course- everyone would love to be a pop star, wouldn’t they? Fame, fortune, admiration…But there’s always the downside too, and so man
y people experience the latter.

**Wannabes**

The Spice Girls have got to be the biggest girl group ever. They were original. But since they disappeared from the music business, other ‘girl power’ bands have been manufactured:
Remember Girl Thing, whose first music video was a complete carbon copy of the Spice Girls’ ‘Wannabe’? There was a ‘cute one’, a ‘naughty one’, a ‘feisty one’…We’d seen it all before! It’s no wonder that they didn’t get very far!
Ok, so the Spice Girls were a pretty tough act to follow, but what’s the point in creating another-less better-group who are almost identical?!

Not all girl groups went down the Spice route: There were quite a few All Saints copycats, such as Precious, who represented the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest. Their aim was to break away from the happy, cheesy pop that girl/boy bands are known for, and instead went for a more ‘sophisticated’ sound. Unfortunately for them, the plan to be ‘different’ didn’t work, and the group kinda fell apart after a while. One of its members, Jenny Frost, later went on to join Atomic Kitten. They are now Britain’s most successful girl band, and have had great success in the charts with several top-ten hits and two number 1s.

But it’s not only the girl groups who desperately wanted to live up to the success of one of their predecessors: Like I mentioned before, Take That were massive, and a huge amount of boy bands have been created since they split up. As most of them were quite insignificant, I can’t remember them, but here’s a few to refresh your memory:
911, 5ive, a1…These are just a few of the more successful groups! Admittedly, their music was different to one another’s, but the basic formula was the same: A few 20-something lads dancing around and belting out ‘heartfelt
’ and ‘soulful’ lyrics.
The more cringeworthy groups were ones like Northern Line and Point Break, who hardly had any talent, and were just a marketing scheme for big-wig producers.

But as negative as I am about girl/boy bands and the way they are manufactured, you will find the odd a1 and Spice Girls CDs in my collection (amongst others). Pathetic, isn’t it?

**Why do people listen to-and buy-manufactured rubbish?**

As I’ve said, I am a pop fan. Basically, I just enjoy the happy nature of the music, although I know that it’s not particularly clever or interesting. I suppose you could call me gullible. However, there are a good few million of gullible people in the UK alone, who buy these girl/boy band records. Ok, so most of them will be below 20 years of age, making teenagers the prime target.
These popstars need to appear fun, talented and nice to look at. The latter being the most important factor. In a girl/boy band, there’s always a couple of good-looking ones, who just stand around and don’t really do much, as they are just there for show! Then there’s usually a ‘fat one’ (Gary Barlow being a fab example), and maybe one who’s always getting into trouble and causing problems for the rest of the group. In the twisted music business, people often aren’t initially chosen for their singing ability, but just for their look. For example, Billie Piper was seen in a Smash Hits advertisement by record producers, who wanted to sign her up even before they’d heard her sing! Now, where’s the sense in that?! Of course, the technology is so good these days, that they can make anyone sound alright. And they’ll never get found out because they just mime when they perform on stage!
Nonetheless, although these facts are pretty much well-known, girl/boy bands still very much dominate the charts.

**Who’s successful today?**
<
br>*Girl groups*

Atomic Kitten started out in 1999, and burst onto the scene with their energetic first single ‘Right Now’. The single did ok, reaching number 10 in the charts. Their next single, ‘See Ya’ reached number 6, which made people realise that they were one to look out for. However, their next two singles didn’t match the success of ‘See Ya’, and they were rumoured to have been dropped by their record company. But at the start of 2001, with new member Jenny Frost in tow, their fifth single ‘Whole Again’ went to the top of the charts. This single saved the Kittens’ career, and they have since gone from strength to strength with another number 1 ‘Eternal Flame’ and their most recent hit ‘It’s Ok’. They’re so popular that they even performed at the Jubilee concert at Buckingham Palace, which it quite honourable some might say!
I told you this little story to show how fickle the pop world can be, and how perfectly good bands can be sacked at the drop of a hat if all their singles don’t go to number 1. Ok, so Atomic Kitten certainly aren’t the most talented of bands, but they must be doing something right!
The Sugababes are another example of a girl group bouncing back from defeat. They were dropped by their record company when their singles weren’t faring too well in the charts. Bet they were kicking themselves when they heard that their single ‘Freak Like Me’, had reached number 1. Their style is feisty, and they seem to have genuine talent which sets them apart from the usual style of girl groups.
Another popular girl group today is Mis-Teeq, who have notched up a good few top-5 hits in the past year or so. Although their music is slightly different to groups like Atomic Kitten, it’s still basically pop.

*Boy bands*

Blue are a relatively new group, who really have made a massive impact on t
he music charts. Already, two of their singles have reached number 1, and the other two have also done well. I like Blue, as they’re a bit different to other groups: Their style is still mainly pop, but with a hint of r ‘n’ b. What’s interesting about Blue is that they appeal to both females and males. Now, there’s a first!
Blue’s worst enemy a1 are still riding high in the charts. They’ve been going for about 4 years now, and have changed their style from pure pop to a bit more mature. They now play their own instruments, which is a refreshing change. Although I’m not really into their music, I admire a1 for branching out slightly. They even sing live on stage!
Westlife are another group who show a bit of talent: The lads really can sing, and although their songs are all quite similar, it’s nice to know that there are a few talented people in the business! Westlife have had huge success, with about 50 consecutive number 1s. Ok, so I’m exaggerating, but I’m not sure of the exact number.

I suppose you’ve noticed that I’ve concentrated on British bands. Well, the USA have always ruled over us in the music strakes, and every British artist knows that the USA is an incredibly difficult industry to break in to. Many British bands just can’t compete with such huge groups as the Backstreet Boys, and N’Sync. Destiny’s Child are another massive US group, and they really do rule the roost. Now, I’m not really a fan of any of these groups. But as the most powerful country in the world, their music also takes first place, Unfortunately.

**Conclusion**

Well, there’s my opinion on girl/boy bands. With the new fad in nu-metal and punk bands such as Linkin’ Park and Sum 41 ever increasing in popularity, will there still be room for girl/boy bands in the future? Let’s hope so.
As cheesy and talentless as they can be, they
217;re mainly a bit of fun, and I hope that the ever-popular formula is here to stay.

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