Sugababes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Sugababes | |
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 Sugababes (the former line-up) performing at the Bristol International Balloon Fiesta in August, 2004.
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| Background information | |
| Origin | London, England |
| Genre(s) | Pop/Rock, R&B/Soul, Dance |
| Instrument(s) | Singing |
| Years active | 1998-present |
| Label(s) | London, Island |
| Website | Sugababes official site |
| Members | |
| Keisha Buchanan (1998-present) Heidi Range (2001-present) Amelle Berrabah (2005-present) |
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| Former members | |
| Siobhán Donaghy (1998-2001) Mutya Buena (1998-2005) |
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Sugababes are a BRIT Award-winning English pop group trio from London. The group consisting of Keisha Buchanan, Heidi Range and Amelle Berrabah. They have been named the most successful all-female act of the 21st century in the UK.[1] They have also sold more than 5 million albums in the UK alone.[2] The girls won "Best World Group" at the ESKA Music Awards 2006 in Poland.[3]
The group formed in 1998. Releasing twenty one singles, six of those reaching #1 in the UK and six albums that have reached top 40 charts worldwide, they have had more top ten hits with original songs than any other girl group since The Supremes, Destiny's Child, Eternal, and Bananarama.[1] The Sugababes are one of the few British groups to have five of their albums reach the top three, two of which were number one. In 2003, they won a Brit Award for "Best Dance Act".
The group have so far attained at least platinum album sales from five of their albums in their native UK.[4] They have also gained success around Europe and Asia with Number One singles in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, Poland, Denmark, Austria, New Zealand, Japan, Slovenia, Estonia, Czech Republic, the Philippines, Croatia and the Republic of Macedonia.
Upon their release of "About You Now", the Sugababes became the only all female act to have topped the single, album and download chart simultaneously twice.
Contents |
[edit] History
[edit] One Touch
The group was created, when Keisha Buchanan and Mutya Buena, who had been friends since they were eight, met Siobhán Donaghy at a 1998 party when they were thirteen, and were introduced by manager, Ron Tom.[3] Buena and Donaghy had been working separately with Tom, and while they were recording tracks for the album that would become "One Touch", it was suggested that the group might work better with a third member. Buchanan had been invited to come along to watch by Buena and was asked if she could sing; which of course, she could (she had appeared aged just six on Michael Barrymore's popular My Kind of Music show, where she gave an amazingly strong vocal performance of Whitney Houston's "The Greatest Love Of All"). The name 'Sugababes' originates from Buchanan's school nickname, 'Sugar baby'. While recording the album the band was officially known as "The Sugababies" (an unreleased track from these sessions repeats over and over "Sugababies on the run, shake it shake it"). When all the band members were aged just fourteen, they were offered a record contract by London Records and tweaked their name to the more mature "Sugababes".[3] This is also possibly due to the fact that there was already a band called "Sugababies".
Their debut single "Overload" made the UK Top 10 and was nominated for a BRIT Award for Best Single, climbing to number 3 in Germany and number 2 in New Zealand. The group co-wrote most of the tracks on One Touch, with the help of All Saints producer Cameron McVey.[5]
Their debut album produced three more top 40 hits in the UK - "New Year", "Run for Cover" and "Soul Sound". During a Japanese promotional tour Siobhán Donaghy left the group stating initially that she wanted to pursue a fashion career,[3] eventually being diagnosed with clinical depression amid reports of in-fighting between the Sugababes members.[6]
Heidi Range, a founding member of Atomic Kitten, was announced as Donaghy's replacement in 2001.[7] Despite peaking at number 26 on the UK Album Charts, and faring even better in Germany, where it peaked at number 7, the sales of One Touch did not meet London Records' expectations,[8] and they dropped the group in 2001.
[edit] Angels with Dirty Faces
Having already started work on a second album with new member, Heidi Range, the trio looked for a new record label, eventually signing to Island Records. Their first single on the new label, "Freak Like Me", was produced by Richard X - recorded in Richard X's own flat, and one of the last tracks to be recorded for the album.[9] The song used the backing track from "Are Friends Electric?" by Gary Numan's Tubeway Army, with the group singing lyrics taken from Adina Howard's "Freak Like Me". The single debuted at number one in the UK.
Their second single with Range, "Round Round", produced by Kent-based production group, Xenomania, was the group's second UK number one single and reached number two in Ireland, the Netherlands and New Zealand. It was also their first top twenty hit in Australia, peaking at number thirteen going Gold (with sales over the 35,000 copies).
On the back of these hits, Sugababes' second album Angels with Dirty Faces debuted at number two on the UK album chart and was a success across Europe, eventually being certified triple platinum in the UK, and selling one million copies in Europe.[10] The third single from the album, a ballad entitled "Stronger" gained the girls their third straight top 10 hit in their native country. The track was released as a double-A side with "Angels with Dirty Faces" in the UK, the latter song chosen as the theme tune to The Powerpuff Girls Movie.
The fourth single "Shape", which samples the Sting track "Shape of My Heart", made number eleven in the UK and made the top 10 in the Netherlands and Ireland in early 2003. The single featured a live version of "Freak like Me" which they performed at the 2003 BRIT Awards,[11] having won the award for "Best British Dance Act". Their success also led to them recording a new track, entitled "Party in the Club", for the theme tune to ITV's teenage drama show Girls in Love, based on the book of the same name by Jacqueline Wilson.
[edit] Three
The group's third album Three was released in late 2003 and Nominated for a Brit Award for Best Album, as well as Best Group and Best Dance Act, continued success reaching number three on the UK Album Chart, preceded by the Xenomania produced "Hole in the Head". It was the groups's third UK number one single and their first number one in Denmark. It reached number two in Ireland, Netherlands and Norway, and also became the babes' first single to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 peaking at #96 and hit the U.S. Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart at #1. It also performed well on the Hot Dance Airplay chart.
The second single, "Too Lost in You", which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Love Actually and was written by Diane Warren, went top ten in the UK, Germany, Netherlands and Norway, as well as going top ten on both sides of the Straits of Taiwan (Taiwan and China). The song was originally recorded in French by Patricia Kaas and entitled "Quand J'ai Peur De Tout" . The album's third single, "In the Middle", released in 2004 and nominated for a Brit Award for best single, went to number 8 in the UK. The fourth single to be released from "Three" was the ballad, "Caught in a Moment", and it reached number 8 in the UK.
In 2004, the trio joined acts such as Coldplay's Chris Martin, Dido and Robbie Williams on a 2004 version of the 1984 Band Aid's original "Do They Know It's Christmas?", which in December went to number 1 in the UK and sold over 200,000 copies in its first week.[12] All the money raised by this charity single went towards famine relief in the Darfur region of Sudan.
After a break from the music industry, whilst recording their fourth album, Mutya Buena announced she and her boyfriend Jay, were expecting a child.[13] Their daughter named Tahlia Maya Buena, was born in March 2005.[14]
The group later gave their first performance for over a year at the Edinburgh Live 8 concert.[15] In this time, the girls had been recording their fourth album, working with variety of songwriters and producers, including USA producer, Dallas Austin.
[edit] Taller in More Ways
On 2 October 2005, Dallas Austin produced "Push the Button". It debuted at number one in the UK, giving the group their fourth number one single and first Irish number one single. It went on to sell over 300,000 copies in the UK alone and was later nominated at the BRIT Awards for 'Best British Single'. It also went number one in Austria and New Zealand, and is also their biggest Australian hit to date, peaking at #3 and going platinum, selling around 100,000 copies. "Push the Button" became their most popular song in the United States yet, becoming another huge hit on the Hot Dance Airplay and Hot Dance Music/Club Play charts.
On 16 October 2005, Taller in More Ways became the group's first UK number one album. On that same date, the group celebrated being number one in the singles, album, airplay, and download charts at the same time.[16] 'In addition to Austin, Taller in More Ways saw the trio continue work with Guy Sigsworth and Xenomania, as well as Cameron McVey, who had not worked with the group since One Touch.[17]
Following an apparent illness,[18] that prevented Buena from promoting the follow up single "Ugly", it was announced on 21 December 2005 that Buena had left Sugababes. According to an announcement on their site, "[Buena]'s decision was based purely on personal reasons and she will continue to remain the best of friends with both [Buchanan] and [Range]". It was found that Buchanan wanted to stay friends with Buena but found it hard as she never sees her. The last remaining original member, Buchanan, said upon Buena's departure, "...we will all miss Mutya, but we also knew there was still a place for bringing in somebody new who could help us carry on taking the Sugababes brand of music forward".[6]
Amelle Berrabah joined the group in late December. Before joining the Sugababes, Berrabah featured in the band 'Boo2' with her sister, Samiya.[19]
The third single was a re-recorded version of "Red Dress", which was released in early 2006, and gave the group a third consecutive top 5 hit from the album entering the UK singles chart at number four. Berrabah re-recorded 3 tracks and co-wrote a brand new track with Buchanan and Range, all of these appeared on a re-release of Taller in More Ways, which reached 18 in the UK chart.
In early 2006, Taller in More Ways earned a Platinum Award from the IFPI in recognition of over 1 million copies sold in Europe.[20] The final single from Taller in More Ways was "Follow Me Home", released only in the UK in June, where it charted at 32.
[edit] Overloaded: The Singles Collection
Sugababes returned to the recording studio to start work on their fifth album, in mid-2006, recording two tracks for their contractual greatest hits collection, entitled Overloaded: The Singles Collection. The lead single from the compilation, "Easy", was co-written by George Astario and Jason Pebworth from Californian band Orson, who share management with Sugababes.[21] "Easy" was released, prior to the hits compilation album, and peaked at number eight in the UK Single Charts. The singles compilation was released on November 13, 2006, peaking at number three on the album charts in the UK. The compilation contains tracks from One Touch to Taller in More Ways, excluding "New Year", "Soul Sound", "Angels with Dirty Faces", and "Follow Me Home", most of which were not released outside the UK. A separate DVD was also released, featuring 14 of their music videos and karaoke versions, as well as a special deluxe digital download version featuring live performances, a special digital download remix collection, entitled Overloaded: The Remix Collection, and a Napster Live Session, featuring acoustic versions of four of their hits and their cover of Primal Scream's hit, "Rocks". On 6 November 2006, Sugababes joined Feeder on stage for the encore of Feeder's WAR Child gig at 'The Roundhouse' in Camden, London. They performed a cover of R.E.M.'s "Everybody Hurts" as well as "Freak Like Me".
In late 2006, it was announced that Sugababes would be releasing the 2007 Comic Relief single, as a duet with fellow UK girl group, Girls Aloud, a cover of the hit, "Walk This Way". Credited as 'Sugababes Vs Girls Aloud', the single was released on 12 March 2007 in the UK and became the band's fifth UK number one single and the first with Berrabah.
Mattel has teamed up with Sugababes to create a new themed Barbie doll collection, which hit stores in May 2007.
On 8 October 2007 the album "Overloaded: The Singles Collection" jumped back into the UK's Official Album Chart at #43, almost a year after it was first released.
[edit] Change
Following their Greatest Hits Tour, the Sugababes returned to the recording studio in summer 2007 to work on a new album, which would also be the first that features all vocals performed by Berrabah, Buchanan, and Range together. Producers who worked on the album included William Orbit, Dr. Luke, Dallas Austin, Novel and Xenomania.
With the release of their single "About You Now" produced by Dr. Luke, the Sugababes were the first girl band ever to top the UK Singles Chart on downloads alone. The song also broke the record for the biggest jump to #1 and remained in that position for four weeks. On October 14, 2007, Change became the group's second UK number one album, debuting in that position and giving the band the top positions on the singles, album and download charts simultaneously.
The Sugababes released their next single "Change" on Monday, December 17, 2007,[22] which peaked at #13 in the UK. The third single from Change was " Denial", released on March 17, 2008. "Denial" peaked at #15.
"About You Now" was nominated for a 2008 BRIT Award for Best British Single.[23] From March 13 to May 1, the Sugababes travelled the UK on the 30-date Change Tour.
During this period, Sugababes also appeared on the compilation Radio 1: Established 1967 with a cover of The Stylistics' "Betcha by Golly Wow!" and were part of a choir of 22 female acts on Annie Lennox's song "Sing".
[edit] Sixth Studio Album
Sugababes are set to go back into the studio after their Change Tour to write and work on their sixth studio album.[24] A release date has not been announced yet but according to the Change Tour programme it will be released at the end of 2008. Rumours have arisen that producer Timbaland has approached Sugababes to work on their sixth album.[25] It has since been confirmed that the album will not be released until 2009.[26]
[edit] Non-musical aspects
[edit] TV and film
[edit] Sugababes: Uncovered
Sugababes recorded a one-off documentary for ITV2 entitled Sugababes: Uncovered, which ran on 19 December 2006. The documentary was filmed during the "Overloaded: The Singles Collection" era, and focused on the band's promotional activities, including behind the scenes footage of the girls preparing for a show and interviews with the girls themselves.
[edit] Notable television appearances
Sugababes have appeared on many music shows such as CD:UK, TOTP, MTV, Popworld, VIVA, awards shows such as the MOBO Awards, NME Awards, MTV Europe Music Awards, BRIT Awards and TV shows such as The Paul O'Grady Show, BBC 1, T4, The Charlotte Church Show, Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway and others. Live performances include Glastonbury festival, Prince's Trust,[27] Live 8 Edinburgh,[28] and performing in countries around the world including Portugal,[29] Germany,[30] Japan, Romania, Australia and South Africa among others. They performed to over 1 million people in 2005 alone.[31]
In 2006 they performed "Hole in the Head" at the Royal Variety Performance at the London Coliseum.
On 18 October 2007, the Sugababes performed at Swarovski Fashion Rocks 2007, for the Princes Trust concert. The girls sang a unique rendition of "Lady Marmalade" alongside Patti LaBelle for the finale of the concert, receiving a standing ovation from the audience in the Royal Albert Hall.[32]
On 27 January 2008, the Sugababes took part in Big Brother Celebrity Hijack and were the last celebrities to take part on the show.
On 01 June 2008, the Sugababes performed for T4's Vodafone TBA in Edinburgh along with The Feeling and The Hoosiers. They performed their hits, Overload , Freak Like Me, Round Round, Hole In The Head, Red Dress , Denial, Change , About You Now and En Vogue's Don't Let Go (Love).
[edit] British tabloids
In Britain, the members of the group do not get much media coverage as individuals, but the group's perceived 'moodiness',[33] alleged backstage catfights,[34] and press junket tantrums[34] have hit the headlines. They are well-known for being surrounded by continuous rumours of in-fighting within the group and constant split reports[35][36] - most notably the alleged bullying of Siobhán Donaghy who quit the group in 2001. Further rumours suggested that the two remaining members Keisha Buchanan and Mutya Buena had bullied replacement Heidi Range, although Range has repeatedly denied such allegations;[37][38] Buena later admitted that she "just didn't talk to her" when she first joined.[34] Buchanan claimed that there has been only one serious fallout was between herself and Range during a 2004 gig in Dublin, regarding the Britney Spears music video, "Toxic".[34] The girls have also hit headlines, following their tour with Take That, attacking the lead singer Gary Barlow for his rudeness.[39]
In April 2007, Amelle Berrabah, was detained over allegations she assaulted an 18-year-old woman on the dance floor in the Bar Med club located in Bridge Street, Guildford, Surrey. The Daily Mirror and The Sun newspaper reported the singer spent the night in a cell, before being released without charge.
In March 2008 rumours once again surfaced about a fall-out between the three girls. The Sun claimed that at the after-show party, following a performance at the Royal Albert Hall on 20 March 2008, the girls "didn't speak a single word (to each other)." The Sun added that Heidi shunned the VIP lounge at the London nightclub 20, staying at the main bar and being absent from Keisha and Amelle, after a bust-up with Keisha.[40]
[edit] Discography
- 2000 - One Touch
- 2002 - Angels with Dirty Faces
- 2003 - Three
- 2005 - Taller in More Ways
- 2006 - Overloaded: The Singles Collection
- 2007 - Change
[edit] Tours
- 2004 - Three Tour
- 2006 - Taller In More Ways Tour
- 2007 - Overloaded: The Singles Tour
- 2008 - Change Tour
[edit] Awards and recognition
[edit] References
- ^ a b BBC - Sugababes - more hits than any female act. Retrieved on 2007-11-19.
- ^ gm.tv
- ^ a b c d Sugababes biography. Celebrity Link. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ Sugababes - POP - I Like Music. ilikemusic. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Album Credits - One Touch. Artist Direct.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ a b Sugababes history. BBC.co.uk. Retrieved on 2006-11-16.
- ^ Artists. Surge.co.uk. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ Sugababes bio. 7digital.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
- ^ The Hitmakers: Richard X. BBC.co.uk. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ Platinum Europe Awards 2003. ifpi.org. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ The BRIT Awards 2003. BRIT Awards. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ Band Aid. bobgeldof.info. Retrieved on 2006-12-15.
- ^ MTV Uncut. MTV. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
- ^ Top of the Pops. bbc.co.uk. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.
- ^ Sugababe sadden by live 8 images. DigitialSpy.co.uk. Retrieved on 2006-11-16.
- ^ Sugababes tickets. World Ticket Shop.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ Album Credits - Taller In More Ways. Artist Direct. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ Sugababe mum wants out. The Sun Online. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ 60 second interview. Metro.co.uk. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.
- ^ The UK music scene is booming. NME.com. Retrieved on 2006-11-16.
- ^ Sugababes chat to I Like Music. I Like Music. Retrieved on 2006-12-17.
- ^ HMV.com singles: Change (2007). HMV.com. Retrieved on 2007-10-28.
- ^ The BRIT Awards: "About You Now"
- ^ 'We're the biggest ... '. The Guardian (2008-03-17). Retrieved on 2008-03-24.
- ^ http://www.mtv.co.uk/channel/mtvuk/news/26032008/411388/sugababes_team_with_timbaland
- ^ http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/a95659/sugababes-delay-sixth-album-plans.html
- ^ Sugababes performance. Prince of Wales - PT 30th Birthday Party. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Sugababes- stronger- live 8 Edinburgh. YouTube. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Sugababes-Rock in Lisboa-02 Overload. YouTube. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Sugababes - Interview Live @ Viva Germany January 30.1.2006. YouTube. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Myspace. Sugababes Official MySpace. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Swarovski Fashion Rocks. Sugababes Swarovski. Retrieved on 2007-10-18.
- ^ Sugababes. AskMen.com. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ a b c d Mean Girls. Guardian Unlimited Arts. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Sugaplum fairies. The Observer. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ SUGABABES BLAST SPLIT RUMOURS. Contact Music. Retrieved on 2007-01-07.
- ^ Artists - Sugababes. BBC. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Communication: William Day. Spec Magazine. Retrieved on 2007-01-06.
- ^ Furious girlband attack 'rude' Take That singer. Now magazine. Retrieved on 2007-01-07.
- ^ http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/showbiz/bizarre/article948882.ece
[edit] External links
- Sugababes Official Website
- Sugababes UK Fansite - Sugatime
- Sugababes UK Fansite
- Sugababes at MySpace
- Sugababes Live Event Review at UKEvents.net
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