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Girls Aloud

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Girls Aloud

Girls Aloud are a British girl group created by ITV1 talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. The group, consisting of Cheryl Cole (née Tweedy), Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh, has become one of the most successful British pop groups of the decade, with a record-breaking seventeen consecutive Top 10 singles (including three number ones), four platinum albums (including a number one) and record sales in excess of 4.2 million in the UK alone (as of October 2007).[1] They are Smash Hits poll winners, have won a TMF Award and have been nominated for two BRIT Awards.

Their British production team Xenomania are well-known for embracing various influences, from electronica, house, power pop and dance, among others. Indeed, the music of Girls Aloud ranges from the distinctly 1980s sound of "No Good Advice" and "Jump" through the 1960s sound of "Love Machine" to the more futuristic sound of " The Show" and "Sexy! No No No..."

Girls Aloud hold the record for the shortest time between formation and reaching number one in the UK Charts (with their platinum-selling début single "Sound of the Underground"), and have since become one of the few reality television groups to achieve continued success. Guinness World Records lists them as "Most Successful Reality TV Group" in the 2007 edition, and they also hold the record for "Most Consecutive Top Ten Entries in the UK by a Female Group" in the 2008 edition, with 17 top tens, making everyone song in the top ten released then, from Sound of the Underground to Call the Shots

For a contemporary pop group manufactured on reality television they have received unprecedented praise from broadsheet newspapers and the rock music press, with publications including the Observer Music Monthly[2][3] and the NME[4] giving their music rave reviews. The Observer has referred to "Biology" as the single of the decade, and Sasha Frere-Jones described them in 2007 as 'England's greatest band'.[5]

Formation

Girls Aloud were formed on November 30 2002, in front of millions of viewers on the ITV1 programme Popstars: The Rivals. The concept of the programme was to produce a boyband and a girlband who would be 'rivals' and compete for the Christmas number one single in 2002. Following the initial success of Hear'Say (winners of the original Popstars show), several thousand applicants attended auditions across the UK in hope of being selected for the show. Ten men and ten women were chosen as finalists by judges Pete Waterman, Louis Walsh and Geri Halliwell with Big Brother presenter Davina McCall taking the contestants through the auditions and the shows each week. However, two finalists were disqualified before the live shows began: Hazel Kaneswaren was found to be too old to participate[6] whilst Nicola Ward refused to sign the contract, claiming the pay the group would receive was too poor.[7] Kimberley Walsh and Nicola Roberts, who had made it into the final fifteen but not the final ten, were chosen as their replacements.

During October and November, the finalists took to the stage participating in weekly Saturday night live performances (alternating week-by-week between the girls and boys). Each week the contestant polling the fewest phone votes was eliminated, until the final line-ups of the groups emerged. The five girls who made it into the group were (in order) Cheryl Tweedy, Nicola Roberts, Nadine Coyle, Kimberley Walsh and Sarah Harding; Javine Hylton missed out on a place in the group, despite previous expectations that she would be placed in the line-up. The group were named Girls Aloud and were originally managed by Walsh until 2005 when Hilary Shaw replaced him. The runners up, a boy band called One True Voice, were managed by Pete Waterman.

The two groups competed for the number one position in the Christmas week UK singles chart. Girls Aloud won the battle with their single "Sound of the Underground" (produced by Brian Higgins and Xenomania) which stayed at number one for four weeks. Disney Channel viewers later voted this as best single of 2002–2003 at the Disney Channel Kids Awards. Originally tipped to be more successful than the girls, One True Voice released just two singles before disbanding in the summer of 2003.

Subsequent career

2002–2004: Sound of the Underground

Main article: Sound of the Underground

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After the huge success of their first single "Sound of the Underground", the newly formed group took several months to record their début album. Also entitled Sound of the Underground, this was released on 26 May 2003. It entered the charts at number two, behind Justin Timberlake's album Justified. One of the tracks, "Girls Allowed", was written for the girls by ex-Westlife star Bryan McFadden while "Some Kind of Miracle" was co-written by former B*Witched member Edele Lynch.

File:GirlsAloud Jump.jpg
Girls Aloud in a scene from the music video for "Jump"

The girls' second single, the number two hit "No Good Advice", was also released in May 2003, and the third single, "Life Got Cold", charted at number three in August 2003.

In November 2003, the girls released "Jump"—a cover of the Pointer Sisters classic 80's dance smash. The song featured on the soundtrack to the 2003 film Love Actually. It entered the chart at number two, behind Westlife's single "Mandy". The album went platinum after a re-issue was released on 1 December 2003.

The new version of Sound of the Underground featured a new album cover and the replacement of three original songs with "Jump" (which wasn't included on the original version), "You Freak Me Out" (which appeared on the soundtrack of Freaky Friday) and "Girls on Film" (a cover of a Duran Duran song originally a B-Side to "Life Got Cold"). "You Freak Me Out" found its way onto release schedules and was performed on CD:UK in early 2004, with presenter Cat Deeley stating it would be their next single. However the plans for this release were scrapped as work began on a second album.

Due to a sharp cut in price, and the group's increased popularity after the release of their Greatest Hits collection, Sound of The Underground re-entered the Top 75 in December 2006. The album stayed on the Top 75 chart for 20 non-consecutive weeks, over a period of more than three years.

2004–2005: What Will the Neighbours Say?

Main article: What Will the Neighbours Say?

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After a brief break, the girls returned in June 2004 to promote their new single "The Show" - the first release from their second album. It had an unusual structure for a pop song, consisting of a number of interchanged sections rather than the more typical verse-chorus form. This single showed off a new look for the girls and was backed by a pre-release promotional campaign featuring five empty chairs bearing the girls' names. This built up excitement over the new look, and the image later featured on the single cover with the girls in their seats. When released, the single entered the charts at number two.

File:GirlsAloud LoveMachine.jpg
Girls Aloud in a scene from the music video for "Love Machine"

The follow-up release "Love Machine" also peaked at number two in September 2004. "Love Machine" was nominated for ITV's The Record of the Year and finished in sixth place. "Love Machine" went on to be used in a television advert for Homebase.

Their seventh single, a cover of The Pretenders' hit "I'll Stand by You", reached the number one position on the UK singles chart in November 2004, and stayed there for two weeks. This was 2004's single for the Children in Need appeal with its proceeds going towards the charity.

"What Will the Neighbours Say?" was released on 29 November 2004 and entered the album charts at number six. The album featured the production and song writing skills of Xenomania. The album's immediate success led to the girls announcing their first What Will the Neighbours Say? Live tour, which took place in May 2005. What Will the Neighbours Say? received excellent reviews; most critics deemed it an improvement on their début release.

The final single to be taken from this album was "Wake Me Up", released in February 2005. It charted at number four - their first to miss the top three, but their eighth top-five single.

In early 2005, the girls won Glamour Magazine's "Band of the Year" award, and were also nominated for a BRIT Award for best pop act.

2005–2006: Chemistry

Main article: Chemistry (album)

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After a short break following their first tour, the girls began work on their third studio album, Chemistry. The first single from the album, "Long Hot Summer", was released in August 2005 and charted at number seven, ending their consecutive top five run but continuing their unbroken run of top ten singles. The single that launched their third album was "Biology".

File:GirlsAloud Biology.jpg
Girls Aloud in a scene from the music video for "Biology"

Chemistry was released on December 5 2005. It features "Models", a song first heard being recorded on their ITV2 documentary Girls Aloud: Home Truths and also used as the theme music to their E4 documentary Girls Aloud: Off the Record. It boasts writing credits from JC Chasez of 'N Sync fame, who penned the track Watch Me Go. The album peaked on the charts at number eleven, their lowest so far, despite overwhelming critical acclaim; it has also gone platinum.

Their cover of Dee C. Lee's "See the Day", released in the Christmas week, charted at number nine. "See the Day" became Girls Aloud's biggest hit in terms of radio airplay since "Sound of the Underground," peaking at number six due to its success on stations such as BBC Radio 2.

Girls Aloud released their début DVD Girls on Film in June 2005, featuring their first eight music videos and television performances. It peaked at number five on the DVD Music chart. This was followed by the What Will the Neighbours Say? Live DVD in November 2005, which reached number six.

The group travelled to Australia and New Zealand in February 2006 to release the single "Biology" and the album Chemistry. Arriving on 23 February, the girls undertook a one-week promotional tour, during which they appeared on many TV shows. "Biology" peaked at number twenty-six in the Australian singles chart failing to break the Australian market.

"Whole Lotta History" was the fourth and final single to be taken from Chemistry. Released on 13 March 2006, it became the fourth highest download-only entry at number eighty (this was the first time singles had been able to chart on downloads alone). The week after its download release the song reached number six, and as the number-eighty position was outside the top seventy-five, this became the week's highest new entry. The single was accompanied by a video filmed in Paris, their first outside the UK.

In May 2006 the girls embarked on their second UK tour (and first arena tour), Chemistry. During the tour, the girls performed at ten large arenas in the UK, playing to over 100,000 people in total. The tour received rave reviews, with the majority of tabloids awarding 4/5 marks. In the same month, Girls Aloud were moved to Fascination Records, a sub-label of Polydor Records; all future Girls Aloud releases will be published by Fascination Records. Girls Aloud also won the Heart Award for the single "See the Day" at the O2 Silver Clef Lunch, with Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh attending the awards presentation ceremony.

2006–2007: The Sound of Girls Aloud

Main article: The Sound of Girls Aloud

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File:GirlsAloud SomethingKindaOoh.jpg
Girls Aloud in a scene from the music video for "Something Kinda Ooooh"

In September 2006, the official Girls Aloud web site confirmed the release of The Sound of Girls Aloud - a compilation that contains Girls Aloud's singles and some new and previously unreleased material. The album was released on October 30 2006, and on November 5 2006 it débuted at number one on the UK album chart. The album was also released on a limited edition double CD format containing live tracks such as "I Predict a Riot" and previously unavailable tracks such as "Singapore" and "Hanging On The Telephone", a cover of the Blondie single; this has now become a highly priced collectors' item. In the week beginning 11 August 2007, the album re-entered the top 100 at number 100; the following week it climbed one place to 99, still showing strong sales. As of the week of 24 September 2007, the album is still in the top 200.

The lead single from the album, "Something Kinda Ooooh", was released on 16 October 2006, on downloads, and 23 October 2006, on physical formats. Girls Aloud became the first British act to reach the top five purely on download sales, with the song entering at number five. On its second week of release the single climbed two places to number three on the chart, later bettering the sales and chart run of that week's number one from McFly.

The next single, "I Think We're Alone Now", a number-one hit in 1965 for Tommy James and The Shondells as well as 1987 for Tiffany, was the third time the group have entered the Christmas chart battle. The single charted at number fifty on downloads alone, based on downloads of the album version only. It then climbed to number four, making it Girls Aloud's fourteenth consecutive Top 10 and eleventh top five. The song is the official theme of the film It's a Boy Girl Thing.

File:WalkThisWay2007Screenshot.jpg
Girls Aloud (feat Sugababes) in a scene from "Walk This Way"

Girls Aloud collaborated with the Sugababes on their fifteenth single, a cover of the song "Walk This Way" by Aerosmith. The track was released on 12 March 2007 as the official single for Comic Relief, as "Sugababes vs. Girls Aloud". It became the group's third British number one, and their fifteenth consecutive top-ten single.[8] Despite a strong start the single dropped quickly down the chart and failed to match the success of other charity records.

In May 2007, Girls Aloud went on their third tour, The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits Tour. During the tour, the girls appeared at 15 arenas across the UK and Ireland. The supporting acts for this tour were Natalia and Rogue Traders.

2007–Present: Tangled Up

Main article: Tangled Up
File:SexyNoNoNoScreenshot.jpg
Girls Aloud in a scene from the award-winning music video for "Sexy! No No No ..."

On 13 July 2007, it was announced that the song "Sexy! No No No..." would become the first single from their fourth studio album. The track was played exclusively on The Chris Moyles Show on the 19 July at 8:10am.[9] It was performed for the first time at a special gig at Oakwood Theme Park, Wales on 21 July followed by a televised performance as part of T4 On The Beach in Weston-super-Mare on 22 July. It was released to download on 31 August 2007, reaching a position of #64 on the official chart as a result of only two days of downloads before the physical release on September 3. The following week, it reached #5 on the UK Singles Chart and stayed in the chart for eight further weeks. The song also made the Top 10 in Slovenia.[10]

The Girls' fourth studio album, Tangled Up, was released on 19 November 2007, debuting in the UK Album Charts at #4. Their 17th single "Call the Shots" was released in the UK one week later on 26 November, and having reached #9 on the UK Singles Chart on downloads alone the week before, rose to #3 to give the band their 10th Top 3 single. The single has now spent more weeks in the Top 10 than any of their releases since their number one Sound of the Underground in 2002 and 2003. "Call the Shots" also beat "Sound of the Underground" to become Girls Aloud's highest entry on the radio airplay chart when it reached #1.

Girls Aloud also appeared on the compilation Radio 1: Established 1967, celebrating the 40th anniversary of BBC Radio 1, with a cover of Wheatus' "Teenage Dirtbag", as well as singing backing vocals on Franz Ferdinand's cover of David Bowie's "Sound and Vision".[11] In addition to these appearances, Girls Aloud also recorded two tracks for the soundtrack to the new St Trinian's movie ("Theme to St Trinians" and "On My Way to Satisfaction"). They also also make a cameo appearance in the film as the school band. The soundtrack was released on 10 December 2007,[12] and the video for "Theme to St Trinian's" premiered in mid December 2007. On the 6 January 2008, "Theme to St. Trinian's" became the first Girls Aloud song to enter the UK Singles Chart without any plans of a physical release, debuting at #51.[13]

The Girls in a scene from their latest video "Can't Speak French"

Girls Aloud received their second BRIT Award nomination in 2008, nominated for the Best British Group award.[14] Tangled Up was also certified Platinum in January.[15]

On 15 January, it was announced that "Can't Speak French" would be the third single to be released from Tangled Up. The single will be released 17 March, with a French version, and "Hoxton Heroes", a satirical track aimed towards indie bands, as b-sides.[16]

In May 2008, Girls Aloud will embark on the Tangled Up Tour, their third arena tour and fourth overall, playing a total of 22 arenas around the country. They are also set to collaborate with Annie for her as-yet-untitled album, due to be released in 2008.[17] The Sun has stated that there will be another album after Tangled Up,[18] although this has yet to be confirmed by official sources.

Non-musical issues

Girls Aloud: Off the Record

Main article: Girls Aloud: Off the Record

Girls Aloud recorded a six-part fly on the wall documentary series for E4 entitled Girls Aloud: Off the Record, which started its run on April 11 2006. The series was filmed during the "Chemistry" era, and focused on the band's promotional activities, including the shooting of the "Biology" video and the lead-up to and aftermath of the release of "Whole Lotta History". It also showed the band travelling abroad, to places such as Greece, Paris and Shanghai. A DVD of the series was released on September 4 2006 after several release date changes. This included an unaired episode and subsequently reached number four on the Music DVD Chart.

Passions

The Girls are to star in a new television series on ITV2, Passions,[19] to be broadcast on 14 March 2008[citation needed] and coincide with the third single release from Tangled Up. The premise of the show will be the girls achieving something that they have always wanted to do and its been confirmed that it will start to air on the 2nd March:[20]

  • Cheryl will try street dancing in Los Angeles;
  • Kimberley will try musicals in the West End;
  • Nicola will be creating her own make-up range;
  • Sarah will be learning polo in Argentina.

It was reported on the 13 November 2007 that Nadine would not be taking part.[21] This is said to be due to the programme's bosses refusing to let her undertake charity work.[21]

On 21 December 2007 the Girls Aloud Official website posted a competition called "Be A Model for Nicola". It is giving one lucky fan the chance to be a model for Nicola Roberts, for her final task for Passions.[22]

Tabloids

The group remain constant tabloid fodder. June 2006 saw them facing a great deal of press attention, including rumours that Harding was tired of the band and was quitting to go solo. This prompted the singer to post a message on the group's official website stating she "would be insane to even consider leaving". Tweedy's relationship with footballer Ashley Cole has kept her in the papers, especially during the 2006 World Cup in June and July 2006 (along with other WAGs).

On the 25th January 2008, claims revealed by The Sun that Ashley Cole cheated on his wife Cheryl with a women he met in a club in London in December 2007.[23]

Coyle and Harding have regularly featured in the tabloids because of their Hollywood relationships. Coyle is dating Jesse Metcalfe of Desperate Housewives who appeared at G-A-Y club on December 1st 2007 while the girls were on stage and gave Nadine a cuddle. Harding was rumoured to be seeing Stephen Dorff, and she also dated Daily Star writer Joe Mott, although the couple have since split up. August 2007 saw the girls defend Amy Winehouse in a TV interview.[24]

Sponsorship deals

In 2007, Girls Aloud signed a one-year deal to endorse hair care brand Sunsilk. The endorsement is reportedly worth £1.25m.[25] The girls filmed a television advertisement, and magazine advertisements also ran, with each of the five members being the face of a different shampoo.

In June 2007, Girls Aloud also sealed a deal with the UK division of Samsung. They will endorse mobile phones and MP3 players, make personal appearances and sing at Samsung events, and contribute to competition prizes, among other activities.[26] The Samsung F210 Purple comes with a 1GB memory card featuring Girls Aloud content.[27]

Miscellaneous

In 2005, Girls Aloud filmed a one-off documentary entitled Home Truths. This would later make way for Off the Record. A year later, they appeared in an episode of Ghosthunting with... (without Nadine), in which Yvette Fielding guided them through haunted locations.[28]

In April 2007, Girls Aloud filmed a cameo appearance in the new St. Trinian's movie, playing the St. Trinian's School Band. The film was released in the UK on December 21 2007, with Girls Aloud providing two songs for the movie (see Tangled Up). The Girls also make a cameo appearance in the Oasis documentary, Lord Don't Slow Me Down.

In addition to their live concerts, Girls Aloud have released two other DVDs – Girls On Film and Style.

Discography

Main article: Girls Aloud discography

Tours

Videography

See main article: Girls Aloud videography.

Awards and recognition

Popjustice

The Popjustice £20 Music Prize is awarded every year by a panel of judges (or sometimes a public vote) to the best British pop single of the previous twelve months. The competition has been running since 2003. Girls Aloud have been nominated every year, and have won it three times.

References

  1. ^ Caroline Hedley (2007-11-22). "Cheryl Cole exclusive". Daily Mirror. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  2. ^ Peter Robinson (2005-11-20). "Girls Aloud, Chemistry". The Observer. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  3. ^ "Countdown: the OMM top 100 albums". Observer Music Monthly. 2005-12-18. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  4. ^ Caroline Sullivan (2004-09-17). "How I became a Girl Aloud". The Guardian. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
  5. ^ Sasha Frere-Jones (2007-12-17). "In the Days of My Youth". Retrieved 2008-01-10.
  6. ^ "Hazel is no longer a Popstar Rival...", ShowBiz Ireland (online), October 10 2002
  7. ^ "Popstar Rivals' Nicola quits show", CBBC Newsround (online), October 13 2002
  8. ^ "Babes Aloud at No 1", MTV UK (online), 13 March 2007
  9. ^ GirlsAloud.co.uk - Girls Aloud are back and they're SEXY!
  10. ^ Slovenia Singles Chart
  11. ^ Girls Aloud Join Franz for Bowie Cover, Digital Spy
  12. ^ "St. Trinians: Original Soundtrack". Play.com. 2007-11-22. Retrieved 2007-11-22. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  13. ^ Official UK Singles Chart Top 75
  14. ^ BBC: Girls Aloud nominated for Brit Award
  15. ^ "Certified Awards - Tangled Up". The BPI. 2008-01-25. Retrieved 2008-02-11.
  16. ^ Girls Aloud (2008-01-15). "News on the Girls' next single". Retrieved 2008-01-15.
  17. ^ Popjustice (2008-01-22). "What's going on in the music industry?". Retrieved 2008-01-22.
  18. ^ [1]
  19. ^ Girls Aloud star to dance in Compton Digital Spy
  20. ^ Why it's OK to love Girls Aloud, Times Online
  21. ^ a b Nadine pulls out of Girls Aloud TV show, RTÉ.ie
  22. ^ Be A Model For Girls Aloud
  23. ^ http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/article725180.ece
  24. ^ Girls Aloud speak out abour Amy Winehouse - interview from GMTV, 'MyParkmag.co.uk'
  25. ^ Girls Aloud land shampoo deal ITN News
  26. ^ Girls Aloud Seal Samsung Deal Billboard.biz
  27. ^ Samsung launches Girls Aloud phone. Mobile Choice Magazine.
  28. ^ Ghost Hunting with Girls Aloud at IMDb
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