Spice Girls

Baby Spice, Scary Spice, Sporty Spice, Posh Spice, and Ginger Spice

 

 

Pictured below: Spice Girls posing together on a red carpet. From their poses, facial expressions, and outfits, the stylistic and personality differences between the group are quite visible.1

The unique styles and personalities of the Spice Girls, dictated by their moniker, attempts to make the group relatable to young fans of different backgrounds. One of the most iconic images of the Spice Girls comes from the music video of the 1996 single, “Wannabe.”2 The women’s outfits and hairstyles consistently represent each member as distinct and unique from one another. 

The Spice Girls posing on the set of their music video shoot for “Wannabe.” From left to right: Melanie Chisholm, Melanie Brown, Gerri Halliway, Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton. 

A discussion of each member’s outfit is below.2

Melanie Chisholm’s typical outfit as Sporty Spice sought to appeal to girls who valued athleticism and physical strength challenging societal expectations of girls. As the only black member, Melanie Brown, or Scary Spice, embraced her over the top intensity to garner support from loud, extroverted or black audiences. Geri Halliway, Ginger Spice, was often fashioned the group’s leader and her outfits spoke to girls comfortable with their sexuality. The sophistication of Victoria Beckham led to her moniker of Posh Spice which alludes to the upper-class audience she appealed to. Finally, Emma Bunton’s youth and girliness as Baby Spice charmed girls who embraced their femininity. This plays into the intersectionality of Third Wave feminism as each girl spoke to audiences with different perspectives.

 

 Pictured: the Spice Girls posing on a street together in a public show of their “girl power”.3 To watch a video advertisement for the Spice Girls’ first album, Spice, click on this image.4

Marketing

This marketing technique proved extremely effective. Record sales and sold out concerts demonstrated that the target audience of the Spice Girls, preteen to early teen girls, were relating to the group, and to the individuals within the group. Marketing included ads for Pepsi, Target, and their own albums. 

In an ad for their album Spice, released in November 1996, Geri Halliwell says, “What you lookin’ at boy? Girl power is

coming at you.”4 Rhetoric like this, with specific reference to “girl power” made the buying of music and merchandise

from the Spice Girls very appealing to young girls who found it difficult to turn down the idea of female empowerment.

Given this target audience, however, the Spice Girls were forced to carefully assess their portrayal of friendship and

sexuality. Their relationships with one another were framed in the context of close friendship to promote this among

their fans. As for sexuality, the Spice Girls demonstrated greater accessibility than Riot Grrls by carefully emphasizing a

pride in their appearance and ability to attract men that was still age appropriate. Thus, the Spice Girls then were able to

incorporate two central themes of their fanbase’s culture to legitimize it.5

Musical Analysis

The Spice Girls’ single “Wannabe” released from their first album, Spice, epitomizes their “girl power” while continuing to enforce how their personal differences led to a stronger friendship. An analysis of the music video7, which was released prior to the single, emphasizes the lightheartedness of the Spice Girls. The video consists of one long camera shot so the choreography and actions, though rehearsed, are unpolished. The camera follows the group arriving at a venue, dressed casually. They cause disruptions of the workers and other patrons by throwing paper in the air and pulling off table cloths. This demonstrates rebellion and shows off their carefree girl power.

Pictured: the Spice Girls posing for a photoshoot in casual clothing.6 To watch the music video for the Spice Girls’ single, “Wannabe,” click on this image.7

Lyrically, “Wannabe” is about girls reclaiming control over their relationships with boys. In the pre-chorus, the repetition of words like “tell,” “really,” and “I wanna” build up female confidence and assertion. The chorus of “If you wanna be my lover, you gotta get with my friends / make it last forever friendship never ends” establishes a hierarchy between friendship and romance by placing female friendship above any sexual or romantic relationships. Throughout the song, the invented phrase “zigazig-ah” is used repeatedly to demonstrate female desire, with the “zigazig” creating tension while “ah” releases the tension.

Despite lyrically focusing on sex, a musical analysis connects the song to the group’s young fan base. “Wannabe” exemplifies “girl power” because of its pop music elements, the genre that many young girls listen to. The form follows the traditional AABA structure of most pop music. This familiar form draws young girls to the song as they can connect with the sound, if not the lyrics. The addition of Mel B’s rap, the most popular musical style of the 1990s, in the bridge, complicates the song as well. As the only black member, she blends genres just as Third Wave feminism sought to include more diverse perspectives especially regarding race.

The tempo is upbeat and fast which, along with the lyric, “Slam your body down and wind it all around” indicates the energetic and physical nature of this dance song. Young girls, familiar with pop music, related to this. The syncopated synthesized riff during the chorus is simplistic which draws attention to the lyrics. The thin texture, which includes vocals, drums, and bass guitar, again draws emphasis to the lyrics. This song’s pop and hip-hop blend allows young girls to comfortably access girl power, which resides within the lyrics empowering female friendship.

  1.  Catriona Harvey-Jenner, “We Just Found out What the Lyrics to Spice Girls ‘Wannabe’ Really Mean,” 2017.
  2. hellomagazine.com. “Geri Halliwell Marks 20 Years since Filming the Spice Girls Wannabe Video.”
  3. Raisa Bruner, “Everything We Know About the Spice Girls Reunion So Far,” 2018.
  4. Spice Girls VEVO. “Spice Commercial ‘Spice Girls,’” 2007.
  5. Dafna Lemish, “Spice World: Constructing Femininity the Popular Way,” 2003, 23.
  6. Fanpop, “Spice Girls Wallpaper: Spice Girls.”
  7. “Spice Girls – ‘Wannabe,’” 2009.