Melanie Chisolm, aka Sporty Spice, aka Mel C, aka Melanie C, is known, not unjustifiably, as the talented one. Clearly the best singer in the Spice Girls, she s fast becoming the one most likely to succeed as a credible solo artist. With her gold capped teeth, liberally tattoo d torso and down to earth Scouse sense of humour, she s also by far the most likeable of the four.
Her recent hit single, the infectiously danceable and supremely melodic Never Be The Same Again taken from her solo debut Northern Star was arguably better than anything the Spice Girls have ever done. Her raunchy duet with Bryan Adams on When You re Gone also demonstrated another side to the erstwhile teen pop hero.
The album Northern Star surprised many sceptics but in fact this was the real Mel C, who is as much of an indie aficionado as a pop fan, finally standing up. A huge admirer of Madonna, Hole and Garbage, she also loves the Cardigan s crafted pop and namechecks Oasis, Blur and the Chili Peppers among her favourites.
Recorded in LA, Northern Star was made with a host of top names including producer Rick Rubin, Madonna collaborators Marius De Vries and Rick Nowels (with whom she co-wrote several songs). Also heavily involved in its creation were William Orbit (Madonna, Blur), two members of Beck s band, Bryan Adams and Rhett Lawrence (writer & producer of hits for Mariah Carey amongst others) with whom she co-wrote Never Be The Same Again and which features Lisa Left Eye (TLC).
The album has gone to No 1 in seven countries so far: Sweden, Norway, Holland, UK, Arabia, Thailand and Estonia. Soon to top the one million mark in sales, it s gone gold in Canada, Denmark and Ireland and platinum in the UK.
Speaking recently about her new direction she said: When I look back at the two previous albums I ve been involved in, what I m doing now is completely different. But that s only natural. When the Spice Girls started we were still all really young. In five years, you change a hell of a lot, and that s what Northern Star represents.
It represents change. And I m not the only one. Look at the rest of us. One has left, two are married and have babies. We re turning into Spice Women now, branching out.
Mel C is planning to go out on the road this autumn under the banner of From Liverpool To Leicester Square, which will take her to America, Australia and Japan as well as Europe and her Slane guest slot. Such is the demand for tickets in the UK that she has been booked into Wembley Arena for a November date her biggest solo gig so far.
Incidentally, Mel C is no stranger to Dublin where she often comes to hang out and to take a break from her hectic life as a sometime Spice Girl and now solo star.