This month marks the 20th anniversary of the release of the Spice Girls’ “Wannabe” in the United States, and Mel B (aka Scary Spice) remembers the recording the song like it was yesterday.
“It was recorded and written in less than about 10 minutes. We were listening to an old Shaggy reggae song and we were like, ‘Oh my God, we have to do something annoying like that song,’” she recalled of the Spice Girls’ breakout hit while guest hosting The Real. “So we kind of literally huddled together, wrote some choruses, wrote some melodies and then we came up with phrases and sayings and it just happened.”
And despite teasing fans in July 2016 that there would be a reunion of sorts, Mel B wasn’t particularly optimistic when asked about it.
“Trying to get everybody’s schedule on the same kind of vibe is more or less impossible,” she admitted. “I’m still hoping something’s going to happen because I think we have to celebrate.”
In addition to gushing about the Spice Girls, the ladies of The Real also got candid about Mariah Carey’s headline-making New Year’s Eve performance.
Mel B happened to be in Times Square when Carey suffered from some serious technical difficulties that led her to ultimately walk off the stage.
“I was on the platform next to her,” Brown said. “So she was right there and I was watching going, ‘What is going on over there?’ Because I was trying to lip sync along to her song because I love Mariah. Then it all stopped and I looked over and I couldn’t believe what I was actually seeing.”
The X Factor judge found Carey’s behavior to be troubling, saying, “As a performer, as somebody on TV, if something happens, you just keep it going. Your first reaction is to not let silence go too long. I was in complete shock. I was like, ‘Why did you let that happen?’ And this is Mariah who is an amazing singer, an amazing performer. Maybe she doesn’t have that voice anymore and I hate to say it, but maybe that was part of the [problem].”
Following the disastrous performance, Carey released a statement accusing the production team behind Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve of intentionally trying to “humiliate” her, saying they “foiled” her once the technical issues began.
