Spice Girls at 30: How girl power changed pop

THIRTY YEARS AGO, five young women from the UK redefined what a pop group could be. When the Spice Girls burst onto the scene in 1996 with their debut single “Wannabe,” they helped to reshape discussions around gender, sexuality, power and pop culture.

- By Joel Gray

At first glance, their formula seemed straightforward; catchy music, bold personalities, and an explicitly commercial brand. This helped the Spice Girls dominate the pop charts of the 1990s and 2000s. But their approach was very rare for British female artists — most girlbands relied on matching outfits and a unified look as opposed to the Spice Girls brand of individual personalities.

The strategy resulted in huge success but also reflected, and arguably was the catalyst for, deeper shifts in the music industry and society at large.

The Spice Girls arrived at a moment when “girl power” (a phrase they popularized globally and now features in the dictionary) tapped into a growing appetite for female autonomy and visibility.