"Girlbands, then. Shimmering icons of empowerment or Pygmalion projects for middle-aged A&R men? Here's a radical idea they're both. Two become one, baby. That's the sense you get from Girlbands Forever (Sat, 9.20pm, BBC Two), the documentary executive produced by Louis Theroux charting the fortunes of 90s bands such as All Saints, Eternal, Atomic Kitten and Mis-Teeq through to 00s stars Little Mix."
"Kelle Bryan from Eternal reveals they were sent to a facility in the countryside and put on controlled diets to manage their weight (though the head of EMI UK denies all knowledge). Kerry Katona tells how a journalist turned up at her mother's house with a bag of cocaine to get her to sell a story. Melanie Blatt of All Saints says that when she discovered she was pregnant, she was told to abort."
"Instead, it has sensitivity and scope, as interested in charting the social mores these artists created, were crucified by, or changed in some way. I'm not sure things have improved. Attractive celebrities once took pains to hide their relationships, to maintain an illusion of being sexually available. These days, we've exploded the notion of privacy, and realised relationships can be cannibalised on social media for cachet. Progress!"
Girlbands Forever (BBC Two) charts the careers of 90s girlbands through 00s stars, including All Saints, Eternal, Atomic Kitten, Mis-Teeq and Little Mix. Band members recount harsh industry practices: controlled diets, pressure to abort pregnancies, tabloid exploitation and attempts to extract scandal. The series balances nostalgia and gossip with exploration of social mores that these artists shaped, suffered under, or changed. Privacy norms shifted from hiding relationships to publicising them for social media cachet. Racial and gender inequities persisted, with Black artists working harder for far less attention and whiteness sometimes dramatically improving commercial fortunes.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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