It has come to my attention that many – if not most – Americans are unaware that, back in 2000, Mel C (you know, Sporty Spice) collaborated with Lisa “Left Eye” Lopes on what is, if not the gayest girl pop song ever, then definitely the most bicurious.
(The B-side is called “I Wonder What It Would Be Like” for FFS. I mean, having said that, I owned the single and never actually listened to that song, but work with me here.)
The track was a number 1 hit in the UK, number 2 in Australia, and was generally successful throughout Europe. There was an American release, but it apparently sank without a trace, which is the usual fate of most artists who aren’t from North America because you guys are, like, crazy insular.
This is from the period when the Spice Girls were hypothetically still together (except for Geri), but were actually releasing competing solo albums, of which Mel C’s was the best.
Meanwhile, TLC had fallen apart post-Fanmail, with Left Eye not really wanting to be a part of the group, but also resenting that she was sidelined for much of the album. (Her 2001 solo album Supernova bombed in America, and that is TRAGIC and WRONG and you all should seek it out, it’s amazing. A bunch of tracks and demos were remastered with sleek production and big name guest artists for the Eye Legacy EP a few years ago, and that’s good – sometimes even great, eg “Let’s Just Do It”, which is basically TLC feat. Missy Elliott – but it doesn’t have the raw energy of Supernova.)
What happens when the two biggest girl groups of the ‘90s collide? This. The song itself takes the bubblegum pop stylings of UK pop and runs them through a sleek American hip hop/pop filter, while Mel C sings and Left Eye raps about experiencing unexpected and forbidden feelings for a friend, and facing the world’s judgement, and also it’s relevant that this came out back when people still cared about Mel C’s sexuality, and a lot of people believed she was secretly gay. (Maybe she is, who knows. I was going to say that the question was eventually resolved, but really, we just moved on.)
The video is directed by Francis Lawrence, who went on to direct videos for Gwen Stefani (”What You Waiting For?”), Britney (”Circus”), Lady Gaga (”Bad Romance”) and Beyonce (”Run the World (Girls)”). Oh, and a couple of movies in a little series called The Hunger Games. (Catching Fire and Mockingjay, for the record.)
This video mixes visual tropes beloved of the era, like Being In A Futuristic House! With A Weirdly Prominent Fancy CD Player! (See also: Billie Piper’s video for “Something Deep Inside”, released later that year) and mixes them with not-very-subtle nods to Mel C’s identity as A Sporty Chick, ie, she’s on a treadmill in slow-mo, she’s doing tai chi with Left Eye.
It’s great. And it’s a tragedy that Americans have been robbed of this slice of pop perfection. I hope this post has gone a small way towards remedying that.
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