Sugababes
When: 7th November 2022
Location: O2 Academy
Sugababes are the British girl group responsible for many of the most successful pop hits of the 00s. Back with the original line up. Coming to Glasgow’s O2 Academy on 7th November 2022.
The Sugababes truly went on a unique journey as a group. With the entire original line-up being replaced one by one, only to reform over a decade later and release new music. Their impact on pop – and especially female-fronted pop acts – has been recognised time and time again. They are among a select group of British acts that have had all their albums reach the top 15.
Originally formed in 1998, the original trio consisted of Siobhan Donaghy, Mutya Buena, and Keisha Buchanan. Donaghy and Buena were both signed as solo artists at just 13. But decided to work together, with Buena bringing in Buchanan to complete the group. The trio had a strong start – their debut single, ‘Overload’, peaked at No.6 on the UK Singles Chart. It was nominated for a BRIT award, whilst further singles spawned by their debut album were all top 40 hits. The album itself, One Touch, was certified gold.
First line up change
During a tour of Japan in 2001, Donaghy left the group to be replaced by former Atomic Kitten Heidi Range. The group’s first single with Range, ‘Freak Like Me’, went to No.1, with subsequent album Angels With Dirty Faces going triple platinum. The title track went on to become the theme tune to The Powerpuff Girls Movie. Third album Three arrived in 2003 and had a pleasingly symmetrical chart placing, making it to No.3.
In 2004 the trio sang on the Band Aid 20 remake of ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’ A brief hiatus followed, with the group returning in 2005 to release the hugely successful ‘Push The Button’, which was No.1 in the UK for three weeks. Their fourth album, Taller In More Ways, also debuted at No.1 in the UK. Shortly after, Buena left the group to be replaced by Amelle Berrabah.
The group collaborated with Girls Aloud in 2007 for a cover of Aerosmith’s ‘Walk This Way’, the official single of that year’s Comic Relief. Later that same year they released ‘About You Now’, their highest-selling single to date. The track remained at the top of the UK charts for four weeks. Albums Change and Catfights and Spotlights followed in 2007 and 2008 respectively, after which Buchanan departed to be replaced by Jade Ewan, the UK’s 2009 Eurovision Song Contest entrant.
The original line-up reunite
The original line-up didn’t reunite until 2012, when they re-entered the recording studio to work on new music. Single ‘Flatline’ came in 2013, released under the name Mutya Keisha Siobhan as the ‘Sugababes’ name was still in use. The group did eventually reclaim the name in 2015 and re-released ‘Flatline’ as the Sugababes in 2022. They embarked on The Sacred Three tour in 2016, playing a string of dates around the UK. In 2021, the group released a 20th-anniversary edition of One Touch. They signed on to several festival appearances in the summer of 2022, including Hertfordshire’s Standon Calling.
