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They ruled their eras, dominated charts, and somehow still slipped through the cracks of pop culture memory. Join us as we count down our picks for the most underrated and overlooked girl groups of all time! Our countdown includes Dream, Eden's Crush, All Saints, B*Witched, Danity Kane, Atomic Kitten, and more! Which forgotten girl group deserves a comeback? Let us know in the comments below!
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the girl groups who ruled their eras,
00:05dominated charts, and somehow still slipped through the cracks of pop culture memory.
00:18Number 20, Atomic Kitten.
00:20Baby, you're the one. You still turn me on. You can make me whole again.
00:29British pop had few groups who sounded more unmistakably early 2000s than Atomic Kitten.
00:34Their breakthrough arrived with Whole Again, which spent four weeks at number one in the UK,
00:39while their cover of Eternal Flame also topped the chart.
00:42Is this running as Eternal Flame? Say my name.
00:50Official Charts credits the Liverpool group with three UK number one singles and 13 top tens,
00:55so theirs was hardly a blink-and-you-missed-it career.
00:58It seemed like they would have staying power.
01:00Yet today, Atomic Kitten tends to survive mainly as a nostalgic soundtrack to the era,
01:05overshadowed by bigger global girl groups.
01:07Tide is high, but I'm holding on. I'm gonna be your number one.
01:16Their glossy harmonies and enormous choruses still hold up,
01:20which makes rediscovering their catalog feel like finding an old CD wallet under the bed.
01:24Every time that I get the feeling, you give me something to believe in.
01:28Every time that I got you near me, I know the way that I want it to be.
01:33Number 19, Allure.
01:43Being Mariah Carey's first signing to her own Crave Records label sounds like a golden ticket,
01:48and for a moment, it really was.
01:50The quartet, consisting of Aaliyah Davis, Lelisha Sanders, Akisa Mendez, and Linny Belcher,
01:56dropped their self-titled debut in 1997,
01:58bringing serious vocal firepower alongside collaborations with names like Nas and LL Cool J.
02:04Carey herself co-wrote their single Last Chance.
02:22The credentials were impeccable, the talent undeniable.
02:26But despite a promising rollout and genuine industry co-signing,
02:29the dismantling of Crave Records in 1998 significantly delayed the release of their sophomore album.
02:35Allure remains one of the great what-ifs of late 90s R&B,
02:38a group that had every ingredient for longevity except, unfortunately, the follow-through.
02:43Never question, never question what I do, oh no, oh yes, you need me, baby.
02:51Number 18, Mystique.
02:53All I want is to be with you, but I just love to live, I live my own life too.
02:59Long before Alicia Dixon became a household name in Britain,
03:03she was one-third of Mystique, a group that made UK Garage, R&B, and pop sound completely at home
03:09together.
03:09Why?
03:10All I want and One Night Stand, the first three singles from their debut album Lickin' on Both Sides,
03:15all reached the top 10 in the UK.
03:24Official Charts credits the trio with seven UK top 10 singles, an impressive run by any measure.
03:30Their sound also traveled internationally, particularly through Scandalous, which charted in the US top 40.
03:36You're dangerous, just get it out, don't pay you, so scandalous, it's all about the two of us.
03:43After their 2005 split, the members pursued solo projects,
03:47and Dixon became especially prominent as a television personality.
03:50For younger listeners, Mystique can feel like a forgotten chapter in British pop history.
04:03Think we've unearthed enough forgotten favorites?
04:06Think again.
04:07Scan the QR code on your screen to join the Ms. Mojo 24-7 live stream for more pop culture
04:11deep dives.
04:12I want it all, I call a red fancy cream.
04:15I want it all, I mean that's the way it is.
04:17I want it all, it costs an expensive thing.
04:19Number 17, The Veronicas.
04:28In an age when Australian pop acts often had to fight for international attention,
04:32these twin sisters did it with attitude and hooks.
04:35Consisting of Lisa and Jessica Oraglasso,
04:38The Veronicas made a big splash in their home country
04:40with the release of their debut album, The Secret Life Of.
04:43Come on baby, we ain't gonna live forever
04:45Let me show you all the things that we could do
04:49The album went four times platinum in Australia,
04:52while its follow-up, Hook Me Up, produced the title track,
04:55their first Australian number one, and the global hit Untouched.
05:06That song alone has had a longer afterlife online
05:09than some bands manage in their entire careers.
05:12Still, despite their success,
05:13the duo never quite stayed in the mainstream conversation
05:16the way their biggest singles suggested they would.
05:26Number 16, GRL.
05:36Assembled in the early 2010s as something of a pop supergroup,
05:40GRL featured Lauren Bennett alongside rotating members
05:43including Natasha Slayton, Emmeline Estrada,
05:45Paula Van Oppen, Jazzy Mejia, and Simone Battle.
05:48Their collaboration with Pitbull on Wild Wild Love
05:51cracked the top 30 on the Billboard Hot 100
05:53and hit number 6 in the UK.
06:03Their own single, Ugly Heart,
06:05peaked at number 2 in both Ireland and Australia,
06:08which seemingly was proof that the formula worked.
06:10And I wonder, does it blow your mind
06:18Tragically, however, Simone Battle passed away in 2014,
06:22casting a long shadow over the group's momentum.
06:24GRL disbanded shortly after,
06:26leaving behind a catalog far too brief
06:28for how bright the spark was.
06:36Number 15, GRLICIOUS.
06:46Created through the reality series
06:48Pussycat Dolls present GRLICIOUS,
06:50this pop group came onto the scene
06:51with plenty of television-fueled hype.
06:53Their 2008 self-titled debut
06:55mixed pop, hip-hop, and R&B
06:57reached number 2 on the Canadian Albums chart
07:00and eventually earned platinum certification.
07:09The album's lead single, Like Me,
07:11reached number 4 on the Canadian Hot 100,
07:14with subsequent singles also managing to chart.
07:16Their sound echoed early Pussycat Dolls' energy
07:19at its most fun,
07:20but internal changes and label turbulence
07:22cut their momentum short.
07:24By the early 2010s,
07:25GRLICIOUS had effectively dissolved.
07:28For a group with that launch pad,
07:30the fall was both swift and entirely undeserved.
07:33The world's shaking and I'm paranoid
07:35Cause I'm gonna stop the noise in my head
07:40Number 14, Cherish.
07:42I hit a drop with,
07:44leave with,
07:45pop with,
07:46snap with,
07:47all my ladies pop their backs,
07:48we do it, do it, do it, do it, do it, do it.
07:50Four sisters from Atlanta
07:52turned family harmony
07:53into a brief but memorable R&B moment.
07:55Cherish broke through nationally
07:57with Do It To It,
07:58featuring Sean P. of The Youngbloods,
08:00and the 2000s single climbed to number 12
08:02on the Billboard Hot 100.
08:04Their debut album,
08:05Unappreciated,
08:06followed that year,
08:07blending Crunk and B,
08:08contemporary R&B,
08:09and pop.
08:17The group had already released music
08:19before that breakthrough,
08:20but their biggest commercial moment arrived
08:22just as the mid-2000s girl group landscape
08:24was becoming crowded.
08:25Cherish eventually continued as a duo
08:28under the name F&F
08:29before going on hiatus.
08:30Today,
08:31Do It To It still triggers
08:32instant Y2K-era nostalgia,
08:34while the sisters behind it
08:36are far less likely to get named.
08:38I don't know
08:39how much more
08:40I can take from you.
08:43You don't do the things you used to do.
08:46Number 13, 702.
08:48I don't want to go.
08:51I really need to know.
08:53Can we get it together?
08:55Las Vegas produced more than just showgirls.
08:57The city also gave us 702,
08:59a trio whose velvet smooth harmonies
09:01helped define late 90s R&B.
09:04Mila Williams,
09:05Irish Grinstead,
09:06and LaMisha Grinstead
09:06racked up genuine hits,
09:08including Get It Together,
09:09Where My Girl's At,
09:10which peaked at number four
09:12on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1999,
09:14and the Missy Elliott-assisted Stila.
09:16Follow, follow me,
09:17mini, mini, mini, mini,
09:19One, two, check it out.
09:22Let me, let me, let me, let me,
09:23let me, let me break this track.
09:24Their albums,
09:25No Doubt and Star
09:26both charted respectably.
09:27Yet somehow,
09:29702 rarely gets mentioned
09:30alongside TLC or SWV
09:32in retrospective conversations
09:34about the era.
09:34Their vocal chemistry
09:35was exceptional,
09:37their run was consistent,
09:38and their absence
09:39from the pop culture record
09:40feels like a genuine injustice.
09:42Someone fix that.
09:52Number 12,
09:53Brownstone.
10:01One listen to
10:03If You Love Me
10:04is enough to remember
10:05why Brownstone belonged
10:06in the 90s R&B conversation.
10:07The Los Angeles trio's
10:091995 debut
10:10from The Bottom Up
10:11was certified platinum
10:12and peaked at
10:13number 29
10:13on the Billboard 200.
10:15The album's second single
10:16If You Love Me
10:17reached number 4
10:18on Billboard's R&B chart
10:19and number 8
10:20on the Hot 100.
10:28The song also earned
10:30a Grammy nomination
10:30for Best R&B Performance
10:32by a duo or group
10:33with vocals.
10:34Brownstone released
10:35more music afterward,
10:36but their initial breakthrough
10:37remains their defining era.
10:39Today,
10:39their name is frequently
10:41overshadowed
10:41by bigger contemporaries,
10:43despite those rich harmonies
10:44and sophisticated productions
10:45aging remarkably well.
10:55Number 11,
10:57The Saturdays.
11:05Formed under
11:06Polydor's fascination records
11:08in 2007,
11:09The Saturdays entered
11:10British pop
11:10with the machinery
11:11of a major label
11:12girl group campaign
11:13already humming.
11:14They even toured
11:15with Girls Aloud
11:16on the Tangled Up tour
11:17before their own
11:18debut album arrived.
11:19Over the next several years,
11:21the group built
11:21an impressive UK chart record,
11:23scoring 11 top 10 singles
11:25before finally reaching
11:26number 1 in 2013
11:28with What About Us
11:29featuring Sean Paul.
11:38Their catalogue moved
11:39between polished pop,
11:41dance pop,
11:41and electro pop,
11:42while songs like
11:43Up, Issues,
11:44and Higher
11:44became era-defining
11:46radio fare.
11:47They sold millions
11:47of records,
11:48yet outside the UK,
11:50their once substantial footprint
11:51can feel surprisingly faint.
11:53That is some
11:54serious pop amnesia.
12:04Number 10,
12:05Nobody's Angel.
12:06Here is a group
12:08whose name you may
12:09or may not
12:09immediately recognize.
12:15But their dancey pop sound
12:17on girl-powered movie
12:18soundtracks is hard to miss.
12:19Underscoring movies
12:20from the late 90s
12:21and early 2000s,
12:22such as The Princess Diaries
12:23and The Parent Trap,
12:24seem to be a niche
12:25for this group.
12:32And for the time
12:33they were together,
12:34they were quite good at it.
12:35They even guest starred
12:36on an episode of
12:37Boy Meets World
12:38and in the TV movie
12:39Model Behavior.
12:40Though they were only together
12:41for a short time,
12:42their music will always
12:44ring out when we're
12:44feeling nostalgic.
12:49No. 9,
12:55Danity Cain.
12:56Born from MTV's
12:57Making the Band,
12:58Danity Cain went from
12:59reality show hopefuls
13:00to a No. 1 album
13:01remarkably quickly.
13:10Their 2006 self-titled
13:12debut opened
13:13to top the Billboard 200
13:14and was certified
13:15platinum by the RIAA.
13:17Its lead single
13:18Showstopper reached
13:19No. 8
13:19on the Billboard Hot 100.
13:21Two years later,
13:22Welcome to the Dollhouse
13:23also debuted
13:24at No. 1,
13:24while Damaged
13:25became their second
13:26top 10 hit,
13:27peaking at No. 10.
13:37By every metric,
13:39this group was built
13:40to last,
13:40but internal conflict,
13:42a messy dismissal
13:43of members by Sean Combs
13:44and an industry
13:45that moved fast
13:46torpedoed any
13:47long-term plans.
13:48Despite two chart-topping
13:50albums and several
13:51memorable singles,
13:52Danity Cain rarely
13:53gets mentioned today.
13:58No. 8
14:03M2M
14:04This duo started
14:05making music together
14:06when they were pre-teens.
14:18Marit Larsson
14:19and Marion Raven
14:20were first known
14:21as Marion and Marit
14:22in their native country
14:23of Norway,
14:23but after signing
14:24a record deal
14:25with Atlantic Records,
14:26they changed their name
14:27to M2M.
14:28and went on
14:29to release
14:29their most well-known
14:30song to date
14:31in Don't Say You Love Me.
14:37However,
14:37after their second album,
14:39the two sadly
14:39went their separate ways.
14:41Larsson later
14:41attributed this
14:42to the pair's
14:43progressively different tastes,
14:44stating that she
14:45wanted to make
14:46really good pop music
14:47and Marion
14:48wanted to go rock.
14:49And that is exactly
14:50what they did,
14:51putting out some
14:51pretty catchy solo work.
15:03They later reunited
15:05in 2024.
15:07Don't go there, baby.
15:09Not before I'm ready.
15:11Don't say
15:12your heart's in a hurry.
15:14Number 7.
15:15Black
15:15Who could forget
15:16the magic that was TLC
15:18and the tragic loss
15:19of Left Eye?
15:20Well, before she died,
15:21Left Eye found similar magic
15:22in this group,
15:23which she produced.
15:24Oh, baby,
15:25bring it all to me.
15:26Bring it home.
15:28Right from the start,
15:30Black proved themselves
15:30a force to be reckoned with.
15:32Their debut album
15:33went platinum,
15:34and they were named
15:34the 1999 Billboard
15:36fourth best new artist
15:37of that year.
15:46The following year,
15:47they guest starred
15:48as Gabrielle Union's
15:49backup in the fun
15:50and funny rom-com
15:51Bring It On.
15:52Unfortunately,
15:53just like TLC,
15:54they suffered from
15:54the tragic loss
15:55of a member.
15:56In 2012,
15:57Natina Reid died
15:58in a car accident,
15:59just as they were
16:00attempting a comeback.
16:15The story of Bewitched
16:17is a bit of a sad one.
16:18The Irish quartet
16:19was first brought together
16:20by a sisterly bond
16:21between two of its members
16:22and a love of singing.
16:31In 1997,
16:32they hit the international stage
16:34with hit single
16:35after slam hit single.
16:36However,
16:37for reasons unknown,
16:38after recording
16:39their third album,
16:40their record company
16:41decided not only
16:42to not release the record,
16:43but to drop the band
16:45altogether.
16:54Since 2012,
16:56though,
16:56the group has been
16:57making a slow comeback,
16:58going on tour
16:59with other underrated
17:00pop groups
17:01and releasing an EP.
17:10This Swedish group
17:11lost members
17:12and replaced them
17:13a few times
17:13over the years
17:14that they were active.
17:23Each version of the group
17:24put out some catchy earworms,
17:26such as
17:26Us Against the World
17:27from their first album
17:28and Famous
17:29from their latest.
17:37The music was appreciated
17:39by many the world over,
17:41breaking the top 20
17:42on a few charts
17:42with their debut single
17:44and opening for A-listers
17:45like Destiny's Child.
17:46Due to infighting,
17:48though,
17:48in 2011,
17:49the group went
17:50their separate ways
17:50for reasons unknown
17:51to the public
17:52and were allegedly
17:53no longer
17:54on speaking terms.
17:55It's a shame
17:56we won't ever get
17:57to press play
17:57on their new EP.
18:11Another UK-based group
18:12that gave the Spice Girls
18:13a run for their money,
18:14All Saints' single
18:15Never Ever
18:15is only seconded
18:17in that part of Europe
18:17in terms of sales
18:18by Wannabe.
18:27And we can easily hear why.
18:29You try not tapping
18:30your toes to those
18:31silky vocals
18:31paired with that
18:32rhythmic bass.
18:41Though their other singles
18:42did not do nearly as well,
18:44they still know
18:44how to sing a catchy tune.
18:46And despite two hiatuses
18:47and their still
18:48quietly thriving career,
18:49the girls clearly
18:50never lost a beat.
18:59Number 3,
19:003LW
19:02Saved by the fans.
19:03Briefly, at least.
19:10Three Little Women,
19:11or as they were
19:11better known,
19:123LW,
19:13quickly rose to fame
19:14with their debut single
19:15No More,
19:16Baby I'ma Do Right,
19:17and would have dropped
19:18just as quickly
19:19had it not been
19:19for their adoring public.
19:21In the lead-up
19:21to their second album,
19:23rumors began to circulate
19:24that their label
19:24was going to drop them.
19:26But a fan campaign
19:27forced Epic Records
19:28to reconsider.
19:34Sadly though,
19:35one member would soon
19:36leave the group
19:37and the other two
19:37would eventually join
19:38Disney's The Cheetah Girls.
19:40And so,
19:40their final album
19:41was never released.
19:49Number 2,
19:50Eden's Crush.
19:51Let us take you back
19:52to a time before
19:53competition shows
19:54like American Idol
19:55and The Voice
19:56were on every TV channel.
19:57The early 2000s,
19:59a time when a show
20:00called Pop Stars
20:01came into our living rooms
20:02by way of the WB.
20:03This competition show
20:04sorted through
20:05hundreds upon hundreds
20:06of hopefuls,
20:07cutting them down
20:07to a group of five
20:08that would become
20:09Eden's Crush.
20:20unfortunately,
20:21it was not meant to be.
20:22After only one album
20:24and with their debut
20:25single topping charts,
20:26their record company
20:27closed down
20:28and the band broke up.
20:29Fret not though,
20:30group member
20:31Nicole Scherzinger
20:32went on to form
20:32The Pussycat Dolls.
20:34Don't you wish
20:35your girlfriend
20:35was raw like me?
20:37Don't you wish
20:39your girlfriend
20:39was fun like me?
20:41Don't you?
20:44Are you a musician,
20:46singer, producer,
20:46or band?
20:47Sound Mojo
20:48is committing
20:49$50,000
20:50to turn our demos
20:51into real recordings.
20:55Earn $1,000 per song
20:56or $500
20:57plus a 50% revenue share.
21:00Think you can bring
21:01our music to life
21:01and make it even better?
21:03Apply to the Sound Mojo
21:05label fund today.
21:11Number 1.
21:12Dream.
21:13In 1998,
21:15Sean Combs' record label
21:16Bad Boy Records
21:17signed a girl group
21:18that would come to be known
21:19around the world
21:20as Dream.
21:28The group of four teens
21:30was hand-picked
21:30by a talent scout
21:31and they quickly rose
21:33to international fame.
21:34Their songs about
21:35the darker side of love,
21:36underscored with upbeat tunes,
21:38spoke to the masses.
21:39Their singles,
21:40Loves You Not
21:40and This Is Me
21:41took top spots
21:42on several charts.
21:43However,
21:44the band soon lost traction
21:45on the charts
21:46and in 2003,
21:47they were dropped
21:48from Bad Boy.
21:49Nevertheless,
21:50when one of their songs
21:50comes on,
21:51you are sure
21:52to remember the melody
21:53and their lyrics
21:54are just as relevant today.
22:03Which forgotten girl groups
22:04were forgotten
22:05even by us?
22:06Shout them out
22:07in the comments.
22:07To be into what
22:10he's got
22:11And that's me.
22:12He loves me.
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