WW L L INTERVIEW
MELANIE C: BACK IN THE SWEAT
Thirty years after the awesome Spice Girls changed British pop, Melanie C is entering another new era. Her latest album, SWEAT, reconnects her with the dance music and rave culture she loved before fame, bringing together decades of influences with the energy of her DJ sets and live performances. As she prepares to return to Liverpool on album release day and embark on a major UK tour, she talks about reclaiming her younger self, embracing Sporty Spice and why she remains as creatively hungry as ever.
SWEAT feels like a very liberated record. What changed creatively this time? So many things have changed. Every album I’ ve ever made, it’ s really been a reflection of that moment in my life. And over the last eight years I’ ve been DJ-ing. I’ ve been lucky enough to play in so many great festivals all over the world, as well as playing in Ibiza. For the last five years I’ ve been playing at Pacha. And it just really reignited a passion that I have for dance music.
And it’ s funny because I discovered raving when I was about 17 and I was going out, I was in Spain with a group of friends on holiday and we were like, what is this music? Everybody’ s so free when they’ re dancing and we were just completely hooked from the get-go. So when we got back to London we were like, right, we need to find our people, we’ ve got to find out where these raves are happening.
And also I’ ve just been able to kind of reclaim who I was before I was a Spice Girl. I’ ve had so many influences through my life, I’ ve been so lucky, worked with so many amazing people, and this felt like the time to really put all of those pieces together.
And I really wanted to bring my work as a solo artist closer to what I play as a DJ. I play multi-genre house when I’ m out. So it was just nice to play with all of those different things and find my own voice within that.
Did being a DJ change the way you approached making the album? I definitely approached things differently like the perspective of a DJ is very different to the perspective of an artist, and I really wanted the way I wanted the music to sound, the way I wanted the music to make you feel. And I was also really conscious that as a live performer I’ m very energetic and I’ ve got loads of confidence and quite a lot of attitude, and when I’ m in the studio I’ m a very different beast. But I thought I really have to create the music that I want to bring to life live on stage. So it was really important for me to find that person when I was in the studio.
And you know, I wanted to also have some fun. DJing has brought so much joy into my life in the last few years I’ ve been out there playing live shows, festivals, alongside DJing, and I’ ve just been having the best time. And I really wanted that to translate onto this album.
And I’ m so proud to be a Spice Girl and to be Sporty Spice and I completely embrace that. It’ s such a huge part of who I am. And it’ s funny, in interviews sometimes people will ask, often they will ask, oh you know how do you feel that you were called Sporty Spice and you had to live up to this sporty persona, and it’ s like I don’ t have to live up to anything, you know, I can’ t- I’ ve tried to not be her and it’ s impossible, you know. I am very energetic, I’ m very sporty, and it was just really fun to look at the album in that way as well and think about it lyrically. And obviously a song like Sweat to me felt like the perfect introduction to the album, it has that energy, it’ s a little bit tongue in cheek, it’ s like a fitness banger, and that was, you know a big part of what I wanted to create in the thread of this album.
Were you thinking about the dancefloor when you were making it? Yeah, 100 %. This album, I think more than anything, I wasn’ t thinking so much about people sitting at home having a listen, it was about them being on the dancefloor. It was about wanting to motivate and inspire people either on the dancefloor or in the gym. I think it’ s a good album probably to listen to with your mates while you’ re getting ready for going out. But, yeah for me, something like Undefeated Champion, I can’ t not smile when I hear this song. It’ s kind of one of my anthems of self-empowerment, you know, picking yourself up when things have gone to sh * t. It’ s something we can all identify with, right? We all need a little bit of motivation.
You’ re in Liverpool on release day. What will it mean to launch the album back home? Well we’ re in Liverpool on release day which is, Honestly, I’ m like I don’ t know why I’ ve never done it before. It’ s such a great thing to do, to go home. It’ s a city where, you know, it’ s a very proud city and they, you know as a city of people they, they really embrace you and look after you and you know celebrate you.
So I’ m really excited to be there to do that. It feels very appropriate that I should go home and you know and thank my city for how, how supportive they’ ve been over the years of me as a Spice Girl and a solo artist. So yeah, that’ s going to be pretty special. And there’ s so many cities and towns, you know that we’ re visiting some places I don’ t think I’ ve ever been professionally before. So I’ m looking
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