Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide, and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music history in the 1999 edition of The Guinness Book of Records. They are known for commercially successful pop songs with 'highbrow' influences from classical music, opera, film, fashion and literature.
Bananarama are an English pop group formed in London in 1980. The group, originally a trio, consisted of friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey, and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when the trio became a duo. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 32 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
ABC are an English pop band that originated in Sheffield in 1980, evolving from the earlier ensemble Vice Versa. The band's classic formation featured Martin Fry as the lead vocalist, Mark White on guitar and keyboards, Stephen Singleton playing the saxophone, and David Palmer behind the drums.
Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop girl group that was created through the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. In 2012, the group was named as the United Kingdom's biggest selling girl group of the 21st century so far, with over 4.3 million singles sales and 4 million albums sold in the UK. The group achieved a string of twenty top-ten singles on the UK singles chart, including four number ones. They also achieved seven BPI certified albums, two of which debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. They have been nominated for five Brit Awards, winning Best Single in 2009 for "The Promise".
Nadine Elizabeth Louise Coyle is a Northern Irish singer. In 2002, she was selected as a member of Girls Aloud, a pop girl group created through ITV's reality competition show Popstars: The Rivals. The group went on to receive large success, achieving a string of 20 consecutive UK top ten singles, two UK number one albums, five consecutive platinum selling studio albums, and receiving nominations for five BRIT Awards, winning Best Single in 2009 for "The Promise".
Anne Lilia Berge Strand, known professionally as Annie, is a Norwegian singer, songwriter, record producer and DJ. She began her recording career in 1999 with the underground hit single "The Greatest Hit" and gained international acclaim, particularly from music bloggers, for her debut album Anniemal (2004).
Xenomania is an English songwriting and production team founded by Brian Higgins and based in Kent. Formed by Higgins with his Creative Director Miranda Cooper and Business Director Sarah Stennett of First Access Entertainment, Xenomania has written and produced for artists such as Cher, Kylie Minogue, Dannii Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Pet Shop Boys, The Saturdays and Sugababes. In particular, all but one of Girls Aloud's studio albums have been entirely written and produced by Xenomania. Sugababes' "Round Round" and Girls Aloud's "Sound of the Underground" have been credited with reshaping British pop music for the 2000s. Gabriella Cilmi's "Sweet About Me" and Girls Aloud's "The Promise" were named Best Single at the ARIA Music Awards of 2008 and the 2009 BRIT Awards, respectively.
What Will the Neighbours Say? is the second studio album by English-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud. It was released in the United Kingdom on 29 November 2004 by Polydor Records. Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania were enlisted to produce the entire album, allowing for more inventive ideas. What Will the Neighbours Say? explores various subgenres of pop music.
Sound of the Underground is the debut studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, formed through the ITV television series Popstars: The Rivals. It was released in Ireland on 23 May 2003, in the United Kingdom and Europe on 26 May 2003, and reissued on 17 November 2003 through Polydor. Girls Aloud worked with a variety of musicians and producers on Sound of the Underground, which was largely inspired by 1980s music. Comparisons were made with artists such as Bananarama, The Bangles, Blondie and Spice Girls.
"The Show" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud for their second studio album, What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). It was released by Polydor Records on 28 June 2004, as the lead single from the album. The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Lisa Cowling, Jon Shave, and Tim Powell. The synth rhythm, composed by Shave, represents a change in musical direction from the band's previous releases. "The Show" is an uptempo dance-pop, electropop and Eurodance song with elements of the 1990 rave records.
Fascination Records is a United Kingdom-based record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as an imprint of Polydor Records. The label was launched in spring of 2006, and is managed by former TOTP Magazine editor Peter Loraine.
"Whole Lotta History" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their third studio album Chemistry (2005). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Described as "a lush ballad", "Whole Lotta History" was slightly remixed and released as a single in March 2006. It continued Girls Aloud's string of hits by becoming their twelfth consecutive single to chart within the top ten on the UK Singles Chart.
Brick & Lace are a Jamaican-American dancehall/R&B musical duo consisting of sisters Nyanda and Nailah Thorbourne. According to Billboard, their name reflects both the tough and soft sides of femininity.
"Left My Heart in Tokyo" is a song by British girl group Mini Viva, co-written by Norwegian singer Annie and French remixer Fred Falke and produced by Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania. The song was released as Mini Viva's debut single in September 2009. NME called the song "the catchiest single of 2009." The single was originally released as a 10-inch vinyl single in December 2008 on World's Finest Records, featuring two mixes by Fred Falke.
"I Wish" is a single by English pop duo Mini Viva, written and produced by Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania. The song was released as Mini Viva's second single in December 2009. The promo single of "I Wish" contains remixes by Cahill and Paul Harris.
Francesca Rose Connolly is an English singer from Helmshore. She was a member of the groups Mini Viva, who had a No. 7 hit with "Left My Heart in Tokyo", and M.O, with whom she had a No. 18 hit with "Who Do You Think Of?".
"One Touch" is a song by English female pop duo Mini Viva, written and produced by Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania. The song was released as Mini Viva's third and final single on 9 May 2010. Remixes from Wideboys, Christian TV and Tom Neville were also commissioned. The single failed to make the UK top 100.
Tim Powell, born Timothy Martin Powell, is a British songwriter, producer and mixer. Powell was a member of the writing and production house, Xenomania, for fourteen years. His first hit "All I Wanna Do" for Dannii Minogue peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart in 1997. In his fourteen years at Xenomania, Powell contributed to hit records such as "Hole in the Head" and "Round Round" by Sugababes, "Call the Shots" by Girls Aloud and "Love etc." by Pet Shop Boys.
"All Fired Up" is a song by British-Irish girl group The Saturdays, released as the second single from their third studio album, On Your Radar (2011). The single was released on 4 September 2011 by Polydor Records. The song was written by Tim Deal, Brian Higgins, Matt Gray, Annie Yuill, Miranda Cooper, MNEK, Xenomania and Space Cowboy. The song was also produced by Brian Higgins and Xenomania, and was recorded at Xenomania. Described by critics as an "anthemic dance banger", the electropop song was inspired by the music of Rihanna and Britney Spears, and was noted for its "synth dance beat". The track received its first airplay on BBC Radio 1 on 22 July 2011, when Scott Mills aired it on his Ready for the Weekend. The remix EP was released with five different remixes.
M.O are an English girl group consisting of members Annie Ashcroft and Chanal Benjilali, and previously Frankee Connolly until her departure in June 2017 and Nadine Samuels until her departure in 2020. The group was formed in 2012 by the members themselves, after their previous groups Mini Viva and Duchess had disbanded. Starting out on independent label Operator Records, they have been signed to Polydor Records since early 2016. On 19 October 2020, Nadine Samuels confirmed her departure from the group.
