James R | On 02, Aug 2016

A lot happened 20 years ago. Take That broke up. England reached the Euros semi-finals. Independence Day’ was in the cinemas. And Wannabe was released by the Spice Girls.

Two decades later, we may still be playing Pokemon, but music has changed significantly – and the Spice Girls, and Girl Power, played a big part in that. And so, to mark the 20th anniversary of the group’s debut single, BBC Music has released a new documentary looking back at the band exclusively on iPlayer.

Spice Girls Superfans, released yesterday, speaks with current musicians and DJs about how the band influenced them and music in general. Narrated by Edith Bowman, the programme sees Jess Glynne, MØ, Nadine Coyle (Girls Aloud), Kimberly Wyatt (Pussycat Dolls) , Alexandra Burke, M.O, Foxes plus BBC DJs Clara Amfo and Scott Mills talk about their childhood obsessions with the Spice Girls.

As well as celebrating the group’s first number one, Spice Girls Superfans follows their rise to stardom – from Spiceworld – The Movie to meeting Nelson Mandela and Prince Charles – to the goodbyes they said to band members.

James Stirling, Editor, BBC Music says: “The Spice Girls are a pop music phenomenon. Spice Girls Superfans offers a fascinating insight into the lasting effect they had on the artists of today. So many of today’s pop starts cite them as an influence and I’m glad we can bring them together in our BBC iPlayer exclusive.”

Spice Girls Superfans’ is a BBC Studios Production and is part of BBC Music’s exclusive BBC iPlayer commissions, which over the last year has included a wide range of special short films for BBC iPlayer, including Steve Davis: Snookerstar DJ, Amy Winehouse in her Own Words, James Bay: Like a Rolling Stone’ and Festival Pass with Craig David. Lift Music, where famous musicians surprise their fans with an unforgettable lift ride, is also currently available on the BBC iPlayer.

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