As the Spice Girls dropped out of sight from the Toronto Air Canada Centre stage on February 26, 2008, the shrieks of the crowd rocked its halls in response to the British quintet’s still undiminished power. That final date of the brief, but highly successful Return of the Spice Girls Tour left fans—casual and loyal—yearning for more; as such, further reunion rumors percolated in the decade to come.

And now, finally, a second formal reformation of the Spice Girls is in full swing. As we speak, dates have been added to the Spice World – 2019 UK Tour and the buzz is palpable—there’s also been a pinch of drama too.

The latter element centers on the Spice Girls once again standing as a quartet for the second time in the group’s lifespan; Victoria Beckham has opted out of reuniting with her fellow Spice Girls, allowing them to move forward without her. It is in this way that the Spice Girls story has stayed true to its ethos of eschewing any sort of conventional path. It’s made for one amazing journey for these five women since they entered the collective popular music consciousness in June of 1996.

And, as usual, what tends to be left out of the critical conversation about these women and their travels is the music. The Spice Girls’ conflicts with the truculent music press have improved over the years, but it continues to be a stumbling block for the British pop superpower. With the tittle tattle of a possible fourth album from Brown, Bunton, Chisholm and Horner on the wind, the quintet will again go head-to-head with a softer, if still slightly skeptical music journalistic vanguard. History tells us that the Girls (and their music) are up to the challenge.

This brief overview of the Spice Girls discography—collectively and individually—draws attention back to the heart of the group’s legend: the music.

SPICE GIRLS | Spice (1996) | Buy