Spice Girls: Where Are Ginger, Posh, Scary, Sporty, And Baby Now?

This feature discusses domestic violence and eating disorders.

Whether you're a fan or not, it's undeniable that the Spice Girls will go down as one of the greatest girl groups in history. Tracks like "Spice Up Your Life" still make a room full of people dance, singing along to the memorized lyrics in so many of our minds. The British girl band is widely recognized as a trailblazer in the world of pop music, at a time when many music producers didn't believe they had it in them to become a hit. As reported by the BBC, even the group's own record label hated their debut single, "Wannabe," and its accompanying music video. Some radio stations even refused to play the track at the time. 

But the Spice Girls believed in themselves and their first funky single — and it paid off. "Wannabe" proved to be the track that launched them to stardom, lasting seven weeks at the number one spot in the U.K. and four weeks at the top in the United States. Victoria Beckham, Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm, and Geri Horner (née Halliwell) were instant stars, going on to win dozens of awards on both sides of the Atlantic for their hit records. 

Their iconic legacy as a girl group lives on in pop culture despite the decades that have passed since they first skyrocketed to fame in the late 90s. It's been a hot zig-a-zig-ah since these girls spiced up our lives, so we're taking a look at where Ginger, Posh, Scary, Sporty, and Baby Spice are now.

Before she became known as "Ginger Spice", Geri Horner (née Halliwell) traveled around Europe, bouncing from job to job, taking on positions as varied as a topless model, a TV hostess, and an aerobics teacher before a newspaper ad recruiting girls for a band changed her life. In 2011, the former Spice Girl could add yet another job title to her long resume, when she designed a swimsuit line for the British high street store, Next.

Speaking to the Daily Mail about "Geri by Next," she shared that her vision was to create swimwear that flattered a variety of body types, stating, "This is a collection that makes you look good and feel fabulous." On the day of the launch, she even received support from her fellow bandmate and fashion entrepreneur, Victoria Beckham. In a since-deleted tweet (via Daily Star), she wrote, "Good luck today, Geri with your launch!! Hope it goes well!" 

The former Spice Girl pulled it off, and at a reasonable price point too. Pieces in the collection ranged from about £18 (approximately $22) to the most expensive item topping out at £50 (about $62). She took her line a step further by designing a variety of different coverups as well, from breezy strapless dresses to kaftans. 

Melanie Brown, commonly known by fans as Scary Spice, has had quite a rocky love life in the public eye. The artist is most famously linked to her ex, Eddie Murphy, and the two share a daughter, Angel Iris, together. The former high-profile couple met in 2006 in Beverly Hills not long after the actor had split with his ex-wife, Nicole Mitchell. Brown discussed their whirlwind romance in her memoir, "Brutally Honest" (via the Mirror), where she wrote, "It was as if a 2,000-volt electric current had passed between us."

Sadly, their relationship fizzled out almost as quickly as it began, but not before igniting a paternity battle over their shared child. At the end of 2006, Murphy confirmed to the Dutch TV show, "RTL Boulevard" (via TMZ), that he and the former Spice Girl had split up. He also cast doubts as to the paternity of their unborn child, quipping, "I don't know whose child that is until it comes out and has a blood test. You shouldn't jump to conclusions." Speaking to Essence in 2020, Brown claimed that she only realized they had broken up when she read about him making this statement.

In 2009, he was ordered to pay around $25,000 a month in child support in addition to health insurance and education after paternity tests proved he was, in fact, the father. In 2020, the drama continued with court documents obtained by Us Weekly showing that Brown was requesting an increase in child support payments for their teenage daughter.

"Posh Spice" aka Victoria Beckham, is known for a few things — being a former Spice Girl, marrying soccer legend David Beckham, and, of course, for her iconic career in high fashion. While the Brit may have taken the stage in front of millions of fans all over the world decades ago, she's just as celebrated for her success outside the music industry. After the Spice Girls disbanded in 2001, Victoria went on to release her own solo album, but her most notable work was her debut in the world of fashion. Her lengthy resume also includes modeling on the runway at London Fashion Week and Milan Fashion week, as well as once serving as an ambassador for Dolce and Gabbana. She's even tried her hand at fashion editing by styling Katie Holmes for Harper's Bazaar.

In 2004, she made her debut with a denim collection dubbed "VB Rocks." She's continued to expand on her fashion credentials ever since, broadening her apparel offerings, while delving into accessories, fragrances, and even beauty. Having displayed her own line at New York Fashion Week, Victoria continues to design for her own luxury line "Victoria Beckham", which was founded in 2008. However, in 2022, outlets like the Mirror reported that the company was estimated to be in debt to the tune of £53.9 million. Still, the Victoria Beckham Spring 2023 collection at least received a solid review from Vogue a year later. During its preview, Victoria aptly quipped, "Things feel perfectly complicated."

It's not uncommon for girl bands to disband and try their hand at their respective solo careers and such was the case for the Spice Girls. In 1998, Geri Horner was the first to break away from the band at the height of their success. She released three solo albums in total, with singles like "Look at Me," "Mi Chico Latino", and "Bag It Up" faring well in her home country. 

Victoria Beckham released a solo album with moderate success, but she had better luck with her fashion career. Melanie Brown went on to release two studio albums of her own, leading to a single number-one U.K. hit, and three U.K. top-10 hits. Emma Bunton, better known as "Baby Spice", released four studio albums, earning herself a number-one hit on the U.K. charts in 2001 with her single, "What Took You So Long?" off her debut album. 

Meanwhile, Melanie Chisholm, who went by "Sporty Spice", arguably went on to achieve the most successful solo career with eight studio albums. As of this writing, she's also the Spice Girl with the longest tenure as a solo artist, having sold over 20 million records as a solo artist, scoring two number-one singles, and six top-ten singles between 1999 and 2020.

It's no secret that Melanie Chisholm had an impressive career as a solo artist following her time as a Spice Girl. In 2004, after the release of her first solo album, she failed to come to an agreement with her label, Virgin, about the direction of her solo career. She decided to take matters into her own hands and start her own label instead. Per the Southport Reporter, "Red Girl Records" was named after the club color of her favorite soccer team, Liverpool F.C., and also because of her habit of blushing. The label officially debuted with the release of her sophomore album "Beautiful Intentions," in 2005. Since then, the star has enjoyed a reasonable amount of success, including her single, "Rock Me," being chosen as the theme song for the 2011 Women's World Cup. 

As she explained to Paper in 2018, being a solo artist — and particularly one with her own label — has always been a liberating but daunting pursuit. Regardless, she's always pushing forward. "You can only go where your heart leads you," she mused. "If it works — great. If it doesn't, it doesn't." As for the future, she has no plans to stop creating. "This is when l am happiest — when l am on stage being myself, expressing myself the way l want to, and connecting with the fans," she told the magazine. "... l just want to keep making music."

The Spice Girls brought their spice center stage when Melanie Brown and Melanie Chisholm both competed on separate seasons of "Dancing With The Stars." Brown had an impressive run on the hit series, making it all the way to the Season 5 finale before losing out on the viewer's vote after a performance of the Mamba. In the judge's eyes, she and her dance partner, Maksim Chmerkovskiy were the best pair, scoring a total of 85 points to the 84 points scored by the winning duo of Helio Castroneves and his coach, Julianne Hough. The former Spice Girl was devastated by her loss, saying during the episode that a win would have meant the world to her. "To be embraced by America would be ... I would actually be speechless," Brown admitted, per Evening Standard.

Meanwhile, Chisholm competed on Season 30 of the show alongside her dance partner, Gleb Savchenko. The duo placed eleventh in their season, with the singer admitting she was crushed about her early departure. "I'm really, really disappointed, absolutely gutted," she told reporters, per Page Six. "We just did not want to go home at this point. We really thought and hoped we'd have a little bit longer in the competition." Savenchko speculated that having to dance second-to-last could have meant less time for the public to vote for them. "Maybe it was that, but also, it is what it is. Everyone is amazing," he confessed.

The Spice Girls know how to spice up a headline — especially when it involves a sex scandal within the girl group. During a 2019 appearance on "Piers Morgan's Life Stories," Melanie Brown claimed that she and Geri Horner once had sex. "She is going to hate me for this because she is all posh in a country house but it wasn't a 'thing,'" Brown shared. "... We just giggled at it and that was it. We were best friends. It just happened."

Horner didn't take too kindly to her bandmate alleging intimate details about her past, and her representatives shot down the story. "What has been reported recently is simply not true and has been very hurtful to her family," her spokesperson, Alan Edwards told USA Today. "It has been very disappointing to read about all these rumors again."

The timing of the alleged sex scandal hitting the press could not have been more awkward for the bandmates. Brown and Horner were set to begin rehearsals for a reunion tour shortly after the news broke. The "Dancing With The Stars" alum told the Daily Mail that it put an awkward strain on their otherwise close friendship, but they were able to work things out. "Geri is different. She's married, she's got kids, she's not the same outrageous Ginger she used to be," she explained. "That took a bit of getting used to for me."

In the decades since their hit song "Wannabe" launched them to superstardom, the Spice Girls became Spice Moms, with each member welcoming children to the world.  Melanie Brown was the first to give birth, celebrating the arrival of a daughter, Phoenix, in 1999 with her then-husband Jimmy Gulzar. She went on to have two more daughters, Angel with Eddie Murphy in 2007, and daughter Madison with film producer Stephen Belafonte in 2011. 

Victoria Beckham was the next in line to become a mother, giving birth to her first child with David Beckham, a son called Brooklyn, in 1999. She went on to have four kids in total with the soccer star, welcoming three sons, and one daughter. Meanwhile, Geri Horner shares her daughter, Bluebell with her ex-partner, Sacha Gervasi, and she also shares a son with her husband, Christian Horner. The former Spice Girl is also a stepmom to Christian's daughter, Beverley Allen. She admitted to Glamour that she is open to the idea of more kids and would even consider adoption. 

As for Melanie Chisholm, she shares her daughter, Scarlett with her ex-husband, Thomas Starr. During an appearance on "Desert Island Discs" (via Daily Mail), she even admitted that her daughter gave her the strength to split from the child's father, upon realizing that she didn't want to raise her daughter in an unhappy marriage. Emma Bunton, on the other hand, shares two sons with her husband, Jade Jones.

In 2017, Melanie Brown took her former nanny to court after alleging that the staff member had an affair with her then-husband, Stephen Belafonte. According to court documents obtained by People, a Los Angeles judge ruled in favor of the former Spice Girl, granting her a permanent restraining order against Lorraine Gilles for five years. 

The judge had originally ordered that the former nanny was to remain 100 yards away from the artist, as well as not take any of Brown's items from a storage locker under Gille's name. Brown claimed the locker in question contained a variety of sentimental items including Spice Girls memorabilia as well as sensitive materials such as sex tapes featuring the "Wannabe" singer.

As reported by the Scottish Daily Mail, in 2019 Gilles won a $1.8 million defamation lawsuit against Brown, after the performer had made claims about her being a sex worker and that Belafonte had gotten the worker pregnant. For her part, Gilles denied the accusations and claimed that during her employment, she and the star had engaged in a sexual relationship that lasted for seven years.

Brown previously alleged that Belafonte had been physically and emotionally abusive during their ten-year relationship — including allegations that he forced her to make over 20 sex tapes, per The Guardian. The film producer has always denied these claims. As of 2021, Gilles appeared to still be in contact with Belafonte, with paparazzi snapping her doing a FaceTime call with her former boss. 

If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.

Here's the story from A to Z — if you want to get with me ... read my autobiography. The Spice Girls may have reached the peak of their success decades ago, but the ladies still have a lot to say. Each of the band members has gone on to write a book about their respective experiences in the limelight. 

In 1999, Geri Horner published her autobiography, "If Only," shortly after her decision to leave the band. But the pop superstar also went on to become a successful children's book author. In 2008, she released six books as part of her "Ugenia Lavender" series. Fourteen years later, she then signed a two-book deal with Scholastic UK for more children's tales, starting with, "Rosie Frost and the Falcon Queen," about an orphan girl with extraordinary powers. Though Horner is the only one to delve into children's books, all the Spice Girls went on to become authors. 

Victoria Beckham debuted her own autobiography, "Learning to Fly" in 2001 along with a personal fashion guide titled, "That Extra Half an Inch: Hair, Heels, and Everything in Between" five years later. In 2018, Melanie Brown then released her memoir, "Brutally Honest" which detailed her difficult past in abusive relationships amidst her highly public life. And in 2022, Melanie Chisholm released her own memoir called "The Sporty One: My Life as a Spice Girl." Meanwhile, Emma Bunton took a different approach, with a 2021 book on parenting, titled, "Mama You Got This."

Melanie Brown and Emma Bunton made their Netflix debut in 2022 when they appeared in Season 4 of "The Circle." The popular reality show sees competitors presenting either as themselves, or other people, and deceiving others to befriend, flirt, or strategize their way to a $100,000 cash prize. Playing as a team under the guise of a fake contestant called Jared, the two weren't in the running to win any prize money. Instead, if they succeeded in deceiving their fellow players, then an additional $50,000 would be added to the final cash prize — luckily for the winner, they were successful in catfishing everyone. 

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Executive Producer Toni Ireland shared that the two had been fans of the show, with Brown posting about watching it on Instagram. Ireland reached out to the pair who were keen to live the experience but didn't want to be on the show the entire time. "The Circle" also offered a glimpse into the close friendship of the Spice Girls duo, with their back-and-forth playing out as they created their fake character. "They were just a joy. They were so much fun and they had such a laugh together" Ireland shared. "... It felt really special, didn't it? And as a Spice Girls fan myself, I was like, 'I can't believe I'm watching this.'"

Emma Bunton's love life has always made headlines. Although she married her long-time partner, Damage boy band member Jade Jones in 2021, the two had previously had a rocky start to their relationship. They first broke up in 1999, after meeting a year earlier. They got back together in 2000, split two years later, and have remained together since 2004. 

In 2013, another British boy band member, Lee Brennan of 911, claimed that the two had enjoyed a brief New Years fling in 1997. "I remember Emma and I going for a walk at midnight and there were no paps or anything so we were really relaxed," he told The Sun. "... It was a really fun romance but it just kind of fizzled out." As Bunton told Express, there had been countless rumors about her love life during the band's peak — but there was one false report she especially liked. "I was seeing Leonardo DiCaprio at one point, which was quite a good one," she said.

Post-Spice Girls, she was rumored to have dated the soccer star, Rio Ferdinand between 1999 and 2000, something she has never confirmed or denied. Meanwhile, in 2003 Justin Timberlake was reported as having blabbed to the tabloids about his brief relationship with Baby Spice. Bunton was said to be furious, telling the Daily Record, "A lady should never kiss and tell and neither should a gentleman. That's all I have to say about him." 

The Spice Girls had more spice to give to their fans. The ladies of the iconic British girl group made their way back onto the stage together, much to the excitement of their beloved fans. Their first reunion tour, "The Return of the Spice Girls" was announced in 2007, and included all the women from the group. Tickets for the iconic show were in such high demand that their debut London date was said to have sold out within 38 seconds.

The band reunited once again in 2019 for a "Spice World" U.K. tour. The six-stop spectacle was the first time the women had been back together since they performed at the closing ceremony for the London Olympic Games in 2012. Due to her own career commitments, Victoria Beckham was sadly missing from the tour. "I had so much fun being in the Spice Girls," she said on "Watch What Happens Live." "But I think now with everything else I've got going on — with my fashion, and my beauty line, four children — I couldn't commit to that." 

As to whether another world tour with all the members of the band could happen, Melanie Brown told BBC Radio 2 (via NME) that there's still hope for another round. "I wish I could say there were shows coming. But I can't, sadly. We do want to do shows, they're just not arranged yet." She said, "We're constantly talking trying to work it out and make it work for everybody ... that's my number one wish."

In addition to being a Spice Girl, a mother, and a successful children's book author — Geri Horner has also dabbled with acting. In 2003, she enjoyed a cameo in "Sex and the City," as an old pal of Samantha Jones. As she told Attutide, the 33-second role meant to a lot to her. "I had been studying acting in LA," she said. "I love comedy and they asked me to audition, which I did, and I got the role. I absolutely loved it, especially being part of a show that we all adore." Six years later she scored an equally brief, comedic appearance as the mom of a young Chev Chelios in "Crank 2: High Voltage." 

In 2022, it was announced that the artist formerly known as Ginger Spice was cast in "Gran Turismo," a live-action adaptation of the popular racing game. Directed by Neill Blomkamp, the film boasted an impressive roster of talent including stars like David Harbour and Orlando Bloom. Geri's role in the racing film is fitting, given that her husband, Christian Horner, is a former racer and is the team principal of Red Bull's Formula One Team. 

Since the Spice Girls disbanded, Melanie Chisholm has opened up about the toll that fame took on her body issues. The former Spice Girl admitted that her experiences with an eating disorder began early on in her singing career in 1994 when the group were known as "Touch." Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2022, the star claimed that managers made comments to her like, "I'm surprised you can do backflips with thighs like that." It led her to adopt extreme eating habits while undergoing an intensive performance regime. "I started with the elimination of food groups. Back then, fat was the enemy. And then, of course, the fear of carbs came in," Chisholm confessed. "I got to the point where, for a couple of years, I was predominantly eating fruit and vegetables and that was it."

Her radical eating regime eventually led to extreme binging and the issues of shame that came along with it, before she sought professional help in 2000. She was prescribed anti-depressants after she was diagnosed with depression, anorexia, a binge-eating disorder, and agoraphobia. She hopes to shine a light on her past in the hopes of warning young, aspiring artists. "I never want to look back on that time negatively, but it is important for me to tell the difficult parts of my past," she admitted. "Our culture has changed so much and so many young people are hungry for fame. And I just want them to be prepared. It's not plain sailing."

If you need help with an eating disorder, or know someone who is, help is available. Visit the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).

Fans will be happy to know that the Spice Girls remain close friends to this day. In 2022, Emma Bunton told Radio X that the ladies had planned to go back on tour following their 2019 revival but that the COVID-19 pandemic derailed any potential plans. "I'm dying to do it again," Bunton commented. Melanie Brown seconded that notion, teasing plans for a 2023 world tour to The Sun.

Despite some shake-ups and interpersonal drama in the past, the ladies of the Spice Girls are all seemingly on good terms. "We are probably closer now than we have been in a very long time – and that includes Victoria," Melanie Chisholm told the Mirror in 2020. She also revealed that she's up for a reunion tour in the future with her former bandmates. "Myself and Mel B keep banging on about it, and we do all talk about it and it is something we would all want to do," she admitted.

Bunton revealed on her Sunday Heart FM radio show (via Hello Magazine) that the ladies met up for a socially-distanced hike together during the Coronavirus pandemic. It was a stark contrast to the glam stage outfits they'd rocked together just a year earlier. "We were in [rubber boots], walking in the rain ... Yes, something you don't see every day — five Spice Girls in their [rain boots]!"