Wonder Girls vs Spice Girls

Rival Riffs
September 23, 2009

Can the Korean pop sensations top the Brit pop icons? Which girl group will land on top? Time to place your bets. Forget critics wielding words like arpeggiated and capriccio, a quick look at the size of their fan databases reveals the undeniable - both the Spice Girls and the Wonder Girls are musical heavyweights. Any 15-year-old girl will attest to it. Who between them owns the title belt is another matter. The competitors On one corner are five of the sassiest women of the ‘90s. Each stand at approximately 5’10, thanks to 6-inch platform heels. Their signature move is the butt-pinch – finger death-grips even English princes cannot escape. On the other corner are five of the cutest women of contemporary pop. The tallest of them stands at a petite 5’4 and one suspects that measurement already includes heel height. All five are Asian Pose black-belters capable of reducing anyone to incoherent baby talk.
Round 1 It’s the Spice Girls who deliver the first blow, and it’s a strong one. Girl-anthem ‘Wannabe’ effortlessly shattered through the 1997 US music charts, proving the girls were anything but. This massive Billboard attack was quickly followed by a slew of other hits, and within the same year, they debuted with Spice. They also managed to acquire 20 sponsorship deals and release their sophomore effort, Spice World. Twelve years later, the Wonder Girls strike with the single ‘Nobody But You’ - a Last Song Syndrome missile so powerful it went beyond Asia and landed on US shores. Weeks after, the World Wide Web is bursting with fan-made dance video renditions of the song. One of the more popular ones show teen pop star Jordin Sparks trying to learn the Wonder Moves. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zX8vMEOwGPA) But the song has yet to make a dent on the charts. Three months since its release it only landed the girls a front-act gig for the Jonas Brothers. Not a bad feat in itself, although the salvo was certainly weak compared to Wannabe’s initial success. Round 2 What the Wonder Girls lack in power, they can make up for in stamina. Few know that this group is not an overnight sensation. These girls have been working the music scene since 2007. In fact, in countries such as Thailand, China, France, and even the Philippines, it was the earlier single ‘Tell Me’ that made the girls famous. The slow burn may be more beneficial for the quintet if they want to outlive the hype and become US pop mainstays. After all, their impetus knocked out the Spice Girls a mere 3 years into their eminence. And now, the girls have their third album to thank for their newfound fame in US shores. On the other hand, by 1998, Spiceworld was beginning to suffer from over-play. Valiant efforts were made to resurrect it, but Geri Halliwell’s sudden departure rendered the group terminal. The four remaining Spices still pushed through with ‘Forever’, but it was soon clear that the song wasnot a statement on the group’s staying power.
Final Round Kpop is fast becoming a music phenomenon and the girl group are at its forefront. We cannot dismiss the Spice Girls just yet. After all, the Spice Girls reunion concert did become the highest-grossing concert act of 2008. This prompted Forbes to cite them as one of the most powerful celebrities of that year. The Wonder Girls still have a long way to go before they reach the infamy that their British counterparts reached, but they still have a couple of more years to do so. - Bia Fernandez Sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spice_Girls http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Girls http://asianfanatics.net/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t480904.html http://www.wondergirlsworld.com