Girl Power! Live in Istanbul
Encyclopedia
Girl Power! Live In Istanbul was the first set of major concerts by the British pop group, The Spice Girls
, in 1997. The concerts, organised by Pepsi
as part of the group's sponsorship deal, were performed at the Abdi İpekçi Arena
on October 12 and 13 in Istanbul
, Turkey
.
The VHS release does not include all of the songs on the set list, omitting "Something Kinda Funny", "Saturday Night Divas", "Stop
", "Too Much
", "Love Thing" and "Mama
". The VHS, however, includes interviews with the girls and backstage footage. Although the original concert was completely live, studio vocals were dubbed into several songs for the video version of the performance.
A DVD of the concert was made available in the UK on December 10, 2007 to coincide with the release of the Greatest Hits album
. It features the "Girl Talk" documentary, a countdown to the concert, and the 9-song concert, as previously available on VHS.
2. If You Cant Dance
3. Who Do You Think You Are
4. Say Youll Be There
5. Step To Me
6. Naked
7. 2 Become 1
8. Spice Up Your Life
9. Move Over
10. Wannabe
11. Outro (Credits)
1. "If U Can't Dance"
2. "Who Do You Think You Are
"
3. "Something Kinda Funny"
4. "Saturday Night Divas"
5. "Say You'll Be There
"
6. "Step to Me
"
Act 2
7. "Naked"
Act 3
8. "2 Become 1
"
9. "Stop
"
10. "Too Much
"
Act 4
11. "Spice Up Your Life
"
12. "Love Thing"
13. "Mama
"
Encore
14. "Move Over
"
15. "Wannabe
"
The concert was also aired on Fox Family Channel on Sunday, August 16, 1998 at 6:00 PM. The broadcast was titled Spice Girls—Wild! in Concert and featured trivia before and after commercials and backstage footage in addition to the set list. The show was two hours in length with advertisements and managed to receive a 1.8 Household rating when it aired despite being up against a four hour MTV special and a Spice Girls concert airing the same weekend. All songs from the set list except for "Naked" were aired during the broadcast.
Spice Girls
The Spice Girls were a British pop girl group formed in 1994. The group consisted of Victoria Beckham , Melanie Brown, Emma Bunton, Melanie Chisholm and Geri Halliwell. They were signed to Virgin Records and released their debut single, "Wannabe" in 1996, which hit number-one in more than 30...
, in 1997. The concerts, organised by Pepsi
Pepsi
Pepsi is a carbonated soft drink that is produced and manufactured by PepsiCo...
as part of the group's sponsorship deal, were performed at the Abdi İpekçi Arena
Abdi Ipekçi Arena
Abdi İpekçi Arena, formerly known as Abdi İpekçi Sports Complex, is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the Zeytinburnu district of Istanbul, Turkey, situated just outside of the ancient city walls in Yedikule. Opened in 1986 after many years of interrupted construction, it is named after the...
on October 12 and 13 in Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
.
The VHS release does not include all of the songs on the set list, omitting "Something Kinda Funny", "Saturday Night Divas", "Stop
Stop (Spice Girls song)
"Stop" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the group members with Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins—the songwriters and production duo known as Absolute—at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World...
", "Too Much
Too Much (Spice Girls song)
"Too Much" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. Written by the group members with Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins—the songwriters and production duo known as Absolute—at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World, it was produced by Wilson and Watkins for the...
", "Love Thing" and "Mama
Mama (Spice Girls song)
"Mama" is a song by British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the Spice Girls, Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard, and produced by Rowe and Stannard for the group's debut album Spice, released in November 1996...
". The VHS, however, includes interviews with the girls and backstage footage. Although the original concert was completely live, studio vocals were dubbed into several songs for the video version of the performance.
A DVD of the concert was made available in the UK on December 10, 2007 to coincide with the release of the Greatest Hits album
Greatest Hits (Spice Girls album)
-Background:The plan to reform and release a greatest hits had long been speculated by the media, but its planned release was first confirmed by Melanie Brown in June 2005. Speaking just before a planned reunion for Live 8 , she stated: "We'll get back together because we all want to. I know...
. It features the "Girl Talk" documentary, a countdown to the concert, and the 9-song concert, as previously available on VHS.
DVD in Istanbul Setlist
1. Intro (Interview and Girl Talk)2. If You Cant Dance
3. Who Do You Think You Are
4. Say Youll Be There
5. Step To Me
6. Naked
7. 2 Become 1
8. Spice Up Your Life
9. Move Over
10. Wannabe
11. Outro (Credits)
The Show
The Show was split up into 5 parts with a costume change at each one. The stage consisted of a ramp leading down to the main stage. There were two staircases at the far right and left of the stage that lead to smaller platform stages. There was a small runway at the centre of the main stage. The band was located at the bottom right and left of the ramp. There was a grid with the letters S-P-I-C-E on the left of the stage. There was also a large screen at the back of the stage that would rise and lower. It was used at the start of show. The Girls would enter the stage as it rose.Set list
Act 11. "If U Can't Dance"
2. "Who Do You Think You Are
Who Do You Think You Are
"Who Do You Think You Are" is a dance-pop song performed by British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the group members with Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins,—also known as Absolute—for the group's debut album Spice, released in November 1996. The song is heavily influenced by early 1990s...
"
3. "Something Kinda Funny"
4. "Saturday Night Divas"
5. "Say You'll Be There
Say You'll Be There
"Say You'll Be There" is a song by British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the Spice Girls and Eliot Kennedy, for their debut album Spice, released in November 1996. Production duo Absolute incorporated a mix of pop and R&B into the song, which includes an harmonica solo, played by Judd...
"
6. "Step to Me
Step To Me
Pepsi launched a £1 million 'generation next' campaign in the United Kingdom - running alongside sales promotion activities, notably one by where consumers collected twenty pink ring pull tabs from promotional Pepsi cans, sent them off and received the free Spice Girls CD single "Step to Me" -...
"
Act 2
7. "Naked"
Act 3
8. "2 Become 1
2 Become 1
"2 Become 1" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. Written by the group members, Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard during the group's first professional songwriting session, it was produced by Rowe and Stannard for the group's debut album Spice, released in November 1996...
"
9. "Stop
Stop (Spice Girls song)
"Stop" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the group members with Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins—the songwriters and production duo known as Absolute—at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World...
"
10. "Too Much
Too Much (Spice Girls song)
"Too Much" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. Written by the group members with Paul Wilson and Andy Watkins—the songwriters and production duo known as Absolute—at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World, it was produced by Wilson and Watkins for the...
"
Act 4
11. "Spice Up Your Life
Spice Up Your Life
"Spice Up Your Life" is a song by the British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the group members, with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard, at the same time as the group was filming scenes for their movie Spice World...
"
12. "Love Thing"
13. "Mama
Mama (Spice Girls song)
"Mama" is a song by British pop group Spice Girls. It was written by the Spice Girls, Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard, and produced by Rowe and Stannard for the group's debut album Spice, released in November 1996...
"
Encore
14. "Move Over
Move Over
"Move Over" is a promotional single released by the Spice Girls in 1997, as part of their Pepsi endorsement. The song was included on the group's album Spiceworld, released later the same year and was included on the group's Greatest Hits album in 2007....
"
15. "Wannabe
Wannabe (song)
"Wannabe" is the debut song by British pop group Spice Girls. Written by the group members with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard during the group's first professional songwriting session, it was produced by Rowe and Stannard for the group's debut album Spice, released in November 1996...
"
- "Who Do You Think You Are" samples a sound bite from the song "DivaDivaA diva is a celebrated female singer. The term is used to describe a woman of outstanding talent in the world of opera, and, by extension, in theatre, cinema and popular music. The meaning of diva is closely related to that of "prima donna"....
" by Club 69. In the beginning of the song the words "You have to work to look this good" are heard.
- "Naked" samples two sound bits from the film "Batman ForeverBatman ForeverBatman Forever is a 1995 American superhero film directed by Joel Schumacher and produced by Tim Burton. Based on the DC Comics character Batman, the film is a sequel to Batman Returns , with Val Kilmer replacing Michael Keaton as Batman...
". In the beginning of the song the words "Tell me your dreams, Tell me your fantasies, tell me your secrets, tell me your deepest, darkest fears" are heard, while in the middle of the song the Riddler's growls are heard.
Tour dates
| Date | City | Country | Venue | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Europe | |||||
| October 12, 1997 | Istanbul Istanbul Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and... |
Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... |
Abdi İpekçi Arena Abdi Ipekçi Arena Abdi İpekçi Arena, formerly known as Abdi İpekçi Sports Complex, is a multi-purpose indoor arena located in the Zeytinburnu district of Istanbul, Turkey, situated just outside of the ancient city walls in Yedikule. Opened in 1986 after many years of interrupted construction, it is named after the... |
||
| October 13, 1997 | |||||
Broadcast
The full concert was first aired on January 17, 1998 at 9 p.m. (E.T.) on Showtime Channel in a pay-per-view event. The broadcast was titled Spice Girls In Concert Wild!The concert was also aired on Fox Family Channel on Sunday, August 16, 1998 at 6:00 PM. The broadcast was titled Spice Girls—Wild! in Concert and featured trivia before and after commercials and backstage footage in addition to the set list. The show was two hours in length with advertisements and managed to receive a 1.8 Household rating when it aired despite being up against a four hour MTV special and a Spice Girls concert airing the same weekend. All songs from the set list except for "Naked" were aired during the broadcast.