Spice Girls’ Spice Up Your Life lyric has been censored on radio stations
A lyric from the 1997 hit ‘Spice Up Your Life’ by the Spice Girls faced a lyric omission on BBC Radio 2 this week.
The Spice Girls' '90s hit 'Spice Up Your Life' has been censored on a number of radio stations.
The 'Wannabe' hitmakers — Mel B, Melanie C, Emma Bunton, Geri Horner, and Victoria Beckham — sing about a "yellow man in Timbuktu" on the 1997 chart-topper, but stations such as BBC Radio 2 have started playing a new version that removes the colour of the man.
The altered recording was played on ‘The Scott Mills Breakfast Show’ on Radio 2 this week.
The debate over this ‘Spice Up Your Life’ lyric is nothing new.
The group were said to have rowed over the words ahead of their 2019 reunion tour, which featured all members except Beckham. Melanie C reportedly floated the idea of changing “yellow man” to "happy people", but the group ended up singing the original lyrics.
A source told The Sun on Sunday newspaper in 2018: "The original lyric was meant to be a bit of fun and never intended to be offensive.
"The reality is it's not acceptable to say that now. Some of the girls feel uncomfortable getting up on stage and performing that lyric, especially when they have such a diverse and multicultural fanbase.
"They pride themselves on standing for inclusivity, so they don't want to run the risk of offending anybody."
‘Spice Up Your Life’ is not the only song that’s faced scrutiny over the years. The girl group was also unsure about some of their raunchier lyrics, such as those in 'First Time Lover' and '2 Become 1'.
The insider added: "In light of the #MeToo era, they are being extra cautious.”
Meanwhile, Melanie C recently hinted at a world tour to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the hit track ‘Wannabe’, which stayed at No. 1 in the UK for seven weeks after its release in 1996.
On the Australian radio show ‘The Jimmy and Nath Show with Emma’, she said: "We have to do something special. Obviously I can’t say too much, but we are talking about things. Hopefully a nice little world tour.”
The girls last reunited in April 2024 to perform ‘Stop’ at Beckham’s 50th birthday party.
