The year is 1999. Diddy is still Puff Daddy, everyone wants a piece of Jennifer Lopez’s Latino derrière and thanks to UK Garage producers Shanks & Big Foot the lyrics ‘Sweet Like Chocolate’ are in everyone’s head.
Down in Brixton, south London, a then 18-year-old Bradley McIntosh was about to take the pop charts by storm alongside his six band mates who would collectively be known as S club 7 and end up with 11 top five singles.
By 2003 the band had won two Brit awards including record of the year with their single Don’t Stop Moving, had starred in their own BBC TV series Miami 7 and also starred in the film Seeing Double. But success soon fell short after the band decide to split that April so they could ‘face new challenges’
Now, what exactly were these new challenges? Because from what we remember, Bradley didn’t exactly do a Beyonce and show the world that he didn’t need his band mates to become a superstar now did he?
The not so super ‘Super’ boy band.
Like most forgotten pop stars who become tired of people approaching them in supermarket car parks with the same ‘weren’t you the guy in…’ question, Bradley decided to sell his soul to the clutches of reality TV and starred in MTV series Totally Boyband in 2006, which aimed to bring back members form past pop bands including Dame Bowers from Another level, Jimmy Constable from 911, Lee Evans from Steps, Danny Wood from American band New Kids on the Block and of course S Club’s Bradley McIntosh to make the not so ‘Super’ boy band Upper Street. The group only reached number 35 in the UK chart and decide to call it a day. So yes, Bradley’s venture to be part of a new pop band flopped. Miserably.
University Tour
In 2008 Bradley reunited with two of his former S Club 7 band mates, Jo and Paul and toured around different universities across the UK. In the Dublin leg of their tour, Bradley was ditched by both Jo and Paul and was left to perform at the University College Dublin on his own for free. Not so glamorous.
The birth of City Boy
So putting aside the embarrassment of Upper Street, whilst touring with S Club 3, Bradley spent some time working on his own solo music career. Which meant out with the butter wouldn’t melt persona that we all fell for in his S Club 7 days and in with the serious RnB and Hip Hop producer and writer City Boy. He even started hanging around with Rihanna, well when we say hanging around we mean they took a picture together, but still!
With songs like B*tches and Take it All off, this was definitely a new sound from the former S Club 7 member. During his time producing Bradley has written and produced for Peter Andre, JLS , Mutya Buena, American singer Musiq Soulchild worked on a track that was produced by Labrinth.
S Club 7 Reunion.
It was announced last Wednesday that whole of S Club 7 would be reuniting in the summer for a series of one off UK gigs and special performances. So it looks like Bradley will have to put aside his new bad boy image and get back to doing his cheesy dance moves and wearing that trademark bandana.
Will you be getting out all your S Club memorabilia? No, Just me then?
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