I appreciated those three girls quite immediately simply because it was a unique pop sound for the beginning of 2000's basically characterized by flat and poor pop music (i.e. Britney, *NSYNC, Christina,...).
Sugababes had such a huge success from 2001 'til 2005 mainly thanks to Mutya Buena who took the leadership of the band after former member Siobhan Donaghy left the group. And it was in 2005 that Mutya decided to also leave the band and to start her solo career.
Real Girl was the result of Mutya's solo struggle. I definetely can't say it was the greatest album of all times, but the 26 yo english-filipino lady demonstrated quite a high versatility, both in voice and in style. If you had the chance to listen to this album, you'd seeit's not pop neither R&B. It's more similar to a revisited soul EP. Indeed Mutya's contralto voice defintely fits with this music style. Some tracks like Just a Little Bit, B-Boy-Baby (featuring Mrs. Amy Winehouse's deep contralto) or Real Girl (which features a Lenny Kravitz It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over sample) are a good example of the huge potential that this girl has.
But such a huge talent has been quite wasted. Why? I think the reason is because Sugababes changed 7 recording labels in almost 6 years and no one really had the time to appreciate the potential of each Sugababes member, including Mutya. Such a shame. But now the original formation of Sugababes is back, with new band name MKS. Wish you all the best. Now enjoy Just a Little Bit.
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