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Honeyz
The Honeyz are a British R&B girl group currently composed of members Célena Cherry, Heavenli Abdi and Cherry's sister, Candace Cherry, as a touring member. The group had five UK top 10 hits between 1998 and 2000, with "Finally Found" (1998), "End of the Line" (1998), "Love of a Lifetime" (1999), "Never Let You Down" (1999) and "Won't Take It Lying Down" (2000). Their only album Wonder No.8 was certified gold by the BPI. The Honeyz formed in 1997 with the original line-up of Célena Cherry, Heavenli Abdi and Naima Belkhiati. Former Solid Harmonie member Mariama Goodman replaced Abdi from April 1999 until her departure in August 2000, with Abdi rejoining to replace her, before the group disbanded for the first time in 2003.
The original line-up briefly reformed to appear on the ITV show Hit Me, Baby, One More Time in 2005, before the group returned officially in 2006 for a tour. Despite the 2005 appearance, Belkhiati did not want to return because she was focused on an acting career and was replaced by Candace. Abdi left the group for the second time in August 2006 and was once again replaced by Goodman. They performed together on tour until 2010.
Cherry, Abdi and Goodman re-formed for the 2013 ITV reality show The Big Reunion, marking the first time Abdi and Goodman appeared in the same line-up. The show first aired in January 2013 and followed six groups meeting for the first time since they split, and rehearsing for a comeback performance at the Hammersmith Apollo. They went on to perform in the successful 14-date Big Reunion arena tour in May 2013. Abdi once again left the group in 2014 and the group continued to perform gigs as a duo, until Abdi's return in 2023. Goodman quit the group in late 2024 and was replaced by Candace.
Célena Cherry heard through a friend that First Avenue Management were holding auditions to form a girl group, that friend convinced her to audition for the group. Cherry was selected, and along with Heavenli Abdi, who was already signed to the management company, formed a duo, before signing to Mercury Records under the name Essence. The duo were hailed as an R&B alternative to the Spice Girls and intended as a direct rival to American girl group Destiny's Child. According to Abdi, "We felt that there was a place for a younger, vibey kind of 'pop R&B' group. We were looking at En Vogue as someone that we would like to aspire to." Cherry admitted that Essence was "an okay name, but it wasn't really hitting it". One night, when Abdi and Cherry were departing from the nightclub Subterranea, a man exclaimed at them, "Mm mm, check out those honeys over there!", thus inspiring the group's new name. First Avenue Management soon added a third member to the group, French-born Naima Belkhiati. During the group's reunion in 2013 on The Big Reunion, Abdi remarked her disappointment at Belkhiati joining the group upon discovering that she was not a particularly good singer, as management prioritised looks over Abdi's and Cherry's ambitions of producing a three-part vocal harmony, and cast Cherry as the lead singer.
Their debut single and most popular hit "Finally Found", released in August 1998, peaked at number four in the UK Singles Chart, introducing the trio to the public and selling over 350,000 copies. The follow-up "End of the Line" notched up similar sales figures, peaking at number five. Their debut album Wonder No.8 went gold in the UK with sales of over 200,000 copies. Aside from their success in the United Kingdom, they performed with a full live orchestra in the Netherlands and 8,000 people at ChildLine in Dublin, duetted with Lionel Richie in Italy, and saw their first two singles, "Finally Found" and "End of the Line", go 2× platinum in Australia. In the United States, they signed to Def Jam/Island. The group ended up being featured on the French release of Foxy Brown's single "J.O.B." from her second album Chyna Doll, and they also worked with producer Stevie J (Toni Braxton, Deborah Cox, Puff Daddy).
Between the video shoot for the group's third single "Love of a Lifetime" in New York and their second promotional trip to Australia in March 1999, Belkhiati and Cherry heard that Abdi had decided to quit the group for personal reasons, including newly creative differences with Cherry, homesickness, unhappiness with touring internationally, and wanting to start a solo career and spend more time with her boyfriend, Matthew Marsden. Belkhiati remarked: "Of course, it was a big shock. But we respect her decision, and we wish her a lot of luck in whatever she decides to do." As a result of Adbi's sudden departure, the group lost their US deal with Def Jam, but Abdi's departure opened an opportunity for former Solid HarmoniE vocalist Mariama Goodman to join the group. Her arrival was announced exclusively on BBC One's Live & Kicking on 10 April 1999. The new line-up continued promotion for "Love of a Lifetime" which reached number 9 in the UK charts, and performed over the summer of 1999, at venues including London's Mardi Gras and Capital Radio's Party in the Park concert in Hyde Park in July. At the radio extravaganza, performing in front of 100,000 people, the Honeyz sang their hits "Finally Found" and "End of the Line", before duetting with Another Level on the Help A London Child single "Holding Back the Years". This was followed later in the month by a performance at the 'Wicked Women' concert in Hyde Park, in aid of Breast Cancer Research. In September, the Honeyz supported Five at London's Brixton Academy and Manchester Apollo, in special one-off events organised in conjunction with Cadburys and MTV.
October 1999 saw the release of their fourth single, "Never Let You Down", a new track recorded for inclusion on a repackaged version of Wonder No.8, and the first single to feature Goodman's vocals. The single entered into the UK Singles Chart at number 7, making it a fourth consecutive top 10 hit for the group.
Honeyz performed another newly recorded album track, "Won't Take It Lying Down", at the prestigious MOBO Awards, held on 6 October 1999 in the Royal Albert Hall, where they had picked up two nominations in the 'Best Newcomer' and 'Best R&B Act' categories. "Won't Take It Lying Down" went on to be released at the end of February 2000, reaching number 7. It became the last top 10 single the Honeyz would achieve. At the 2000 Maxim awards, they picked up the award for The Best British Girl Band, beating the Spice Girls, Hepburn, Thunderbugs and Eternal to the title. They were also nominated for Best British Breakthrough Act at the 2000 Brit Awards.
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Honeyz
The Honeyz are a British R&B girl group currently composed of members Célena Cherry, Heavenli Abdi and Cherry's sister, Candace Cherry, as a touring member. The group had five UK top 10 hits between 1998 and 2000, with "Finally Found" (1998), "End of the Line" (1998), "Love of a Lifetime" (1999), "Never Let You Down" (1999) and "Won't Take It Lying Down" (2000). Their only album Wonder No.8 was certified gold by the BPI. The Honeyz formed in 1997 with the original line-up of Célena Cherry, Heavenli Abdi and Naima Belkhiati. Former Solid Harmonie member Mariama Goodman replaced Abdi from April 1999 until her departure in August 2000, with Abdi rejoining to replace her, before the group disbanded for the first time in 2003.
The original line-up briefly reformed to appear on the ITV show Hit Me, Baby, One More Time in 2005, before the group returned officially in 2006 for a tour. Despite the 2005 appearance, Belkhiati did not want to return because she was focused on an acting career and was replaced by Candace. Abdi left the group for the second time in August 2006 and was once again replaced by Goodman. They performed together on tour until 2010.
Cherry, Abdi and Goodman re-formed for the 2013 ITV reality show The Big Reunion, marking the first time Abdi and Goodman appeared in the same line-up. The show first aired in January 2013 and followed six groups meeting for the first time since they split, and rehearsing for a comeback performance at the Hammersmith Apollo. They went on to perform in the successful 14-date Big Reunion arena tour in May 2013. Abdi once again left the group in 2014 and the group continued to perform gigs as a duo, until Abdi's return in 2023. Goodman quit the group in late 2024 and was replaced by Candace.
Célena Cherry heard through a friend that First Avenue Management were holding auditions to form a girl group, that friend convinced her to audition for the group. Cherry was selected, and along with Heavenli Abdi, who was already signed to the management company, formed a duo, before signing to Mercury Records under the name Essence. The duo were hailed as an R&B alternative to the Spice Girls and intended as a direct rival to American girl group Destiny's Child. According to Abdi, "We felt that there was a place for a younger, vibey kind of 'pop R&B' group. We were looking at En Vogue as someone that we would like to aspire to." Cherry admitted that Essence was "an okay name, but it wasn't really hitting it". One night, when Abdi and Cherry were departing from the nightclub Subterranea, a man exclaimed at them, "Mm mm, check out those honeys over there!", thus inspiring the group's new name. First Avenue Management soon added a third member to the group, French-born Naima Belkhiati. During the group's reunion in 2013 on The Big Reunion, Abdi remarked her disappointment at Belkhiati joining the group upon discovering that she was not a particularly good singer, as management prioritised looks over Abdi's and Cherry's ambitions of producing a three-part vocal harmony, and cast Cherry as the lead singer.
Their debut single and most popular hit "Finally Found", released in August 1998, peaked at number four in the UK Singles Chart, introducing the trio to the public and selling over 350,000 copies. The follow-up "End of the Line" notched up similar sales figures, peaking at number five. Their debut album Wonder No.8 went gold in the UK with sales of over 200,000 copies. Aside from their success in the United Kingdom, they performed with a full live orchestra in the Netherlands and 8,000 people at ChildLine in Dublin, duetted with Lionel Richie in Italy, and saw their first two singles, "Finally Found" and "End of the Line", go 2× platinum in Australia. In the United States, they signed to Def Jam/Island. The group ended up being featured on the French release of Foxy Brown's single "J.O.B." from her second album Chyna Doll, and they also worked with producer Stevie J (Toni Braxton, Deborah Cox, Puff Daddy).
Between the video shoot for the group's third single "Love of a Lifetime" in New York and their second promotional trip to Australia in March 1999, Belkhiati and Cherry heard that Abdi had decided to quit the group for personal reasons, including newly creative differences with Cherry, homesickness, unhappiness with touring internationally, and wanting to start a solo career and spend more time with her boyfriend, Matthew Marsden. Belkhiati remarked: "Of course, it was a big shock. But we respect her decision, and we wish her a lot of luck in whatever she decides to do." As a result of Adbi's sudden departure, the group lost their US deal with Def Jam, but Abdi's departure opened an opportunity for former Solid HarmoniE vocalist Mariama Goodman to join the group. Her arrival was announced exclusively on BBC One's Live & Kicking on 10 April 1999. The new line-up continued promotion for "Love of a Lifetime" which reached number 9 in the UK charts, and performed over the summer of 1999, at venues including London's Mardi Gras and Capital Radio's Party in the Park concert in Hyde Park in July. At the radio extravaganza, performing in front of 100,000 people, the Honeyz sang their hits "Finally Found" and "End of the Line", before duetting with Another Level on the Help A London Child single "Holding Back the Years". This was followed later in the month by a performance at the 'Wicked Women' concert in Hyde Park, in aid of Breast Cancer Research. In September, the Honeyz supported Five at London's Brixton Academy and Manchester Apollo, in special one-off events organised in conjunction with Cadburys and MTV.
October 1999 saw the release of their fourth single, "Never Let You Down", a new track recorded for inclusion on a repackaged version of Wonder No.8, and the first single to feature Goodman's vocals. The single entered into the UK Singles Chart at number 7, making it a fourth consecutive top 10 hit for the group.
Honeyz performed another newly recorded album track, "Won't Take It Lying Down", at the prestigious MOBO Awards, held on 6 October 1999 in the Royal Albert Hall, where they had picked up two nominations in the 'Best Newcomer' and 'Best R&B Act' categories. "Won't Take It Lying Down" went on to be released at the end of February 2000, reaching number 7. It became the last top 10 single the Honeyz would achieve. At the 2000 Maxim awards, they picked up the award for The Best British Girl Band, beating the Spice Girls, Hepburn, Thunderbugs and Eternal to the title. They were also nominated for Best British Breakthrough Act at the 2000 Brit Awards.
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