Hear'Say have officially confirmed their comeback, more than 25 years after their debut single and album broke chart records. An Instagram post appeared on Thursday morning to confirm the band were getting back together, but original member Myleene Klass was noticeably absent from the announcement.
Popstars origins and chart success
Hear'Say were formed through the ITV series Popstars, which was the first real TV talent show of its kind before Pop Idol, Fame Academy and X Factor. The fly-on-the-wall series had millions of viewers hooked on the gruelling audition process, the personal lives of the contestants and what happened when they actually made the band.
Under the leadership of Nigel Lythgoe, the judges chose Kym Marsh, Noel Sullivan, Danny Foster, Suzanne Shaw and Myleene to be in the group, before Hear'Say were catapulted to massive pop fame.
Record-breaking debut and decline
Their debut single Pure & Simple rocketed straight to number 1, selling more than 550,000 copies and making it the fastest selling debut of all time. Just weeks later, Hear'Say's first album Popstars did the same when it entered at number 1 on first week sales of 306,631, with them at the top of the singles and album charts simultaneously.
While not selling as many copies, the band's second single The Way to Your Love also reached number 1, but the wheels started to fall off when their second album only made number 24. Following Kym's departure, plans for an arena tour were scrapped and Hear'Say ended up publicly auditioning for her replacement.
Reunion details
New recruit Johnny Shentall joined in 2002, with Hear'Say's first single with him, Lovin' Is Easy, reaching number 6. Public opinion turned sour quickly and the group were booed at various UK festivals. The band called it quits before the year was through, and now, 24 years on, four of them have confirmed they are reuniting.
A Hear'Say Instagram account is now live, and the first post was a video of a WhatsApp conversation involving Danny, Noel, Kym and Suzanne about getting the band back together. It was immediately obvious from the clip and the tags that Myleene had no part in it. A website has also been set up for people to sign up for latest updates, with comeback gigs looking likely.
