Girls@Play
| Company type | Girl group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Defunct | 2001-11-18 |
| Headquarters | London , United Kingdom |
| Products | Music singles ("Airhead", "Respectable") |
Girls@Play was a London-based British girl group consisting of five members—Vicky Dowdall, Lisa-Jay White, Rita Simons, Lynsey Shaw, and Shelley Nash—established in 2000. They were signed under GSM Records with production handled by Stock & Aitken (Mike Stock and Matt Aitken).
In their music videos, each member adopted a unique persona: Dowdall appeared as a cowgirl, White took on the role of a corporate executive, Simons portrayed a mechanic, Shaw represented a New York City traffic officer, and Nash acted as a pilot. This distinctive approach drew parallels to the Village People.
History
The group released two singles during their active years: "Airhead" on 12 February 2001 and a rendition of "Respectable" on 1 October 2001. "Airhead" reached number 18 on the UK Singles Chart, while their cover of "Respectable" peaked at number 29. During 2000 and 2001, Girls@Play also toured arenas supporting Hear'Say and Steps.
The ensemble officially disbanded on 18 November 2001.
Potential reunion
In January 2014, there were discussions by management about reuniting the group for the second season of The Big Reunion, but this did not come to fruition. Rita Simons has suggested the possibility of a future comeback. Conversations about reforming resumed in March 2016 but ultimately did not advance.
In 2019, Girls@Play made available previously unreleased tracks from their abandoned album on Spotify, including songs such as "When Love Takes Over You" and "Brand New Car".
Members
- Victoria "Vicky" Dowdall (born 23 January 1979, Gateshead, Tyne and Wear)
Raised in Heworth, Gateshead, Dowdall attended Reavley Theatre School. In 1999, she was selected alongside two other session vocalists by Pete Waterman to record a remake of "That's What Love Can Do" under the name Toutes Les Filles. Following Girls@Play's split, she collaborated with schoolfriend Camilla Romestrand to create several pop duos including Neway, Honeytrap, Honeybeat, and later Purple Patch in 2003, which leaned towards rock music. Dowdall subsequently established VDM Management, an artist management company based in London. - Shelley Nash (born 13 January 1978)
Nash began her singing career at age eleven. After Girls@Play ended, she formed the group Friday with Simons and White. She earned a Bachelor of Music with honors from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2005 and shifted her focus toward classical music. - Lynsey Shaw (born 15 June 1980, Loughborough, Leics.)
Initially studying fashion design before transitioning to singing, Shaw attempted to join Hear'Say in their 2002 auditions to replace Kym Marsh, finishing as runner-up. In 2010, she relocated to Los Angeles where she manages the boutique label Big Finish Records. - Rita Simons (born 10 March 1977, Whipps Cross, London)
After Girls@Play's breakup, Simons teamed up with Nash and White to form Friday and later joined the girl band Charli in 2002. That same year she left her singing career behind to pursue acting full-time, most notably playing Roxy Mitchell on the BBC soap opera EastEnders. - Lisa Jane "Lisa-Jay" White (born 23 May 1979)
Following the group's dissolution, White joined Simons and Nash in Friday before retiring from performance altogether.
Singles
| Title | Year | UK | AUS |
|---|---|---|---|
| "Airhead" | 2001 | 18 | 52 |
| Respectable | 2001 | 29 | — |