Atomic kitten

Atomic kitten
Current line-up: Liz McClarnon and Natasha Hamilton
General information
origin	Liverpool , UK
Genre (s)	Pop , dance-pop , europop , disco
founding	1998, 2012
resolution	2004
Website	www.atomickitten.com
Founding members
singing	Liz McClarnon
singing	Kerry Katona (until 2001; 2012–2017)
singing	Heidi Range (until 1999)
Current occupation
singing	Liz McClarnon (until 2004; 2005, 2006, 2008; since 2012)
singing	Natasha Hamilton (1999-2004; 2005, 2006, 2008; since 2012)
former members
singing	Jenny Frost (2001-2004; 2005, 2006, 2008)

Atomic Kitten is one of Liverpool coming British pop - girl group , which in 1998 by OMD -members Andy McCluskey and Stuart Kershaw founded and until 2002 songwriting was accompanied. In terms of sales, the band is one of the world's most successful girl groups of the 21st century and has so far sold over ten million records.

The producer duo formed the original line-up with Liz McClarnon , Kerry Katona and Heidi Range . The latter two were later replaced by Natasha Hamilton and Jenny Frost . The commercial breakthrough attained Atomic Kitten remained under occupation with McClarnon, Hamilton and frost that existed from 2001 and until the provisional separation of 2004.

In addition to numerous awards - including a four-time BRIT Award - and two-time MTV Europe Music Award nominations - Atomic Kitten has so far achieved three number one hits in the British singles charts : Whole Again , the fourth best-selling girl group single in the UK, Eternal Flame , a cover of the Bangles ' 1989 hit and The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling) , also a cover of the Paragons' 1967 hit . In addition, they achieved several top ten hits in Europe (especially in the German-speaking part ), Asia , Oceania and South Africa .

In 2005, 2006 and 2008 there were brief reunions, mainly due to the publication of charity songs. At the beginning of 2012 plans for a reunion were announced, which were later rejected due to the differences between Frost and Katona. In the end, it came to the reunion when they took part in the documentary The Big Reunion , which was broadcast by British broadcaster ITV 2 in early 2013 . However, Frost could not attend because of her pregnancy and was replaced by Katona. Hamilton later announced that Frost would be welcome for a comeback anytime.

Katona left Atomic Kitten for the second and final time in December 2017, which means that the band has since appeared as a duo in the line-up of McClarnon and Hamilton.

Band history

1998: Foundation and formation

Atomic Kitten founders Andy McCluskey and Stuart Kershaw

The band called Atomic Kitten was formed in 1998 by British musician Andy McCluskey , best known as the front man of the new wave band Orchestral Maneuvers in the Dark (OMD). Karl Bartos - former member of the German electropop band Kraftwerk - suggested that after the temporary dissolution of OMD in 1996, a new band should be founded as a vehicle for McCluskey's songs, which had " gone completely out of fashion" due to the predominance of Britpop .

McCluskey founded Atomic Kitten with his OMD colleague Stuart Kershaw . The cast originally consisted of Liz McClarnon , Kerry Katona and the later Sugababes member Heidi Range , but had no name. In Katona's autobiography Too Much, Too Young: My Story of Love, Survival and Celebrity (2007), she mentions that the band thought about names like "Exit" and "Honeyheads" before settling down with "Automatic Kitten" which the Was the title of a fashion label owned by a fashion designer named Mary Lamb. When Katona told her mother all about the band, her mother's boyfriend, "Bob the Leg", was also present. He was unable to pronounce Automatic Kitten and instead kept saying Atomic Kitten . Katona liked the name and told McClarnon and Range about it; they felt the same and this one stuck.

1999–2000: Rank exit, tour debut and Right Now

Range got out in 1999 due to artistic differences and was replaced by Natasha Hamilton in the same year .

Atomic Kitten made it into the top ten of the UK singles chart with their debut single Right Now - which was released in late November 1999. Her second single See Ya followed in March 2000 and was an even bigger triumph with sixth place. After this commercial moderate success they gave the year in the course Asia her tour debut and released a cover version of 1962er- Little Eva classic The Locomotion for the published in the same year Anglo- American fantasy - children's movie Thomas and the Magic Railroad .

Atomic Kitten's debut album - also titled Right Now - was released on October 23, 2000 in the UK. In Europe, however, this was unsuccessful when it was first released and only reached number 39 on the British album charts. As a result, there were no plans to focus on the global market. Her record company , Innocent Records, even considered ditching her because of her limited achievements, but was persuaded to let the band release another single.

2001: turning point, international breakthrough, Katona's first exit and Frost's entry

Atomic Kitten started a new attempt in 2001 with the single Whole Again . At that moment, their career took a 360 degree turn, because with this mega single they landed their first number one hit at home. In spring 2001 the breakthrough came in Germany and Austria , where she was able to stay at the top for six weeks.

With over 1.1 million units sold, Whole Again is the most successful publication of their career, represents their signature song, was nominated twice for the Ivor Novello Award - a British award for songwriters and composers - and was covered by its founding fathers in 2008.

Katona was originally featured in the song and video for Whole Again - her vocals were also featured in Hippy and Get Real - but she left the band a few days before the single was released due to her pregnancy. Former Precious member Jenny Frost replaced her in the line-up and the video for the single was re-shot; A higher-budgeted US version of the video - shot on the streets of downtown Los Angeles - was also released. The Katona-Frost change led to the decision to partially re-record and re-release her debut album, which then landed at number one in Great Britain in August 2001, was awarded double platinum and the top in numerous European countries - including Germany -Ten reached. Compared to later albums, it received quite positive reviews , mainly for reviving stylistic elements of New Wave from the 1980s. The most successful single release alongside Whole Again was therefore also the 1989 Bangles cover Eternal Flame . At home, they achieved their second number one hit. The third single You Are , however, did not reach any noteworthy chart placement in Germany with position 61 .

2002: Career high point, separation from its founders and Feels So Good

In April 2002, Hamilton announced her first pregnancy, but still appeared in the video for The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling) and the 2002 tour, and finally gave birth to a son on August 24, 2002.

On June 3, 2002 Atomic Kitten performed at the Party at the Palace concert, held in the garden of Buckingham Palace in honor of Elizabeth II's 50th throne jubilee . Dressed completely in white, they sang the song Dancing in the Street and, together with the US musician Brian Wilson and Spice Girls member Emma Bunton, the song Good Vibrations .

Following the success of Right Now - relaunch the second studio album was Feels So Good added. The songwriting and production agreement with McCluskey and Kershaw, however, represented an increasing source of tension within the group, as a result of which Atomic Kitten finally separated from the duo during the album recording in mid-2002. McCluskey spoke of differences of opinion between him and the record company, whose "formula" called for more and more "Whole Again" . He was essentially fired and banned by law from contacting the band. After this inglorious quarrel, he got out of the quotation “very dirty” business of “fabricated pop”. The separation from its two creators did not detract from the success of Atomic Kitten; so the band members were now increasingly involved in the composition of their own songs.

In September 2002, Feels So Good , the first complete original album with band member Frost , was finally released . The most successful single was a new edition of the 1967 reggae classic The Tide Is High by the Paragons , which they released under the title The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling) . The song stormed the British, German and Oceanic charts again after Whole Again and Eternal Flame .

2003: Far East tour, US marketing and Ladies Night

In January and February 2003 Atomic Kitten toured Southeast Asia , where they performed in Singapore , Thailand and South Korea, among others .

In April 2003 Atomic Kitten released the self-titled compilation album Atomic Kitten, intended only for the US market . It contained songs from their first two studio albums, but reached only room 102 of the US Billboard charts , while The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling) on the soundtrack album of by Walt Disney Pictures produced US teen - comedy film The Lizzie McGuire ( 2003) appeared. Because of this, they continuously focused exclusively on the European, Asian, Oceanic and South African markets.

Before Atomic Kitten recorded their third studio album, Kool & the Gang approached the band about a collaboration for their duo album The Hits: Reloaded . They wanted to record an updated version of their hit Ladies Night and were looking for a girl group to sing the lyrics for it. Atomic Kitten liked the idea and they asked if they could use it on their next album, which was later dubbed Ladies Night in honor of the collaboration . Atomic Kitten spent late 2002 and early 2003 in the studio to record their last studio album to date. Up to this point they relied mostly on songwriters, although they had occasionally co-written songs that featured on their albums. While recording the album, they decided to be directly involved in the creation of eight of the fifteen songs. Ladies Night was released on November 10, 2003, reached number five on the UK album charts, and went platinum for more than 300,000 copies sold. However, it also received some devastating reviews , not least because they were getting closer and closer to mainstream pop, had deviated a little from the old style and once again produced a cover version with the title song. With the further single releases If You Come to Me and Someone like Me they achieved further top ten successes at home.

2004: Promotion tour, greatest hits album and time out

In early 2004, a tour to support Ladies Night and the upcoming release of their compilation album The Greatest Hits took place. Shortly before the start of the tour, Atomic Kitten announced that it would take a longer break after its completion. The reason for this was Hamilton's decision to leave Atomic Kitten, as she suffered postpartum depression after the birth of her son and therefore wanted to have more time for him and was overwhelmed with the pressure of touring as a young mother, which ultimately led to the temporary separation the band led because McClarnon and Frost did not want to replace Hamilton.

Atomic Kitten released the double-A single Someone like Me / Right Now 2004 as a kind of "parting gift" for their fans in March 2004 and their greatest hits album the following month.

2005–2008: Brief reunions for charity projects

Third line-up:
McClarnon, Frost and Hamilton
in Krakow (2005)

On Valentine's Day 2005, however, there was already a brief reunion as part of the newly sung charity single Cradle 2005 . This was a new edition of the song of the same name from their debut album, sold 35,000 times worldwide and the entire proceeds went to the World Vision organization . In 2005 they were represented with their single (I Wanna Be) Like Other Girls on the soundtrack album of the US cartoon Mulan 2 produced by Walt Disney Studios . On August 28, 2005 they performed in Krakow on the occasion of the Coca-Cola SoundWave Festival. Also in 2005, the two compilation albums The Collection and Access All Areas: Remixed and B-Sides were released.

On June 16, 2006, a cover of the 1990s farm hit All Together Now entitled All Together Now (Strong Together) was released . The song was recorded during the 2006 soccer World Cup in Germany with the World Cup mascot Goleo VI , but was only released in German-speaking countries. In Germany, the Top 20 was reached and the entire proceeds went to the SOS Children's Village organization . On December 31, 2006, they performed in Hong Kong on the occasion of Nokia New Year's Eve Music Festival.

In 2007 the compilation album Essential was released.

On January 19, 2008, there was another short-lived reunion. Atomic Kitten sang the Cilla Black classic Anyone Who Had a Heart and the songs Whole Again and The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling) in the then newly built Liverpool Echo Arena . The occasion of this concert, organized by the Number One Project , was the festivities of Liverpool as European Capital of Culture in 2008 and the fact that Liverpool artists have so far recorded 56 number one hits in the British single charts and the third largest English city on the Mersey is the epicenter of global pop represents. On July 12, 2008, they performed at the King's Lynn Festival.

2012: Reunion plans and related Frost-Katona-Clinch

Second line-up: McClarnon, Katona and Hamilton in Bournemouth (2013)

In February 2012 the compilation album The Essential Collection was released, which contains their greatest hits - including remixes and B-sides; however, it was not placed on the chart.

On March 4, 2012, Hamilton gave an interview to the British tabloid Daily Star announcing the Atomic Kittens reunion. According to her, some concerts were planned for the summer of 2012. She also mentioned the hope of attending the Diamond Jubilee Concert , a major BBC concert that took place in front of Buckingham Palace on June 4, 2012 in honor of Elizabeth II's 60th jubilee . She did not comment on a possible new album. In the meantime, there were also speculations that Atomic Kitten would represent the United Kingdom at the Eurovision Song Contest 2012 in Azerbaijan , which they denied. On April 3, 2012 it was reported that Frost did not want to participate in the reunion if Katona were also part of the cast. As a result, it was reported on April 9, 2012 that Hamilton was ruling out a reunion as long as the Frost-Katona differences persisted. In a May 1, 2012 report in the Daily Mail, Frost denied any reunion plans.

2013: Reunion of the second line-up for the television documentary The Big Reunion

In the end, however, the reunification took place in early 2013 in the documentary The Big Reunion broadcast by the British television station ITV2 . The decision was made on October 18, 2012, whereby Frost did not participate due to her pregnancy and instead Katona returned to the band. The show - in which Atomic Kitten performed together with the reunited pop bands 911, Blue , B * Witched , Five , Honeyz and Liberty X - dealt with the question of what made successful bands from the late 1990s and early 2000s has been. They were accompanied by a documentary as they prepared for their big comeback concert on February 26, 2013 in London's Hammersmith Apollo . However, since this was sold out after minutes, it was speculated whether the show could be expanded to a full arena tour through the United Kingdom due to the high demand. This was confirmed on February 11, 2013 and scheduled for May 3-14, 2013. The bands later announced that the tour would be expanded to include two more concerts in Dublin and Belfast in mid-May 2013 , which ultimately comprised 14 dates. From December 11th to 15th, 2013, the bands performed at the Big Reunion Christmas Party Tour at five other concerts in England.

On February 17, 2013, Atomic Kitten appeared on the British talk show The Alan Titchmarsh Show , with Katona announcing that the band had signed a contract to release their own perfume . Hamilton also announced that they are working on a comeback single and that there is a possibility of a new album. On March 28, 2013, Hamilton stated that Frost would be welcome for a comeback anytime.

2014–2015: Planning for a new studio album and canceled world tour

Michelle Heaton temporarily stood in for McClarnon in 2017

In November 2014 Katona announced that Atomic Kitten would release a new album in 2015 that will revive their original “cheesy pop sound” and which they will tour “around the world”. The planned Atomic Kitten world tour called 15: The Greatest Hits Tour was canceled in mid-May 2015 without giving any reason.

In November 2015, the compilation album Whole Again: The Best Of was released, with no chart placement.

2016–2017: Temporary replacement by Heaton, down-under tour and Katona's final exit

In August 2016, Liberty X member Michelle Heaton confirmed that she was joining Atomic Kitten as a temporary member to step in for McClarnon at international appearances with long-haul flights as McClarnon suffers from fear of flying .

Atomic Kitten toured Australia and New Zealand with B * Witched, East 17 , Liberty X and S Club 3 in February 2017 , with Heaton replacing McClarnon.

In November 2017, Katona announced her final withdrawal from Atomic Kitten. In the run she had with a drag queen - Contest in a nightclub offended derogatory in Manchester Hamilton.

Since 2018: Duo line-up: McClarnon and Hamilton

After Katona's departure, McClarnon and Hamilton are now running Atomic Kitten as a duo.

On 29 July 2018 they performed at the South Tyneside festival in the port city of South Shields and on 23 February 2019 with a 90 - Revival Festival in Berlin velodrome on.

On 10 June 2020 Hamilton, McClarnon and developing and Frost attended a online - interview as part of The Interview Series - Life Stories in part that the therapist was moderated Lisa Johnson and Hamilton himself. The band discussed their time together and the impact that being in a girl group had on their individual mental health .

Timeline: band members

Discography

→ Main article : Atomic Kitten / discography  and list of songs by Atomic Kitten

Studio albums

year	title	Top ranking, total weeks, awardChart placementsChart placements (Year, title, rankings, weeks, awards, notes)				Remarks
		DE	AT	CH	UK
2000	Right now	DE6th gold (24 weeks)DE	AT8 (25 weeks) AT	CH4th gold (35 weeks)CH	UK1 × 2 Double platinum (55 weeks)UK	First published: October 23, 2000 Sales: + 830,000
2002	Feels so good	DE6th gold (30 weeks)DE	AT3 gold (21 weeks)AT	CH7th gold (20 weeks)CH	UK1 × 2 Double platinum (35 weeks)UK	First published: September 9, 2002 Sales: + 1,085,000
2003	Ladies night	DE12 (14 weeks) DE	AT10 gold (14 weeks)AT	CH11 (13 weeks) CH	UK5 platinum (14 weeks)UK	First published: November 10, 2003 Sales: + 315,000

Tours (selection)

Year (s)	trip
2001-2002	Right Here, Right Now Tour
2003	Be with Us Tour
2004	Greatest Hits Tour
2017	The Pop Australian / New Zealand Tour

Awards and nominations (selection)

year	event	category	For	result
2000	Smash Hits Poll Winners Party	Best New Band	herself	Won
	Disney Awards	Best Newcomer Award	herself	Won
2001	BRIT Awards	Pre Best British Newcomer	herself	Nominated
	MTV Europe Music Awards	Best pop	herself	Nominated
	Disney Channel Kids Awards	Best Female Group	herself	Won
	TMF Awards	Best Pop Group	herself	Won
	UK Online Music Awards	Best Pop Artist online	herself	Won
	Disney Awards	Best Pop Act and World's Sexiest Females	herself	Won
	Smash Hits Poll Winners Party	Best single	Whole Again	Won
	Music Week	Best Pop Act Online and Best Website	herself	Won
	Scouseology Awards	Best Music Personality	herself	Won
	Capitol Awards	Best website	herself	Won
2002	BRIT Awards	Best British single	Whole Again	Nominated
	BRIT Awards	Best British Newcomer	herself	Nominated
	MTV Europe Music Awards	Best UK and Ireland Act	herself	Nominated
	Ivor Novello Award	Most performed work	Whole Again	Nominated
	Echo Entertainment Awards	Best Contribution to Charity	herself	Won
2003	BRIT Awards	Best British single	The Tide Is High (Get the Feeling)	Nominated
	Capital Awards	Best Pop Group	herself	Won
	Heart radio	Record of the Year	It's OK!	Won
	Echo Entertainment Awards	Best Contribution to Music	herself	Won
	Radio Disney Music Award	Best Group	herself	Nominated
	NRJ Music Awards	International Duo / Group of the Year	herself	Nominated

Solo careers

McClarnon took part in June 2005 with Hamilton's ex-boyfriend Fran Cosgrave on the ITV reality dating show Celebrity Love Island , where they made it to the finals. In early 2006 she released her debut solo single, a cover version of the Barbra Streisand classic Woman in Love , which made it to number 5 on the British singles chart. In 2007 McClarnon took part with the song (Don't It Make You) Happy in the British preliminary decision for the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 , but failed there as the penultimate. In 2018 she announced that she had been inspired by country music by the Eagles and in the same year performed self-written songs at the country festival called C2C: Country to Country in London's O ₂ Arena .

Hamilton wanted to release her debut solo album in late summer 2005, but it has not yet been released. In 2007 she released her debut solo single Round and Round , which she recorded with the Dutch DJ Mischa Daniels . After Lionel Richie showed a liking for Hamilton's work, he selected her as a supporting act for the British concerts on his Coming Home tour in 2007 .

In late summer 2005, Frost released - along with Route 1 - their debut solo single Crash Landing , which landed at number 47 in the UK singles chart.

Web links

Commons : Atomic Kitten  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Atomic Kitten Official Website
• Atomic Kitten at laut.de
• Atomic Kitten on MusicBrainz (English)
• Atomic Kitten at Discogs (English)
• Further links on the subject of Atomic Kitten in the Open Music Project - MusicMoz (English)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ McCluskey and Kershaw: Atomic Kitten Foundation - In: theguardian.com, November 23, 2001 (English)
2. ↑ Atomic Kittens sales
3. ↑ Atomic Kitten: Reunion !?
4. ↑ No AK reunion
5. ↑ Atomic Kitten Comeback 2012
6. ↑ Hamilton's offer to Frost
7. ↑ Atomic Kittens Beginnings - In: telegraph.co.uk, September 9, 2010 (English)
8. ↑ ^{a b} OMD. In: BBC Breakfast . September 13, 2010, accessed on June 2, 2020 (English): “I left the music industry kicking and screaming in terms of performing, because at the height of indie rock and Britpop, [OMD] were totally out of fashion. I was conceited enough to think I could still write songs, and went and put [Atomic Kitten together] [...] It's very dirty, lots of backstabbing ... it's a very strange world, the manufactured pop industry. " 
9. ↑ ^{a b} Kerry Katona: Too Much, Too Young: My Story of Love, Survival and Celebrity . Ed .: Ebury Publishing . 2006, ISBN 978-0-09-191390-8 , pp. 161-162 ( google.co.uk ).
10. ↑ Katona's first exit - In: news.bbc.co.uk, January 5, 2020 (English)
11. ↑ Hamilton's first child
12. ↑ McCluskey's dismissal - In: telegraph.co.uk, May 14, 2013 (English)
13. ↑ Atomic Kittens collaboration with Kool & the Gang - In: news.bbc.com, October 30, 2003 (English)
14. ↑ Atomic Kittens Time Out - In: news.bbc.com, December 6, 2002 (English)
15. ↑ Hamilton suffers postpartum depression - In: metro.co.uk, November 19, 2018
16. ↑ Compilation album The Collection - In: Discogs
17. ↑ Compilation album Access All Areas: Remixed and B-Sides - In: Discogs
18. ↑ Compilation album Essential - In: Discogs
19. ↑ Article in the Liverpool Echo by Paddy Shennan, July 11, 2007 . liverpoolecho.co.uk. July 11, 2007. Archived from the original on September 27, 2007. Retrieved on December 28, 2010.
20. ↑ Compilation album The Essential Collection - In: Discogs
21. ↑ Atomic Kitten: Reunion !?
22. ↑ Atomic Kitten at the ESC?
23. ↑ Frost Katona Clinch
24. ↑ Atomic Kitten: Reunion !?
25. ↑ Frost's AK reunion denials
26. ↑ Atomic Kitten Comeback 2012
27. ↑ Katona instead of Frost ( Memento from November 27, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
28. ↑ The Big Reunion (Tour)
29. ↑ The Big Reunion (Tour)
30. ↑ The Big Reunion (Tour)
31. ↑ The Big Reunion (Tour)
32. ↑ Atomic Kittens Perfume Deal
33. ↑ Atomic Kitten: New Material
34. ↑ Hamilton's offer to Frost
35. ↑ Atomic Kittens 2015 album announcement - In: digitalspy.com, November 13, 2014 (English)
36. ↑ Atomic Kittens canceled 2015 world tour - In: atomickitten.com, December 1, 2014 (English)
37. ↑ Compilation album Whole Again: The Best Of - In: Discogs
38. ↑ Heaton's temporary substitute for McClarnon - In: business-standard.com, August 5, 2016 (English)
39. ↑ Atomic Kittens AUS-NZ-Tour - In: The Daily Telegraph , February 6, 2017 (English)
40. ↑ Kerry Katona was reportedly kicked out of Atomic Kitten for calling bandmate Hamilton a 'c ** t' - In: mirror.co.uk, November 18, 2017 (English)
41. ↑ Katona insults Hamilton
42. ↑ Atomic Kitten at the South Tyneside Festival 2018
43. ↑ Atomic Kittens Berlin gig
44. ↑ Atomic Kittens participating in an online interview - In: instagram.com, June 9, 2020
45. ↑ Atomic Kittens Participate in an Online Interview - In: instagram.com, June 10, 2020
46. ↑ Chart sources:
    • Atomic Kitten in the German charts on OfficialCharts.de
    • Atomic Kitten in the Austrian charts on AustrianCharts.at
    • Atomic Kitten in the Swiss charts on Hitparade.ch
    • Atomic Kitten in the Official UK Charts (English)
47. ↑ McClarnon's debut solo single Woman in Love - In: Discogs
48. ↑ McClarnon's participation in the 2007 ESC preliminary round - In: liverpoolecho.co.uk, January 19, 2020 (English)
49. ↑ McClarnon's solo foray into the country business - In: officialcharts.com, March 9, 2018 (English)
50. ↑ Hamilton's outstanding debut solo album - In: bbc.co.uk, June 28, 2005 (English)
51. ↑ Hamilton's debut solo single Round and Round - In: Discogs
52. ↑ Hamiltons as Lionel Richies Supporting Act - In: femalefirst.co.uk, October 1, 2007 (English)
53. ↑ Frost's debut solo single Crash Landing - In: Discogs