EXCLUSIVE: Mel C celebrated 30 years of the Wannabe at the Silver Clef Awards, where she opened up about her Spice Girls bandmates and the importance of Girl Power21:45, 09 Jul 2026Melanie Chisholm has lifted the lid on all things Girl Power, and her favourite Spice Girls bandmate, as she celebrated the 30-year anniversary of their debut single.‌It is a huge week for the five-piece - also consisting of Melanie Brown, Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton and Geri Horner - as Wannabe was released three decades ago, and served as the perfect introduction to Posh, Baby, Sporty, Scary and Ginger Spice.‌Speaking exclusively to the Mirror at the Silver Clef Awards, held at London’s Royal Albert Hall, Mel C named the bandmate she has the closest relationship to now, and reflected on their stratospheric rise to fame.‌When asked who her favourite Spice Girl is - and who she would gravitate to if she wasn’t in the band - the 52-year-old laughed: “That's dodgy, that is! I wouldn’t want to choose.“I'd like to choose a different one on a different day. I'm probably closest to Emma [out of] all of the girls. I love my Baby Spice. I saw her yesterday … Emma yesterday, Victoria today because she's dressed me.”‌Mel, aka Sporty Spice, rubbed shoulders with some huge names at the ceremony this evening, including Lily Allen, John Bishop and Jessie J. She also took home the Global Impact award for her work in the music industry and beyond.“I’m having such a great year,” she continued. “I feel here tonight, especially with yesterday being the anniversary of Wannabe. 30 years - that is very much a celebration of the Spice Girls, as well.“If it wasn't for being part of the band, I wouldn't have a solo career and be an international artist. I feel very proud, I'm just having a ball.”‌“I can believe it's 30 years because so much has happened,” she said of the milestone anniversary. “But it does also feel like yesterday. I remember being in that little studio in the Strongroom down in East London with Matt [Rowe] and Biff [Stannard], and it was this tiny little room, all seven of us crammed in there, and they said, just sing anything.“They were trying to bottle that energy, that chaos of the Spice Girls - which is what Wannabe is, and why it had to be the debut single, because it was the perfect introduction to us as a band.”‌It’s hard to fathom but Wannabe was released in 1996 and became an instant hit for the Spice Girls, reaching number one across 37 countries.They followed this up with Say You’ll Be There, 2 Become 1, Who Do You Think You Are and Spice Up Your Life, while injecting the term “girl power” into our lives.Shedding light on why the feminist notion is more important than ever, Mel added: “Because I just think we'll never be equal… Hopefully, we will get there one day. But there's just such a long way to go - [it’s] just the way our society is built.Article continues below“Girls are incredible. My daughter's generation, they are so much more outspoken than I think I ever was. Women rule. We're so inclusive, and we have such a huge following in the LGBTQ+ community as well. But it's all about the girls and the gays, isn't it!”Like this story? For more of the latest showbiz news and gossip, follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads .