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Thursday, March 28, 2024

How far would you go to see one of your favorite groups from the '90s reunited in concert? For me, the answer was New Jersey.

Ten years after creating mania all over the world as the British ambassadors of Girl Power, the Spice Girls reunited for a world tour. Needless to say I was ecstatic.

I was lucky enough to be able to buy a ticket last fall, but I wasn't even sure I was going to be able to go.

When it came time to register for spring semester, I made sure my schedule accommodated the trip. All the planning paid off, and I was on my way to see the Spice Girls reunion tour.

The night of the concert, a huge line of mostly girls snaked in front of the Prudential Center in Newark.

Even in below zero weather, there were some fans dressed as the Spice Girls. I was just as excited as the next person about the show, but you couldn't pay me to put on a tight dress and pumps in that kind of weather.

There were people of all kinds there, mostly college-age girls like me who were into the group when they were younger, but also parents, little kids, sorority girls and even all-black-wearing gothic teens.

And we weren't the only ones that traveled a ways to see them. The group of people sitting next to us had driven hours from Washington D.C.

After a couple of hours of waiting, the lights went off and the Spice Girls rose from the stage on individual platforms to complete and utter pandemonium.

They didn't even allow the crowd to recuperate from the excitement before going straight into "Spice Up Your Life." After that, their energy didn't dwindle as they delivered hit after hit to fanatical crowds. When the girls sang "Slam it to the left if you're having a good time," you better believe everyone in that arena was doing just that.

My only friend crazy enough to travel to Jersey for a concert with me was sold by the end of the fifth or sixth song when she turned to me and said, "This is the best concert I've ever been to." I'm sure she wasn't alone.

The show was nothing short of spectacular. It was extremely well performed and choreographed. The best part is that the girls seemed just as overjoyed to be performing together as we were to see them, frequently hugging and joking with each other.

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During their song "Mama," which they dedicated to their mothers and children, Mel B. brought her newborn up onstage and they all played with him while they sang. Meanwhile, pictures of the girls with their mothers flashed in the giant screens behind them.

Just before aptly ending the show with the song "Goodbye," they did a disco medley that started off with "Celebration" and ended with "We Are Family." But of course, no concert is complete without an encore. The Fab Five came back out to earth-shattering screams with "Wannabe," their first hit, and finished off the show with a reprise of "Spice Up Your Life" while glitter and confetti streamed from the stage around them.

Overall, the show was everything you would expect from a Spice Girls concert with none of the pretentiousness you expect from a massive reunion tour. With few exceptions, it wasn't very moving or life-altering, but it was thrilling as hell and pure, hardcore fun.

All planes, trains and cabs considered, would I do it again? Would I skip class, work, meetings, travel over 1,000 miles and brave the freezing cold to see the Return of the Spice Girls tour? Duh!

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