How The Spice Girls' 'Wannabe' Changed My Life

In 1996, the iconic piano notes at the beginning of the Spice Girls’ “Wannabe” launched the musical careers of five British women. Three thousand miles away in a Cincinnati suburb, I was a thunderstruck third grader dancing to the pop hit, but little did I know the song also pointed me in the direction of my own profession.

I get it. Scary Spice confidentially asserting “I’ll tell you what I want, what I really, really want” wasn’t a direct calling for me to pursue music journalism as a life path. In fact, the provocative image of the Spice Girls (The miniskirts! The sky-high platforms!) was an intimidating force for my eight-year-old self. However, that year I received a boombox for Christmas and for my birthday the following day, I received my first CD: Spice. And the first song on that first album was “Wannabe.”

Of course, attention needs to be paid to the Spice Girls phenomenon. As one of the most successful groups of all time, the women basically took over the world for a moment. They had their own movie — a cult classic, naturally — and listeners everywhere found themselves identifying with the singers. It would have been impossible to ignore them, CD or not, but it was moments I spent alone that came to define my love of music.

Third-grade Maggie consumes music in the same way that Adult Maggie does. Obsessively. These days, it’s usually an album played on repeat, taking me through runs, subway trips, and days in the office. Back in 1996, it was a CD looped on end as I sat on my blue carpet, squished between my bed and the bookshelf where my boombox presided. The start of this fixation dates back roughly to the moment I wrestled with the ironclad cellophane protecting Spice.

I was hooked on that record, earnestly dog-earring the album jacket until I knew each lyric — from “Wannabe” to "If U Can't Dance." Oblivious to the overt sexual references in pretty much every song, I innocently sang along (sorry, Mom and Dad!), channeling the confidence the Spice Girls exuded.

My dedication to fastidiously memorizing albums grew with my CD collection. One $13 disc became a quick bargaining tool for good behavior or a birthday present. I’d prowl through bins of CDs at garage sales, discovering artists beyond Top 40 radio. (It would be years before I’d mimic this same practice, sitting alone in my parents’ basement, listening to their record player.) The burgeoning journalist in me wanted to know more about the stories behind the music, which is when Rolling Stone fatefully fell into my lap.

Skip ahead 10 years and it’s not hard to figure out why I’m still obsessed with music, to the point where I write research it, discuss it at length, and write about it on a daily basis. I still know all of the words to “Wannabe,” including the rap (again, so sorry, Mom and Dad), though my tastes have expanded well beyond the pop music world.

My eight-year-old self might not have seen this coming. In fact, she probably didn’t even know how the fearless of attitude of the Spice Girls would influence her. But looking back, relentlessly pursuing a career in an industry I love is me living my legacy of girl power.

Celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Spice Girls' debut album, Spice, with a look back at "Wannabe" and the other singles from the LP below!

Photo: Getty Images