In the early 2000s, Western girl groups like Destiny’s Child, The Pussycat Dolls, and the Spice Girls dominated the top charts. In the 2010s, we saw a resurgence of this musical ensemble with Fifth Harmony and Little Mix. Now, as K-pop acts like TWICE and Blackpink redefine what it means to perform in a group, the Western girl group has made a comeback with an emphasis on diversity and empowering those who need it. Here are some of the top groups you should look out for!
FLO
From London, FLO is a girl group of powerhouse vocalists Renée Downer, Stella Quaresma, and Jorja Douglas. Their music is similar to the 2000s, drawing from classic hip-hop and R&B. A testament to this is their most recent single “Fly Girl” featuring an iconic rapper from that period, Missy Elliot. “Fly Girl” and other songs like “Summertime” and “Feature Me” are unapologetically confident. Paired with breakup anthems “Cardboard Box” and “Not My Job,” the group blends their perfectly placed harmonies with an allure that leaves you wanting more.
Boys World
Standing for the “best of yourself,” Boys World is a Los Angeles-based quintet of members Queenie Mae Villavuz, Elana Caceres, Lillian Kay, Makhyli Simpson, and Olivia Ruby. As stated in their Spotify bio, “Our music is fun and energetic pop with an R&B edge and lyrics we hope are relatable.” An example that highlights this is their debut single “Girlfriends,” which is an empowering friendship anthem toppling over a much less-than-boy. Another song blasts Hot Girl Summer with a message of self-love and a catchy chorus chanting “So What.” Other songs of theirs worth listening to are the powerful “Mantrum,” “Gone Girl” with soulful harmonies, and the lowkey in-love-with-life “Something in the Water.”
Citizen Queen
Formed by Pentatonix’s Scott Hoying, Citizen Queen is a quartet made of Kaedi Dalley, Cora Isabel, Nina Ann Nelson, and Kaylah Sharve’. After releasing multiple acapella covers and singles such as “Call Me Queen,” they released their first album “Clique” in September of 2023. Its lead single, “XO,” is an addictive “bad ***** anthem” about needing no one else. It was followed up with a lovesong in “Waste My Time,” an angry letter in “Break Up,” and the keeping-your-peace mantra “Whatchu Want.” Their most popular song currently is “So Special,” a track lining out all the reasons that make the members special. The rest of “Clique” is girl group perfection, with songs like “Holdupbaby!” reminiscent of K-pop’s in-your-face nature and “FYP (burn book)” being a cipher introducing each member.
Say Now
Say Now is a British musical trinity with members Ysabelle Salvanera, Amelia Onourah, and Madeleine Haynes. While under the name “needanamebro,” they released an EP of the same name. It starts with “Netflix (Better Now Without You),” a fast synth track about moving on from someone despite its first lyric, “Still got your name on my Netflix.” “Not a Lot Left to Say” is a breezy-sounding, bittersweet ending to a relationship. “Better Love” is an uplifting song with not only it being a love letter to a partner who made the singer a better person, but the harmonies build up into a beautiful culmination. Now as Say Now, they released “S.I.N.G.L.E.”, a song about leaving negativity behind and in some sense, leaving behind their previous era for new beginnings.
With that, give these new Western girl groups a try no matter if you’ve been into their genre of music or not! You can find a Spotify playlist of all the songs mentioned in this article here.