DID YOU KNOW? Little Mix were originally called “Rhythmix” when through to the “judges house” section of The X Factor but had to change their name in 2011 following a dispute with a Brighton- based children’s music charity with the same name. They had no legal requirements to change the name, but did so as to not cause difficulties for the children’s charity.

Little Mix are a British girl group formed in 2011 during the eighth series of the UK version of ‘The X Factor’. They were the first group to win the competition and following their victory they signed with Simon Cowell’s record label Syco Music and released a cover of Damien Rice’s “Cannonball” as their winner’s single. the members are Jade Thirlwall, Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jesy Nelson. They each auditioned for The X Factor individually as soloists but failed the first challenge of the “bootcamp” section. They were then given another chance to compere when they were placed in two separate ensembles by the judges during the “group bootcamp” stage, with Edwards and Nelson in four-member group “Faux Pas” and thrill all and Pinnock in three-member group “Orion”. Both groups failed to make it through to the next stage. A later decision recalled two members from each group to form a four-piece group, they were each selected and were sent through to the “judges house” section on The X Factor.

After the group’s win on The X Factor, they released their debut album “DNA” in 2012, which peaked inside the top 10 in ten countries including the UK and US. This made Little Mix the first group since the “Pussycat Dolls” to reach the US top 5 with their debut album as well as earning the highest debut US chart position by a British girl group, breaking the record previously held by the Spice Girls. In the UK, the album spawned the number one single “Wings”. The group’s second album, “Salute” (2013) became their second album to debut inside the top 10 in both the UK and US. This album produced two top 10 singles in the UK, “Move” and “Salute”. Subsequently, their third studio album, “Get Weird” was released in 2015 and it is their best-selling and longest charting album to date in the UK. The lead single from this album, “Black Magic” reached number one in the UK and was nominated for two Brit Awards in 2016. Their fourth studio album “Glory Days” (2016) became their first number one album in the UK and was also the longest reigning girl group Number 1 since the Spice Girls’ debut album 20 years earlier. the lead single from this album “Shout Out to My Ex” became the group’s fourth UK number one single, while the second and fourth singles, “Touch” and “Power”, became the group’s tenth and eleventh top 10 single sin the UK, respectively.

Little mix have received several awards and accolades during their career, including toe MTX Europe Music Awards, two Teen Choice Awards and two Glamour Awards. As of October 2016, they have achieved four platinum certified albums and eleven certified singles in the UK. With four UK number one singles and highest first week UK album sales for a girl band since the Spice Girls, Little mix are one of the most successful female acts in contemporary British popular culture. The group won ‘Best British Single’ for “Shout Out to My Ex” at the 2017 Brit Awards and also appeared on Debrett’s 2017 list of the most influential people in the UK. Little Mix currently holds the record for the most VEVO Certified Videos for a girl group, with 13 certified videos in total.

Article by Candice Eastman.