When five young women answered a theatrical magazine ad in the summer of 1993 looking for "lively girls" to form a musical group, they had no idea they would be changing the face of music for decades to come. In the age of boy bands, Emma Bunton (Baby Spice), Geri Halliwell (Ginger Spice), Melanie Brown (Scary Spice), Melanie Chisholm (Sporty Spice), and Victoria Beckham née Adams (Posh Spice) showed what girl power could do. Their 1996 sing-along hit, “Wannabe,” hit number one in the UK, and by the end of the year, it repeated that feat in 21 other countries. Their debut album, Spice, came out later that year, delivering the friends-first anthem “Say You’ll Be There” and the romantic “2-Become-1.” They continued their chart-topping success with their second album, Spiceworld, which served as a soundtrack to the gloriously over-the-top film of the same name. The 1997 album, colored with tinges of ‘60s pop, ‘70s disco, and ‘80s-style samba and filled with empowering songs about sisterhood and self-respect inspired a new generation of women pop stars, like Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera. But touring and life as tabloid fodder took their toll and the group began to splinter not long after the release of their R&B-fueled third album, Forever (2000). They announced a hiatus in February of 2001, but it didn’t stick. The Spice Girls reunited for a tour in 2007, the London Summer Olympics in 2012, and a string of concerts since (without former member Posh). Whether on stage or on the radio, the Spice Girls continue to inspire legions of women to step out of the background and kick it up.