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Sugababes announce return: Original members and where they are now

The original group members are reunited!

More than two decades after forming, Sugababes have announced their return – but who were the original members of the Sugababes?

Who replaced them in the line-up and where are they all now?

Here’s everything you need to know about the ever-changing face of the all-girl (now women) pop group.

The Sugababes now
Sugababes attend the 2012 Q Awards at The Grosvenor Hotel (Credit: Splash)

Read more: Full Celebs Go Dating line-up revealed, including Sugababes’ Mutya Buena

This month, Sugababes announced their return to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their classic debut album One Touch.

The trio also revealed they’ll be working on new music.

Mutya Buena, Siobhán Donaghy and Keisha Buchanan make up the current line-up.

But who else has joined and left the group, named the most successful female act of the 21st century by British Hit Singles & Albums?

Sugababes members: Siobhán Donaghy 1998 until now

Siobhán was an original member of Sugababes, and joined at 13.

However, she left the group during a Japanese promotional tour in August 2001.

She later revealed she was suffering from clinical depression.

Heidi Range replaced Siobhán, who went on to release solo music.

After years of saying she wouldn’t reform with the Sugababes, Siobhán left her office job at Storm Models in 2012 to become part of MKS.

MKS – a ‘new’ group with Siobhán, Mutya Buena and Keisha Buchanan –  released single Flatline, but it wasn’t the commercial comeback they’d hoped for.

They began performing as Sugababes again in September 2019.

Siobhán is now 36, married to Chris McCoy and mum to son Ford.

Sugababes
Siobhán Donaghy (far right) attending The NME Awards 2014 with her fellow Sugababes group members (Credit: Splash)

Mutya Buena 1998 until now

Along with Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena was one of the original members of Sugababes.

All Saints manager Ron Tom created the Sugababes in 1998.

Siobhán Donaghy and Mutya Buena were both aged just 13 at the time.

As the Sugababes, the group released their first album, One Touch, in 2000.

It spawned the top 10 single Overload.

Amelle Berrabah replaced Mutya in December 2005, when she left the band to spend more time with her daughter.

Mutya went on to have chart success as a solo artist with Real Girl peaking at two and Song 4 Mutya at number eight in 2007.

The singer/songwriter later trained to become a psychologist for children.

She also appeared in 2009’s Celebrity Big Brother alongside Coolio, Ulrika Jonsson and Verne Troyer.

In 2011, Mutya, Keisha and Siobhán formed MKS and began recording their debut album, but never reached the success of Sugababes fame.

A High Court judge declared Mutya bankrupt in 2014.

MKS regained the name Sugababes in September 2019, and recorded a rendition of the song Flowers along with DJ Spoony.

Since then, Mutya’s appeared on Celebs Go Dating, Just Tattoo of Us and Celebrity Coach Trip, and set up her own music agency, Colour of Musiq.

Mutya is now 35, and has a grown-up daughter.

The Sugababes member Mutya Buena
Sugababes singer Mutya Buena on Celebs Go Dating (Credit: E4/Twitter)

Read more: Heidi Range reveals her daughter was hospitalised during the Christmas period

Keisha Buchanan 1998 until now

Management ousted Keisha from the band in September 2009.

Former UK Eurovision entry Jade Ewen replaced her.

This came after 11 years in Sugababes, leaving no original band members left.

Shortly after, Keisha featured on Jay Sean’s album All or Nothing, before starting work on her own studio record.

In 2011, original members Mutya, Keisha and Siobhán reformed as MKS, after Sugababes disbanded with Amelle, Heidi and Jade.

In September 2019, MKS regained the name Sugababes and recorded a rendition of the song Flowers along with DJ Spoony.

Keisha appears in Leigh-Anne Pinnock’s documentary Race, Pop and Power (Thursday May 13 2021) to discuss prejudice towards black women in the music industry.

She has now become a YouTube star with almost 700,000 subscribers, where she shares tips, what she is up to, as well as secrets from when she was in the band.

Keisha is currently 36, and thought to be single.

Sugababes performing
Keisha Buchanan (far left) on stage with Mutya and Siobhan (Credit: Splash)

Sugababes members: Heidi Range 2001 to 2011

Heidi Range, now 37, replaced Siobhán in 2001.

After her introduction, the group released three multi-platinum selling albums: Angels with Dirty Faces (2002), Three (2003) and Taller in More Ways (2005).

However, after the Sugababes’ final single Freedom was released in 2011, the group split without any official confirmation or announcement.

Heidi quickly moved on, competing in ITV’s Dancing on Ice the following year, as well as Celebrity MasterChef.

She performed in musical theatre after the band broke up, appearing in the Happy Days musical, and on the West End in The War of the Worlds.

She is often seen sharing her family life with her 59.9K Instagram followers.

Heidi married Alex Partakis in Florence on September 3 2016, and she is currently expecting their second child.

Amelle Berrabah
Singer Amelle Berrabah is pictured leaving the ITV studios following a guest appearance (Credit: Splash)

Sugababes members: Amelle Berrabah 2005 until 2011

Amelle replaced Mutya Buena in December 2005.

Following the release of their first greatest hits album, the new line-up released two further studio albums: Change (2007) and Catfights and Spotlights (2008).

Amelle’s behaviour off stage raised eyebrows, however…

Police arrested her for alleged assaults in 2007 and 2008, although no charges were bought on either occasion.

She is also the only Sugababes member to have had a No.1 single outside of the group, after appearing on Tinchy Stryder’s Never Leave You in 2009.

After the end of Sugababes, Amelle released a handful of collaborations with dance DJs and rappers, before putting out her own track Summertime in 2014.

Amelle later competed in BBC One’s celebrity gymnastic contest Tumble and appeared on Celebrity Masterchef in 2016.

She is currently 37, and married to Marcio Sousa Rosa with whom she has a daughter named Amirah.

Jade Ewen 2009 until 2011

Former UK Eurovision entry Jade Ewen replaced Keisha in September 2009.

Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Jade Ewen released the group’s seventh studio album, Sweet 7, in 2010.

A year later, they announced they were taking an indefinite hiatus – the same year the original line-up reformed as Mutya Keisha Siobhan and released the single Flatline.

Jade competed in Tom Daley’s ITV diving show Splash! back in 2013, and admitted afterwards that she only did it for the money.

A court declared her bankrupt in 2015, when she reportedly owed thousands to the taxman.

After a small part in BBC’s long-running drama Casualty and comedy series The Tracy Ullman Show, Jade embarked on a whole new world as Princess Jasmine in the musical adaptation of Aladdin on London’s West End.

Last year Jade, now 33, appeared on TV comedy-drama, There She Goes.

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Keisha takes part in Leigh-Anne: Race, Pop and Power on Thursday May 13 2021 at 9pm on BBC One.

Were you a fan of the Sugababes? Leave us a comment on our Facebook page @EntertainmentDailyFix.


Helen Fear
TV Editor

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