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Mel B Reveals Why She Returned to AGT for the New Fantasy League Spinoff
Get to know Mel B, AKA Scary Spice, international pop star and current America's Got Talent: Fantasy League Judge.
They called her Scary Spice, but she was always as lovable as it gets. Melanie Janine Brown, better known as Mel B, is a pop star and advocate who will soon return to the America's Got Talent Judges' table for the upcoming Fantasy League spinoff.
Brown previously joined the AGT family for Seasons 8 through 13, then returned for America's Got Talent: The Champions in 2019. For the upcoming America's Got Talent: Fantasy League, which premieres in 2024, Mel will be back alongside Howie Mandel, Heidi Klum and Simon Cowell.
“I think I just had been knocking on the door for way too long, they were like, ‘Okay, we will let her in, we will let her back,'" Mel B explained to Extra. “I got asked. I thought, ‘Yes, who wouldn’t want to join this show?’”
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And having sparred with fellow Judge Cowell over the years, she teased him in a special clip aired during September 27's AGT 18 Finale...and everyone else, too.
"He is just one of those annoying people, isn't he?" she said before reminiscing about the time they both spit on each other. Girl's got jokes. No, really. She tried stand-up comedy on the show and it went...fine. Check out the hilarious video above!
Can't wait to tune in. (And for the record, she can neither confirm nor deny rumors of an AGT Spice Girls reunion). In the meantime, take a look back at the pop star's amazing career that led her to AGT.
Mel B and the Spice Girls
Mel was born on May 29, 1975 and was and raised in Leeds, United Kingdom. She had an interest in dance from a young age, according to Hello! magazine, which notes that she would sometimes skip school to attend dance auditions.
After answering an ad in a paper, an audition landed Mel a spot in a girl group originally called Touch before it was officially known internationally as the Spice Girls. The other famous members are Victoria Beckham, Geri Halliwell, Emma Bunton, and Melanie Chisholm.
In 1996, their hit single "Wannabe" rocketed the group to fame, and Mel became forever known as Scary Spice. The most successful girl group in history, at the height of their fame the Spice Girls had a world tour, a feature film, and two best-selling albums, according to the Encyclopedia Britannica. Following the departure of Halliwell, AKA Ginger Spice, the remaining four Spice Girls released a final album before disbanding for good to pursue solo projects in 2000. However, they all reunited for a tour in 2019, save for Beckham.
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Mel B's 3 kids and opening up about motherhood
Mel B has three daughters: Phoenix, 24; Angel, 16 (whom she shares with comedian Eddie Murphy); and Madison, 10. Serious girl power!
“Single moms, we do it all,” she told Us Weekly in 2018. “We have to be the mom, the dad, the provider. We have to make sure they’re in check and that they do their homework. Pack their lunch. Buy clothes. You have to do everything. So props to all the single parents out there."
RELATED: Mel B's 24-Year-Old Daughter Phoenix Looks Just Like Her in Fun New Video
She also opened up to People that same year about each of her daughter's very individual personalities, explaining that they are all "very different".
“Madison will meditate with me and play with all of my crystals, and she’s really sweet,” the 48-year-old said. “I need to beg Angel for a hug. Angel is very much in her own little world and very creative with the computer and making things and decorating her room. I’m thinking I know what she does half the time, but she’s a good girl."
Today she's happily engaged to longtime boyfriend, hairdresser Rory McPhee. When she revealed the news to her fellow Spice Girls, Mel told Hello!, "Emma [Bunton] cried, so did Mel C."
Mel B's impressive TV career
In addition to participating in Spice Girls reunions, performing in major theater productions and releasing a second solo album, Mel's had a flourishing career as a TV personality. Her reality show, Mel B: The Scary Life ran for ten episodes in 2010 and included appearances from The Pussycat Dolls and Kim Kardashian. She was a presenter, host, judge or contestant on programs including Dancing With The Stars, Miss Universe, The X Factor, Britain & Ireland's Next Top Model, Whose Line Is It Anyway?, Project Runway, RuPaul's Drag Race, Drop the Mic, Lip Sync Battle, Queen of the Universe, and The Circle.
An honor from the palace
In May 2022, Brown and her mother, Andrea Brown, visited Buckingham Palace, where Prince William, Duke of Cambridge appointed her a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her charitable work with vulnerable women. For the occasion, she wore a red dress designed by her fellow Spice Girl Victoria Beckham, per the Daily Mail.
