TrueBliss with the Popstars panellists. Photo / Supplied
TrueBliss with the Popstars panellists. Photo / Supplied
TrueBliss were the guinea pigs of manufactured reality TV fame, and 22 years on from being placed together in the fateful show Popstars they've been given somewhat of a redemption arc.
As part of TVNZ2's Popstars revival, TrueBliss make a special guest appearance on Monday night's episode, challenging the top 12 hopefuls to reinvent the group's debut hit Tonight.
The Popstars panellists split the contestants into groups, seeing who can conquer collaboration and the reinvention of the classic hit. Erika Takacs, Joe Cotton, Keri Harper and Megan Alatini watch on like proud mothers.
Carly Binding, Megan Cassie, Keri Harper, Joe Cotton and Erika Takacs found fame on Popstars, so what do they think of the revival? Photo / File
One group moved TrueBliss to tears, the reaction capturing how it felt for the band to have their work reinvented by a new group of talent, several of who weren't even born in 1999.
Speaking to the Herald before the airing of tonight's episode, Takacs and Joe Cotton opened up about the mix of emotions - from nostalgia to excitement.
The return to Popstars
Cotton, 39, says it "feels right" to be part of the revival, especially after the group didn't exactly emerge from the show with the funds and support they needed.
"It was a bunch of people putting a show together on a smell of an oily rag, and despite the fact that it [Popstars in 1999] did make money, nobody expected that," Cotton says, adding it was refreshing to see how much mentorship was available to the contestants in 2021.
TrueBliss today:The group held back tears as they watched Popstars performers reinvent their single Tonight. Photo / TVNZ
The format for Popstars is very different to the documentary-style show which aired in 1999, and Takacs, 43, says it in part reflects how the music industry has evolved. Gone is the need for a cast of characters within a girl group, or even a major label as a necessary platform to release their music.
Instead, some contestants have singles released on streaming services before they even set foot in the audition round. And both women say that's positive.
"I think certainly these days, people are aware of being used and taken advantage of a lot more," Cotton says. "I think there are a lot more people out there right now trying to make sure that doesn't happen any more."
"I came into [Popstars 2021] with my anxieties from my own experiences and walked out of it going 'Hey, this is going to be quite a different experience for these artists. And I think that's really a wonderful thing," Takacs says.
Looking back
Cotton says Popstars hopefuls in 2021 have more power and creative agency than a girl group did in the late 1990s.
She felt great seeing how free the contestants were to be themselves, in stark contrast to how TrueBliss were able to manage their image. She doesn't feel jealous, but there was a feeling of wishing they had the same budget and freedom the contestants have now.
But Takacs says there are some similarities to what they're going through now - although now the contestants have the instant feedback loop of social media to contend with. She admits if TrueBliss were rising stars in 2021, it would be "pretty hellish for all of us."
"There are a lot of uncertainties," Takacs explained. "They're all fending for themselves as individuals to make this step."
"We waited a week or so for the show to go to air and to see what the paper said, whereas now as soon as someone's picture or face appears on screen, someone can be commenting whether they thought that was a good version of that song and were they pitchy or that was amazing, that kind of thing."
Popstars 2021 has seen TrueBliss fangirls re-emerge with the merch and cassette tapes from their childhood. In some ways, that is surprising to Cotton.
"You know, a lot of people see us as this cheesy '90s pop band, and we've always had to deal with some people laughing at us and putting us down. So to have people [Popstars contestants do that song respectfully was such a nice feeling."
Four out of the five TrueBliss members remain like family, with the exception of Carly Binding who left the group in 2000. But there's no bad blood, if anything, there's a feeling that they wish she was involved in the group's reality TV resurgence.
"It would have been great to have her with us. It just didn't pan out that way, unfortunately," Takacs says.
"The truth is if she ever needed us, we would still be there for her," Cotton says. "Sometimes I feel bad because she's the one missing out on all this good stuff."
Binding told Spy in April: "I walked away from the group because I had my own path to follow. I had things I wanted to say on my own and a lot to prove to myself and other people."
And although Cotton says Binding has "closed the book" on their girl group chapter, the four other members are content carrying on the legacy without her, even if it's not the same as it was in 1999.
• Tune in to TVNZ2 at 7.30pm to see TrueBliss judge the Popstars' contestant's new versions of Tonight.
