Play (Swedish group)

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Play
OriginStockholm, Sweden
Genres
Years active
  • 2000–2005
  • 2009–2011
Labels
Past membersAnaïs Lameche
Faye Hamlin
Emelie Norenberg
Rosie Munter
Sanne Karlsson
Anna Sundstrand
Janet Leon

Play was a

Swedish pop girl group. Faye Hamlin, Anna Sundstrand, Anaïs Lameche, and Rosie Munter formed Play's original lineup from the band's formation from 2000 until late 2003. After founding member Faye left the group, fifth member Janet Leon joined Play to fill Hamlin's position as lead singer.[1] In 2005, the group officially announced an "indefinite break" and split up.[2] At that time, Play had sold almost one million albums.[3] Four years later, in 2009, the group reformed with a new lineup of three members consisting of Anaïs, Faye, and the sixth and oldest member of Play, Sanne Karlsson. In February 2011, an official statement was made that Faye had once again left the group in 2010 and would be replaced by Emelie Norenberg.[4]
It was announced in May 2011 that the band had separated for the second time.

History

2000–2002: Formation and Us Against the World

Play was formed in 2000 as a result of a nationwide talent search led by

Hot 100 Singles Sales chart and stayed on the chart for 65 weeks. The song also charted in France, and Germany. In Sweden, Play's first full-length English-language album, Us Against the World
, was released on 12 December 2001. In the United States the album was released on 25 June 2002 and named as Play. In 2002, the group released the second single, "Cinderella".

Play toured in the United States in the coming months, opening for

gold on 24 March 2003 for sales of 500,000 copies.[6][7]

2003–2004: Replay and second lineup

Play returned to the studio to begin recording their second album,

My Life As a Teenage Robot. Play continued to tour in 2003 and they also appeared on several Nickelodeon television specials as featured guests and performers. The group also released the second and final single from Replay, a cover of Atomic Kitten's "Whole Again
".

In October 2003, Play's lead singer, sixteen-year-old Faye Hamlin, decided to leave Play to pursue a college education. Faye continued to make appearances with Play until December 2003, and appeared in Play's video "It's a Hard Knock Life" which was featured on a DVD re-release of the hit musical film Annie. On 15 December, a formal press release on the group's official site informed fans of the lineup change and introduced new member, Janet Leon, who would become Play's new lead singer along with Anaïs.

2004–2005: Don't Stop the Music, Play Around the Christmas Tree and split

In 2004, Play became affiliated with everGirl, a doll and fashion brand from Nickelodeon.[9] The group recorded the everGirl theme song as well as a music video.

Play's third US album, Don't Stop the Music, was released on 9 March 2004. The first single, "Every Little Step", featured Aaron Carter[10] and the second single was the everGirl theme song. This album was aimed more at a younger audience. The title track from the album Don't Stop the Music was originally written and recorded by Swedish singer Robyn. The album is one of Play's least successful albums, failing to chart on Billboard.

In November 2004, Play released their fourth US album, a Christmas collection entitled Play Around the Christmas Tree. The album also failed to chart on the Billboard 200, and is their other worst selling album. Little news of Play was heard until the release of their compilation album entitled Girl's Mind which was released in April 2005. The album features ten of Play's best-known songs, and all feature Faye's vocals. Play never came to the US to promote Girl's Mind, and it was not widely released in stores across the country. It was their third consecutive album also failing to chart on Billboard 200. After a long period of no activity, in September 2005 an official statement from the members of Play confirmed that they were on an indefinite break as a group. At that time, Play had sold almost one million albums.[3]

2009–2011: Reunion, Under My Skin and second split

Faye Hamlin, Anaïs Lameche and Sanne Karlsson performing together in Malmö
in July 2010.

On 26 November 2009, Faye and Anaïs appeared on the Swedish radio stations NRJ and RIXFM, along with another singer named Sanne Karlsson. They then announced as a trio, they would return as "Play" and were to partake in the filming of reality show Made in Sweden just like former member Janet was.[11] Anna was not included in the reunion due to living in the United States.[12] Rosie was originally to be in the reunion, but dropped out three weeks before filming Made in Sweden in order to pursue a solo career as a singer/songwriter.[13] This meant that Play had to find another member, which resulted in Sanne joining the group. With the new lineup in place, Play recorded a full album in four weeks and on 27 November 2009, Play made their first public appearance in over 4 years since disbanding in 2005. Made In Sweden aired in December 2009, and followed the girls searching for a new member, training, choosing and recording songs, recording the music video for "Famous" and following them on their journey to re-enter the music scene along with the Made In Sweden team: Andreas Carlsson, Anders Bagge and their old manager, Laila Bagge. The reality programme consisted of four episodes. In 2009, Play was also a judge for the 8th annual Independent Music Awards to support independent artists' careers.

The lead single of their first studio album in six years was titled "

Disney Channel Original Movie Avalon High. However, just before the girls were about to enter the studio to record the song, Faye called Laila Bagge and told her that she had once again decided to leave the group. Faye's vocals are therefore not present in the song. It was also announced that Faye would not be joining Anais and Sanne for the promotion of the song. The song premiered on 26 October on Radio Disney. Faye had not been mentioned in the group's blog, nor seen with the others since late September, and some were doubting her place in the band. Multiple sources stated that Faye was writing and recording a solo album, and more pictures cropped of Faye on her own. Due to the search of a new member, Faye's decision to leave the group was not revealed to the fans until February 2011, when Play announced that Emelie Norenberg, Sanne's best friend, who knew many of the other former members, would become the newest member of Play. This left Anais as the only original member of the group, and the only member to be in every incarnation of the group.[citation needed
]

Anaïs, Sanne and Emelie were planning a return to the United States and release an EP. However, on 23 May 2011, it was announced after a lack of news, that the plans that were made for the group would not happen and that the group had broken up for a second and final time. The band split up in early 2011. Moreover, it was later revealed through an official statement that the members were no longer on speaking terms for a variety of reasons. The reason was apparently due to the girls not meeting after their trip to L.A. and some things were said about the commitment of some of the girls. They have each since gone their separate ways both professionally and personally.[citation needed]

Members

Member 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Anaïs Lameche
(2000–2005, 2009–2011)
Faye Hamlin
(2000–2003, 2009–2010)
Anna Sundstrand
(2000–2005)
Rosie Munter
(2000–2005)
Janet Leon
(2003–2005)
Sanne Karlsson
(2009–2011)
Emelie Norenberg
(2010–2011)

Discography

Main article: Play discography

References

  1. ^ "Best-Selling Swedish Pop Quartet Play Welcomes New Member Janet Leon", play-central.com via archive.org. Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  2. ^ "* :: A Letter from PLAY :: *", 2005-09-29. Retrieved 2011-03-19.
  3. ^ a b Made in Sweden, Season 2, Episode 1. Made in Sweden. December 2009. Retrieved 2013-08-20.
  4. ^ "Play Welcomes Emelie Norenberg", Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  5. ^ About PLAY (EPK), "About Play". Released 2002-06-25. Uploaded 2010-02-19. Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  6. ^ "Play - Play | Billboard.com", Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  7. ^ "RIAA Gold & Platinum Searchable Database" Archived 2007-06-26 at the Wayback Machine
  8. ^ "Replay - Play | Billboard.com", Retrieved 2011-03-14
  9. Kidscreen
    .
  10. ^ "Play - Every Little Step". Jet Set Records. 13 May 2010. Retrieved 13 May 2010.
  11. ^ "Play från nya Made in Sweden", NRJ Morgon med Knappen & Hakim. Posted 2009-11-26. Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  12. ^ "Anais Speaks Out On Play's Behalf", Play-Mania @ Blogspot. Posted 2009-12-02. Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  13. ^ "Rosanna Speaks Out About Play", Play-Mania @ Blogspot. Posted 2009-12-06. Retrieved 2011-03-14.
  14. ^ "Play - Famous", swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2011-03-16.

External links


Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Play_(Swedish_group)&oldid=1208290608"