How an Illegal Mash Up Reignited British Pop (Sugababes - "Freak Like Me") | New British Canon

Finally British girl bands getting the critical analysis they deserve

I think it’s so lovely that Gary Numan thought Sugababes’ Freak Like Me was better than Are Friends Electric? He chose not to be petty, but recognise when these new artists had made something great.

This was the sound of my teens. There's no substitute for good upbeat pop, regardless of creative background. The crap I got from my peers in school for openly loving Sugababes and Girls Aloud was a lot to take but I stand by it to this day.

One of the best groups of the 2000s. Sugababes were a collosal singles band.

3 things: 1. Freak Like Me is great, but One Touch is a bloody brilliant album, and the Sugababes I return to the most 2. Siobhan Donaghy's solo albums are great. More people should listen to them. 3. Biology by GA is the greatest pop song of all time.

I'm sure the Sugababes and Girls Aloud will be remembered as two of the defining British pop acts of the 2000s. I don't think they were taken as seriously at the time as they should have been. Their music was actually brilliant.

This is what I love about this channel. As an American, I do not get to peak into the cultural music movements going on in the UK. This channel does an incredible job of documenting these movements. Thank you! 🙏

freak like me & round round are undoubtedly two of the most quintessentially British pop songs.. raw, gritty, unapologetic stuff

Even tho I was a metal head at the time (and still am in some ways) I loved Sugababes and Girls Aloud, but don't tell anyone!

I love your videos so much and your Mutya stanning in this video hasn't gone unnoticed - thank you for recognizing her talent and integrity to the group as it's what she deserves!

I'm not British and I'm not familiar with any of these mash ups or most of these artists yet I still found this video extremely entertaining. Good stuff, as usual.

So as someone from the US where they've been relatively unknown, Sugababes are my favorite hidden gem group. Stumbled on them on iTunes back in like 2006 and been introducing them to friends ever since.

I have such a soft spot for Sugababes. Love their first album but Freak was at a whole new level

I'm a metalhead through and through, but this song is an all time classic. There's a handful of pop songs that are just untouchable in terms of quality, and this is one of them. Fantastic video also!

Back then, I actually discovered Sugababes' version before having ever heard the original by Adina Howard, and have only recently found out it was a cover, thanks to Todd in the Shadows' wonderful 'One Hit Wonderland' YouTube essays. At first, since I'm an eighties kid, I thought it was a bit 'heretic' to use Are 'Friends' Electric? in this manner, but now, I can safely say it's a fantastic mash-up for the ages.

The amazing thing about Girls Aloud's songs is that almost every song is different in every verse. They never repeated melodies, outside of the chorus. Each verse brings a new melody, different line lengths. It’s genius song writing and endlessly interesting. Their albums changed styles every time, mining a different seem of pop music each time. I saw them live five times and they were the best live shows I’ve ever been to. I was never as big a fan of the sugababes, but I liked their disinterested vocal styles.

This makes me nostalgic for the era of Napster, mash ups and pop groups. These UK groups are all new to me, we never got most of them over here in the US.

The late 90s and early 2000s were a great time for electronic music, with Fatboy Slim, Moby, Miss Kittin, Daft Punk, etc. This scene was what inspired me to start making bomb beats.

"Freak like me" is one of the most badass pop songs