Melodi Brown (partially lost discography of R&B and pop music group; 2002-2003)

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Melodibrown14.png

An image of the group.

Status: Partially lost

Melodi Brown was a 4-person girl group from the UK formed in the summer of 2001[1]. The members consisted of Ama Schreyer, Kelly Mac, Zahra Palmer, and Rae Sanniez, who went by the names Kemi, Kelly-Ann, Zahra, and Stephanie respectively.[2]

The group was set to release their debut single, an R&B song titled “Naked” on September 9th, 2002,[3] through a deal with Polydor and Murlyn Music,[4] and eventually a whole album was meant to be released at some point in early 2003. This did not work out, however, as around the same time “Naked” was due to release, the group was fighting for the chance to release with another group that had both the same record label and management team, Girls Aloud.[5]

Their song “Naked” eventually got delayed from September 9th, 2002, to July 24th, 2003,[6] as Girls Aloud was taking off and their management team got busy taking care of them instead of Melodi Brown.[5] Eventually, around early 2003, Polydor decided it was too much to deal with 2 girl groups at the same time, and due to the larger successes of Girls Aloud, Melodi Brown was dropped all together before either their single or album were released, meaning they never officially released anything.[5]

The songs intended for the group’s debut album would later be tried out for other artists of the time, such as Jessica Wahls, Mariana Ochoa, Tata Young, and most notably Britney Spears, who would go on to reuse the groups' intended song "Do Somethin'".[7]

Releases

The group only had a few types of CDs, all meant for promo use – a promo single CD of “Naked”[8][9], and two promo sampler CDs titled the “5 Tracks”[10] and “Skin!”. Several promo CDs of “Naked” are known to exist, however the "5 Tracks" CD and the “Skin!” sampler are far rarer, with only a few photos existing of the "5 Tracks" sampler. There is very little evidence that the “Skin!” sampler actually exists other than a piece of cover first posted on a small blog back in 2005.[11] Retail copies of "Naked" may exist due to how the song was delayed after it was meant to release at first, however if there are any retail copies, they have not been documented.

Known Songs

A lot of these have surfaced through several means. A few songs have leaked in full due to also being considered for Britney Spears as mentioned before, which fans of her have leaked online. Some were on the 5 Tracks sampler CD and have made their way online that way. However, the songs not on the CDs are mostly lost, and only snippets are available for some of them on the BMG song licensing database. [12]

Songs intended for their album go as follows (not in any particular order):
Title Info Status
Do Somethin' The song that was later recorded and released by Britney Spears.[7] It's been known for a long time that the track was originally intended for the group as originally documented by Popjustice[13] however nothing has surfaced of Melodi Brown's version. Written by Angela Hunte with Bloodshy & Avant and Henrik Jonback.[14] Lost
Who's Fooling Who Very little is known about this song. Its’ only mentions are on SoundExchange’s ISRC database sites,[15] and on ASCAP with no performers listed.[16] Written by Angela Hunte and Korpi & Blackcell. Existence Unconfirmed / Lost
Naked The groups’ intended debut single. There are 2 versions known to exist, one which is on the promo CD for just the song, and one that’s on the 5 Tracks sampler CD that has a slightly longer intro.[17] Written by Wayne Hector with Bloodshy & Avant. Single version: Found

Sampler version:

Found

Spin The Record 2 versions have been found – one is an unmastered version of the song (leaked through BMG it seems), and the other comes from the 5 Tracks sampler CD. The unmastered copy was leaked by BritneyOnline. For some reason, the song is filed as having different writers in ASCAP and Songview.[18][19] Written by Michelle Bell with Bloodshy & Avant and Henrik Jonback. Unmastered: Found

Mastered: Found

Skin! Fredro, the producer of this song, has previously posted snippets of the song on his Instagram and has sent copies of the song to people who asked about the sampler CD. Song written by Angela Hunte, Henrik Jonback, and Fredro.[20] Found
Never Knew My Baby Later recorded and released by Tata Young.[21] Interestingly, ASCAP has this song listed twice – once without a performer, and once with the performer set as Whitney Houston.[22][23] Song written by BAG & Arnthor, Sebastian Nylund, and Wayne Hector. Found
Disguise My Love Unclear if this song was intended for the group. A demo with vocals by Michelle Bell was found by Britneyadmiring, as it was later considered for Britney Spears. Written by Michelle Bell with Bloodshy & Avant and Henrik Jonback.[24] Unconfirmed:Found
Under The Pressure Unclear if this song was intended for the group. A demo with vocals by Michelle Bell was found by Britneyadmiring, as it was later considered for Britney Spears. Written by Michelle Bell with Bloodshy & Avant.[25] Unconfirmed:Found
10 Steps Back On BMG, the song's artist is listed as a “Melody Brown”. This is the case for several of the snippets, however it is likely just a misspelling of Melodi Brown due to the fact that other confirmed songs have this error. Later recorded by German singer Jessica Wahls, [26] being the first song intended for Melodi Brown to be released by another artist. Written by Kandi Burruss alongside BAG & Arnthor.[27] Partially Found:

30 second snippet

Crazy Things Also later considered for Britney Spears. A full version has been found by BritneyOnline. Has vocals by Michelle Bell and another vocalist, possibly one of the members. Written by Michelle Bell and Bloodshy & Avant.[28] Found
Don't Hate Me On BMG, the songs' credited writers are Arnthor Birgisson of BAG & Arnthor, Christian Karlsson of Bloodshy & Avant, Lorne Tennant, Patrick Standfast, and Wayne Hector.[29] However, these credits may be wrong as they are the same credits for another song called "Don't Hate Me" released by a group named Madasun that does not sound at all like the Melodi Brown snippet. Partially Found:

30 second snippet

Naughty (Down By The Corner) Has vocals by Michelle Escoffery, who wrote it with Bloodshy & Avant.[30] The title on BMG has a spelling error and is instead titled “Naughty (down By The Coner)”. Partially Found:

30 second snippet

Nitty Gritty Unclear if this song was intended for the group. Luciana Caporaso, who provided vocals for the demo snippet and who also wrote it, said on an episode of the Original Doll podcast that the song was intended for a girl group she could not remember the name of. The only girl group Bloodshy & Avant worked with at this time was Melodi Brown, therefore it was likely intended for them. Song was also written with the help of Bloodshy & Avant and Henrik Jonback.[31] Unconfirmed:

30 second snippet

Tell Me Appears to have vocals by Engelina Andrina. Written by Adam Powers, Engelina Andrina, Jonas Jeberg, and Mich Hansen. Oddly enough, this song does not appear to have an ASCAP listing, and is only available on BMG.[12] Partially Found:

30 second snippet

That Woman Demo snippet found with vocals that appear to be Angela Hunte. Written by Angela Hunte with Jens Bjurman and Per Kalenius. For some reason, on ASCAP, Angela Hunte isn't credited, but she is on BMG. [32] Partially Found:

30 second snippet

Touchdown! / Touchdown! (jogo Perigoso) Written by Wayne Hector with BAG & Arnthor. For some reason, on BMG, it’s titled “Touchdown! (jogo Perigoso)” which is Portuguese for “dangerous game”. There are also two listings for the song on ASCAP, one that’s just titled “Touchdown!” and one also titled “Touchdown! (jogo Perigoso)”.[33][34] Partially Found:

30 second snippet

My Lover A demo snippet has been found with what sounds like vocals by the group, however it is unconfirmed it it is indeed the group singing or if this song was intended for the group in the first place. Written by Michelle Escoffery with Bloodshy & Avant. Later recorded released by Mexican singer Mariana Ochoa with lyrics in Spanish instead of English.[35] Both an English version and a Spanish adaptation appear on ASCAP.[36][37] Unconfirmed:

30 second snippet

DJ Rumored to be for the group, mentioned a few times on the older Popjustice forums. There is a chance it was somehow confused with another song or misattributed to the group. Song was later released by Jamelia.[38] No listing on ASCAP exists for the song. Existence Unconfirmed / Lost
Spin That Bottle Unconfirmed if this was ever meant for the group at all, likely a mix-up between Rachel Stevens’ “Spin That Bottle” and the previously mentioned “Spin The Record”. No listing on ASCAP exists for the song. Existence Unconfirmed / Lost
Feel It Written by Michael Mugisha (also goes by Mugisha Manisur and Fingaz) and an unknown writer. Performer listed as "Melodi Brown" on ASCAP.[39] Confirmed: Lost
Crazy Written by Michael Mugisha and an unknown writer. Performer listed as "Melodi Brown" on ASCAP.[40] Confirmed: Lost


There were also several remixes of “Naked” done by various people, not intended for the album. One of these was featured on the 5 Tracks sampler CD, and the rest were released on vinyl records. However, CDs are known to exist with the Venus Tribe Remix feat. Familia, a version without Familia, as well as the Mark Picchiotti Remixes.

Remixes of "Naked" (not in any particular order):
Title Info Status
Naked (Bloodshy & Avant Remix) Shorter version of the Extended remix. Only known to be on the 5 Tracks Sampler. Despite the other tracks from the CD being available online in full, this one isn't. Also, as mentioned before, this is listed as "Naked (US Remix)" on ASCAP. [41] This is due to how this version, along with the other remixes which are based off of it, are actually written differently than the single, featuring different lyrics and a different melody. This is why there's also an extra credit on the ASCAP listing for this specific version. Written by Michelle Bell and Wayne Hector with Bloodshy & Avant. An unmastered snippet exists on BMG. Partially Found / Unmastered:

30 second snippet

Naked (Bloodshy & Avant Extended Remix) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Bloodshy & Avant Instrumental) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Off-Key Boot Remix) Appears to come from an unknown CD. Found
Naked (Off-Key Boot Remix feat. Familia) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Bootstrumental) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Venus Tribe Remix feat. Familia) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Venus Tribe Instrumental) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Groove Chronicles Vocal Mix) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Groove Chronicles Dub Mix) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Nick Nice Remix) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Nick Nice Instrumental) Was on one of the vinyl records, has made it online in full. Found
Naked (Mark Picchiotti Vocal Mix) The rips of the Mark Picchiotti Remixes appear to come from an unknown CD instead of a vinyl record. Found
Naked (Mark Picchiotti Dub Mix) The rips of the Mark Picchiotti Remixes appear to come from an unknown CD instead of a vinyl record. Found

"Naked" Music Video

As mentioned before, there was a music video filmed for "Naked". It was directed by Tim Royes and produced by Emma Butterworth of Black Dog Films, and has a date of May 31st, 2002.[42] According to Zahra and several places online, including a small blog named Girls On Pop[43], the music video played several times on The Box UK. The music video is available on YouTube, after it was discovered it was available on Screenocean amidst hundreds of other video tapes.

Gallery

  1. Interview of the group, featured on the British Reebok website
  2. Snippet from Smash Hits magazine (September 4-17th, 2002), mentioning a few things about the group (see gallery)
  3. Bolton News article from Friday, September 6th, 2002, claiming the song would come out on Monday
  4. Music Week 7-27-22 Page 8 - "Murlyn Pulls Out The Stops for Melodi Brown" (see gallery)
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Interview between Instagram user hamadamania and former member of the group, Zahra Palmer
  6. Solar Creative's announcement of the song "Naked" being delayed to July 24th, 2003
  7. 7.0 7.1 Songwriter of "Do Somethin'", Angela Hunte, confirms the song was meant for Melodi Brown before Britney Spears recorded it (read comments)
  8. (reupload of) Instagram post by hamadamania showing their copy of the "Naked" promo single CD
  9. Instagram user anfunny showing a few of their CDs, in which the "Naked" promo single CD is visible
  10. Fredro, producer of the groups' song "Skin!", showing off his copy of the 5-Track Sampler CD on Instagram
  11. Girls On Pop blog
  12. 12.0 12.1 BMG Song Search (have to search each song manually)
  13. Popjustice webpage 2005 archive - "Somethin's already been done, love"
  14. ASCAP Listing for "Do Somethin'", with Britney Spears listed
  15. SoundExchange's ISRC search page showing "Who's Fooling Who" under Melodi Brown search
  16. ASCAP Listing for "Who's Fooling Who"
  17. ASCAP Listing for "Naked"
  18. ASCAP Listing for "Spin The Record"
  19. Songview Listing for "Spin The Record" on ASCAP
  20. ASCAP Listing for "Skin!"
  21. Tata Young's version of "Never Knew My Baby", retitled as "I Guess I Never Knew My Baby"
  22. ASCAP Listing for "Never Knew My Baby", with no performer
  23. ASCAP Listing for "Never Knew My Baby", with Whitney Houston listed.
  24. ASCAP Listing for "Disguise My Love"
  25. ASCAP Listing for "Under The Pressure"
  26. Jessica Wahls' version of "10 Steps Back", retitled as "Ten Steps Back"
  27. ASCAP Listing for "10 Steps Back"
  28. ASCAP Listing for "Crazy Things"
  29. ASCAP Listing for "Don't Hate Me"
  30. ASCAP Listing for "Naughty (Down By The Corner)"
  31. ASCAP Listing for "Nitty Gritty"
  32. ASCAP Listing for "That Woman"
  33. ASCAP Listing for "Touchdown!"
  34. ASCAP Listing for "Touchdown! (jogo Perigoso)"
  35. "My lover" by Mariana Ochoa, YouTube upload
  36. ASCAP Listing for "My Lover"
  37. ASCAP Listing for "My Lover (Spanish Adaptation)"
  38. "DJ" by Jamelia, YouTube upload
  39. ASCAP Listing for "Feel It"
  40. ASCAP Listing for "Crazy"
  41. ASCAP Listing for "Naked (US Remix)"
  42. Video Pool Tape Number 219X - has the music video to "Naked"
  43. https://girlsonpop.blogspot.com/2005/12/