Baby Spice Seeking Fame on Her Own

If nothing else, one has to admit that Emma Bunton has spunk. Formerly Baby Spice of the Spice Girls, she has released her second full-length solo album entitled "Free Me." Trying to break away from an image that is fixed in the public memory is insanely difficult, and the impression that the Spice Girls made in their heyday was huge--so huge, in fact, that many will probably roll their eyes at Bunton's album simply because of her former Baby Spice persona. There are also those who will buy the album simply because of the band she used to be in.

Understandably, this is not something the artist wants to encourage. Although she admits that Baby Spice is part of who she is, she wants to be recognized on her own merits rather than an image that no longer exists. And she's made a fairly good start. Her five track iTunes EP, has been on the top 100 pop downloads ever since it debuted in December. Many club DJs have also been playing remixes of the first single, "Free Me."

Whether or not Bunton will be taken seriously as a solo artist remains to be seen. None of her non-dance tracks have been released to radio yet, although they remain popular on the Internet. But she is dealing with an image that was known more for outrageous clothes than musicality, and so it is probably too early to tell.