1997–2001: Formation and line-up changes Alesha Dixon and
Sabrina Washington met in 1997 at Dance Attic studios in
Fulham through Louise Porter, who was putting together a group for her production company Big Out Ltd. The two worked with Louise Porter for a couple of years before being joined by
Tina Barrett to form a trio performing singing and dancing. and was replaced by
Zena McNally and
Su-Elise Nash. Their then producer David Brant (writer of their first two hit singles, "
Why?" and "All I Want") introduced them via DJ Darren Stokes (TinTinOut) to Inferno Records (sub pop) A&R man Pat Travers, who signed them to
Telstar Records and changed their name to Mis-Teeq. After months of recording—including sessions with producers
Norwegian duo
Stargate along with Brant (Vybrant Music),
Ed Case,
Blacksmith,
Rishi Rich, and
Ceri Evans—Mis-Teeq released their debut single in 2000, "Why?", a
Latin-flavoured mid-tempo song co-written and produced by Brant. A
garage remix by Matt "Jam" Lamont soon became a success in the underground
UK garage scene, and as a result a second
music video for the song was filmed and released. "Why?" became a hit on the
UK Singles Chart with a peak position of number eight. McNally left the line-up in January 2001 saying she felt unhappy about "an unbalance in the group". Nevertheless, Mis-Teeq saw instant international success with their Stargate-produced third single, "One Night Stand". While the song peaked at number 5 on the UK singles chart, it also entered the top 20 in Australia,
New Zealand,
Norway, and
Denmark. In 2002, the band's fourth single, "B with Me", continued the group's remarkable sales with another top 10 entry in the UK, once again entering at number 5. The last release from ''Lickin' on Both Sides'' was a double A-side of "Roll on" and the
Montell Jordan cover "
This Is How We Do It", the latter song being featured on the soundtrack for
Ali G's 2002 film
Ali G Indahouse. This release entered the charts at number 7 on 29 June 2002. The band supported
Shaggy on his UK tour in 2002.
2003–2005: Eye Candy, international breakthrough and split Returning from a short hiatus, Mis-Teeq released their second album,
Eye Candy, on 29 March 2003. The album featured production by Stargate, Ed Case,
Salaam Remi, singer
Joe, Delroy "D-Roy" Andrews, and JD (of the group So Solid Crew) and debuted at its peak position of number 6 on the
UK Albums Chart While
Eye Candys sales failed to link to the sudden success of ''Lickin' on Both Sides'', pre-released lead single "
Scandalous" became the group's most successful single by then: It reached number 2 in the UK and top 10 in
Ireland,
New Zealand, Australia, and Denmark. In June 2003, the album's second single, "
Can't Get It Back", became the band's seventh and final domestic top-ten single. Originally a remake of the same-titled unreleased
Blaque single, Mis-Teeq and Telstar agreed not to use the album version, instead releasing the alternate "Ignorants Radio Edit" as an official single, which entered the UK charts at number 8 on 12 July 2003. The song also was included on a Special Edition of
Eye Candy that was released in December of the same year and spawned a third single with "Style". The song peaked at number 13. "
Scandalous" was released in the
United States in May 2004 (under another label, Reprise Records) and reached number 35 on the
Billboard Hot 100 chart in June, making it their only single to chart in the U.S. That summer, it was featured as the theme song of the film
Catwoman, starring
Halle Berry. As Mis-Teeq began promoting their music in the U.S. and the release of their,
self-titled compilation album, the group's
record label Telstar Records went bankrupt, leaving them with no direction. After the announcement of their split in February 2005, they released a
greatest hits album, containing a new track, a cover of
the Andrews Sisters 1940s song "Shoo Shoo Baby" and were nominated for a 2005
Soul Train Lady of Soul Award. On 9 February 2011, it was reported that the group was in talks to re-form for a comeback tour but Dixon denied this. Two years later, Dixon said that she would never rule out a reunion. In September 2014, Su-Elise stated in an interview with
Fashion Plus Magazine that the group were in talks for a reunion. ==Members==