Music – “a day in the life of a saturday is hectic”
The Saturdays have taken the UK by storm, becoming a house hold name and establishing themselves as one of the most sought after acts in the country. Una, Frankie, Rochelle, Mollie and Vanessa, first arrived on the scene in 2007, very much so in the shadow of Girls Aloud, however fast forward three years and these girls have firmly established themselves as a group to be noticed in their own right. With a platinum selling album, several top ten singles, a clothing range, a sell out UK arena tour, a jewellery collection and forthcoming book release – theses girls are well on their way to world domination.
“A day in the life of a Saturday is hectic,” said 21-year-old Rochelle Wiseman. “We’re always on the go, whether its interviews, appearances or rehearsals, but I love it and wouldn’t have it any other way.” Rochelle, who is the baby of the group, is no stranger to the lime light having been part of S Club Juniors along with band mate Frankie Sanford at the tender age of 12. “It was a really good experience for me being part of the Juniors. It was where I got my first taste of the industry,” she explained “It’s so different with The Saturdays, but it was a lot of fun at the time. I don’t look back at S Club as being a proper band, it was just eight of us having a laugh singing and dancing. I feel like I’m in a band now, I feel like this is what I’m meant to do.”
Although she feels she’s now found her place, as part the band, Rochelle admits that now that’s she’s older, along with the fame and success comes some rather upsetting headlines, particularly those surrounding her weight. Feeling strongly about the attack and the impression the comments may have on her younger fans, she took to her twitter to hit back at her critics, tweeting: “I’m really getting annoyed reading that people are calling me fat – I’m a size 10 not 100. “I’m human and curvy get over it! It’s boring!”
She added: “I’m just starting to get sick of it, no wonder people get a complex – I think it’s a disgrace.“As a band we take pride in being role models to children and other young girls and I think that the best role model is someone who is comfortable in their own skin, something which I am.” When I asked her why she felt the need to stand up to the tabloids and those having a go at her, she said: “Some people would just let it go but I’m not that kind of person. Plus I was really annoyed that my fans would look at me and think well I’m bigger than her so I must be really fat. We’re just five normal healthy girls who really believe that looking and being healthy is much better than starving yourself to become or stay a certain weight.”
Airbrushing has been a hot topic lately, with The Girl Guides petitioning the Government to change the laws and inform readers if a photograph has been re-touched. Rochelle says that although it is something which is ‘normal’ and ‘accepted’ within the industry, extreme airbrushing is never a good idea. “I think people in public eye get a lot of flack for using airbrushing but almost every photo you see in a magazine have been airbrushed – it’s just the way it goes in this industry. I think it is fine so long as you’re not doing it unrealistically, for instance, to take someone who’s a size 16 to a size 6 would be wrong – I disagree with someone being made to appear smaller or be changed dramatically from their true appearance, but touching up a photo to make it look nicer should be ok.
