For millions of girls, being in a band is the ultimate dream. For Belinda, it turned into a nightmare. The Girl in the Band takes us behind the scenes of the early days of reality TV, and reveals, for the first time, what really happened to Bardot.
Belinda Chapple spent her childhood dreaming of travelling the world as a performer. She never missed an opportunity to practice her craft, but it was tough to juggle pub gigs with modelling and casual work. Then Belinda stumbled upon an ad in a newspaper for a new competition to find Australia’s next popstar. She thought she’d finally found her big break.
After a grueling audition process, watched by huge audiences on television across the world, Belinda signed a contract that would turn her life upside down. Bardot shot straight to fame off the back of the popularity of Popstars, and Belinda would spend the next three years relentlessly rehearsing, recording and touring. It was exhausting, and she was making almost no money, but it would all be worth it eventually – right?
Belinda discovered that being a popstar could be a lonely life, but at least she had her fellow bandmembers to turn to for support … until they experienced the ultimate betrayal.
This is a memoir unlike any other, as the curtain is lifted on the exploitation of the music industry at the turn of the millennium and readers are taken on the wild ride that was Bardot. The Girl in the Band will resonate with anybody who’s given up everything for a dream, only to have it shatter around them.
