The Spice Girls’ “Mel C” Chisholm is opening up about the s*xual assault she suffered the night before her debut. In her upcoming memoir Who I Am, set for release on September 15, the former Spice Girl — better known as the legendary Sporty Spice — explains what happened.
Chisholm, 48 years old, wrote that in 1997, while on tour with the Spice Girls in Turkey, a massage therapist at the hotel spa s*xually raped her. They called the front desk to report his absence, but he had already fled.
Listen to the latest episode of Elizabeth Day’s How to Fail podcast to hear more of what she had to say about the topic.
Chisholm reflected, “We had never done a full-length concert before, so obviously we’d prepared for weeks ahead, costume fittings, make-up, hair, everything was leading to the apex of all I ever wanted to accomplish, and ever be.
She continued, saying that she gets her energy from “being on stage, being a performer,” so she “treated me to a massage” the night before the band’s first show.
And what happened to me, I immediately buried it because there were other things to focus on, she explained. “I didn’t have time to deal with it, and I didn’t want to make a fuss.” It took Chisholm another quarter century before she began writing her memoir and “finally” chose to address the issue.
“I dreamed it or woke up with it already in my head,” she explained. And I thought, “Oh my goodness, I hadn’t even considered including that in the book. So I had to ask myself, “Do I want to tell them?” And I realized, “You know, it’s essential for me to express it, deal with it and process it.
Her story was a “minor kind of s*xual assault,” but she still felt violated. I felt pretty exposed. There was shame in me.
Chisholm said that she, too, had doubts. And then I started to wonder if I had understood correctly: Can you tell me what’s happening? With this expert, I was in an establishment where clothes are optional.
Therefore, I felt, you know what, I want to talk about it since it has affected me, and that’s because there were so many ideas and feelings. However, I had buried it, as I’m sure many men and women do,” the celebrity confessed.
Chisholm has spoken publicly on the effects of the Spice Girls’ fame on her well-being as she readies the publication of her book.
She claimed, “I was extremely unwell for a few years” during her stint with a popular band in the ’90s. Physically, “I don’t know how I did it; consider how little I lived on and how much exercise I was doing alongside a hard schedule.”
According to The Daily Mail, Chisholm suffered clinical depression, anorexia, binge eating disorder, extreme anxiety, and agoraphobia. Antidepressants were prescribed to her for her mental health.
Chisholm, who last year suggested that a new Spice Girls tour is possible, now describes herself as a “fighter.”
Keep following journalistpr.com for more updates. You can also read more concert articles like The Disco’s Minnesota Concert, Lady Gaga’s Chromatica Ball Performance and Alicia Keys’ SDSU Show Postponed Details.