28
The Spice Girl reflects on the time after she left the record-breaking girl group.
Geri Halliwell-Horner, aka Ginger Spice, was the first of the Spice Girls toleave the party.
She split from thebest-selling girl group of all timein 1998, just two years before turning 28.
Youre sort of in between, she tells Bustle over Zoom from the dining room of her London home.
I think 28 is also an in-between year.
Youre not the ingenue anymore.
Youre going into no mans land where the pressure starts.
1 hits, andIf Onlywas an instant bestseller.
Her writing career has also taught her a lesson she wishes shed learned back in 2000.
What I really connect with now is Be the tortoise, not the hare.
Slow and steady truly wins the race.
Below, Halliwell-Horner reflects on her life at 28, twinning with J.
Lo, and the relationship rule she swore by.
Take me back to when you were 28.
What were you doing at the time?
I just had the greatest millennium party ever.
I used to live in this big monastery.
The next day, I found people behind sofas.
It was a wild, fun, electric time.
What did your typical Friday night look like?
I was starting to get bored of clubs.
So, I had DVDs and a big bag of Minstrel chocolates.
I was binge-watchingThe Sopranos.
I just thought it was brilliant all the acting was really good.
I liked the wife.
Were you still in contact with the Spice Girls at this time?
They’re like old school friends.
You go in different directions, but always [come back].
Who was part of your support system then?
He was at that party.
We were like Will and Grace.
Did you guys live together at one point?
It was lovely just having [his] support.
I was very grateful.
How did you approach love and relationships then?
I had a rule.
I felt that if I was in love, it was a creative killer.
So I deprived myself throughout my 20s of being really in any [relationships].
If someone came along and it felt right, great, but I wasnt an active participant.
I wasnt looking because Iknewthat I wrote better material when I was hurting or hungry.
What is your favorite fashion memory from your late 20s?
I rang them and said, Oh, would you mind lending it to me?
So, I wore this Versace dress and taped it in certain places; it is very provocative.
Then a goddess wore it afterwards: J. I was like, Do you know what, Jennifer?
Shes a Leo like me.
So I was like, Slay.
At 28, you released Its Raining Men, your fourth consecutive No.
How did it feel to reach the top of the charts?
Its a good reminder to myself actually.
I could feel my pride going, No, Im not doing a cover.
I write my own material.
He goes, Come on, give it a go.
Suddenly I was thinking, OK, what am I going to do for a video?
Because I love movies so much, I was like, We could doFlashdanceandFameand smash it together.
I was so proud of it.
1 for two weeks.
I was like, Yay!
Do you think theres been enough material since your first autobiography for another memoir?
Its going to end up likeWar and Peace.
I dont know where it ends.
What would you tell your 28-year-old self today?
To value the integrity of your inner voice.
We can fall off the beam so easily.
But you have all the answers.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
