- 4 months ago
Not every band member finds fame flying solo. We’re looking at musicians who left legendary groups, only to struggle with mixed reviews, poor sales, or faded stardom. From pop icons to rock legends, these artists discovered going it alone isn’t always a chart-topping move. Did your favorite solo misstep make our list? Be sure to sound off in the comments!
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, where we'll be ranking times a band member tried to spread their wings and fly solo, but things didn't pan out as they'd hoped.
00:16Some people say it's a risk or it's, you know, but it's what I needed to do. That's why I think people appreciate the record.
00:22Jessie Nelson, Little Mix. This London girl group was formed on the reality series The X Factor in 2011.
00:31They rose to global fame soon after, with hit tracks like Black Magic.
00:42In 2020, member Jessie Nelson left to pursue a solo career, with her debut single, Boys, being a collab with Nicki Minaj.
00:51But attaching an A-lister to a track isn't enough to make it sell.
00:59Reviews were largely negative, and by the time Nelson released her second single, Bad Thing, fans had moved on.
01:06A lot of them wished that it was her debut track. Maybe then she would have gained more traction.
01:11A subsequent single was scrapped, and Nelson doesn't seem to be that active anymore.
01:16I know what I deserve, but you'll just say the words.
01:23Scott Stapp. Creed.
01:25Following the peak of grunge, bands like Creed rose to prominence and created a new scene by the end of the 90s.
01:32They've sold more than 53 million records globally, with Scott Stapp as their frontman.
01:37Since 2005, he's released four solo albums, with the first going platinum.
01:49But the others didn't come close.
01:51Gotta turn this around and find the purpose for pain.
01:57By 2014, Stapp was unhoused and bankrupt.
02:00He then decided to make a video asking fans for $480,000 to make another album and a book, blaming Obama for his financial woes.
02:11On the bright side, Stapp is sober now, and has been experiencing fewer troubles.
02:16Despite this, his 2024 album still underperformed commercially.
02:21They've seen me fall, seen me cross, seen me stare.
02:26Grace Slick.
02:28Jefferson Airplane.
02:29In the 60s, one of the biggest bands in the counterculture movement was Jefferson Airplane.
02:34Later down the line, they changed style and dominated the 80s as Starship.
02:46Grace Slick was the lead vocalist for both of these groups.
02:50But after their first rebrand to Jefferson's Starship in 1974, Slick pursued a solo career,
02:57releasing four albums in a 10-year time frame.
03:00I believe in medicine tonight.
03:04I believe in cream.
03:07She attempted to recreate the hit sounds of the 60s but failed, and her sales dwindled.
03:13In the end, Slick gave up on releasing solo music and focused on Starship.
03:18This proved to be a lucrative decision, as they released three pretty successful albums by the end of the 80s.
03:25All that I ever, ever need.
03:31Pat Monaghan.
03:32Train.
03:33Today I decided to take the long way home.
03:37In San Francisco, 1993, Train was formed.
03:41A year later, they were joined by Frontman and longest-serving member Pat Monaghan.
03:46When the band took a two-year hiatus starting in 2006, Monaghan opted to use this time to create his debut solo album, Last of Seven.
04:03A lot of fans believed it sounded like generic mainstream pop music without the quirkiness that made Train so adored.
04:10As such, Monaghan listened to the reception and returned to Train in 2009.
04:16That year, they released Hey Soul Sister, which went platinum 13 times.
04:21So it all worked out for the best.
04:23Nick Lachey, 98 Degrees.
04:33In the late 90s, boy bands were all the rage, with groups like 98 Degrees selling millions.
04:39Their lead singer was Nick Lachey, who tried to make it big as a solo artist after their 2002 breakup.
04:45I don't want to waste another day, stuck in the shadow of my mistakes.
04:53He released four albums between 2003 and 2014.
04:58The second was certified gold, but beyond that, success was fairly limited.
05:03Now, Lachey is better known as a reality TV star.
05:06Still got it.
05:07Hell yeah, you do Nick Lachey.
05:08Yeah.
05:10Oh, the things we do for a chance at love.
05:12He's hosted a variety of shows like Love is Blind for Netflix.
05:16Lachey also competed on The Masked Singer in 2021 and proved talented enough to win.
05:22So he's likely too busy with reality TV to bother maintaining his solo career.
05:27Damn, Brooklyn, Phoenix, this was for you guys.
05:29I love you so much.
05:30Daddy's coming home with a little hardware.
05:33Nate Roos, Fun.
05:35Give me a second, I need to get my story straight.
05:39If you were around during the early 2010s, Fun's major hit, We Are Young, was unavoidable.
05:45The band brought to prominence multi-instrumentalist Jack Antonoff, who was now one of pop's most
05:50celebrated names for producing for artists like Taylor Swift and Lorde.
05:55His bandmate Nate Roos' solo career proved to be way less celebrated.
05:59I don't understand where all of this is coming from.
06:03I thought that we were fine.
06:06He was featured on a pink track that became huge, and his 2015 debut solo album performed
06:12fairly well, but he couldn't compare to Fun's fame.
06:16Fun had broken up so he could pursue his own music, but he never released a follow-up.
06:20Some would say that I'm all alone, but I am.
06:27Debbie Harry, Blondie.
06:29In the late 70s and early 80s, Blondie was one of the most renowned bands in the new
06:34wave movement.
06:35At the end of their peak in 1981, lead singer Debbie Harry released her debut solo album
06:41Cuckoo.
06:42She released two more after this in the 80s.
06:44You were polythick, really thick, wasting time, dropping lines.
06:49They were far from failures, with all three getting gold certifications in different countries.
06:54Still, compared to Blondie, they were much less successful.
07:05Now, Harry's solo music is highly niche, and only remembered by hardcore Blondie fans.
07:12She released two more pop rock albums, one in 1993 and another in 2007, but they sold
07:18even fewer copies than her first three.
07:20Bruce Dickinson, Iron Maiden.
07:29Since the 70s, Iron Maiden has been a household name across the globe.
07:34Even people with little to no interest in heavy metal can recognize them.
07:38They've had a variety of vocalists, but Bruce Dickinson stuck around the longest.
07:42In 1990, he released his first solo album, Tattooed Millionaire, which sold reasonably well.
07:54A year later, he left Iron Maiden and then created four more albums before rejoining them
08:00in 1999.
08:01Each one seemed to perform worse than the last, despite critics having generally positive opinions
08:07of them.
08:16In 2024, he released The Mandrake Project, which surprisingly became the number one album
08:22in multiple countries.
08:24Now, many metal fans praise how bold and experimental Dickinson's solo work is,
08:28despite its initial lack of commercial success.
08:31But I'll be here when you're long gone, I'll see you in that grave!
08:36Mark Owen, Take That
08:38Few music fans are unaware of Take That, which was one of the biggest boy bands in the early
08:4390s.
08:44Now, Robbie Williams is arguably the most famous member, who even got a monkey-themed biopic
08:49in 2024.
08:51His bandmate, Mark Owen, has had a far less successful solo career, but it's not for lack
08:56of trying.
08:57He was the first to release a solo record, which peaked at number 33 in the UK charts.
09:10Subsequent albums fared worse, such as 2005's How the Mighty Fall, which poetically only sold
09:16just over 3,000 copies in the UK.
09:19Thankfully, Take That reunited the same year.
09:28That wasn't the end for his solo career, as his 2022 solo album, Land of Dreams, sold
09:34better than any of his others.
09:36Joe Jonas, Jonas Brothers
09:47Another boy band that dominated the world was the Jonas Brothers, whose fame carried them
09:52to stardom between 2005 and 2013.
09:56The group went on a short hiatus between 2010 and 2011, which allowed Joe Jonas to record his
10:01debut album, Fast Life.
10:03It flopped pretty hard, getting decent initial sales, but plummeting after a mixed reception.
10:17The brothers finally disbanded in 2013, motivating Joe to form funk-pop group DNCE.
10:23Their music performed miles better than Joe's solo work ever did.
10:32In 2025, he released a second solo album, Music for People Who Believe in Love, which had
10:38a far better reception than his debut.
10:40Hello, hello, hello, hello, wake up tomorrow, wake up tomorrow, wake up tomorrow, wake up tomorrow.
10:46Lisa, Blackpink.
10:48Fresh off the set of The White Lotus, Blackpink member Lisa has been making a name for herself
10:53outside the girl group's domain.
10:55How you like that?
10:58You gonna like that?
11:01Blackpink rode the Korean wave into global superstardom, becoming one of the most influential
11:06K-pop groups in recent years, but Lisa's 2025 solo project, Alter Ego, received rather mixed
11:13reviews.
11:14Though superfans rallied behind it, critics mostly pointed out a lack of cohesion and identity.
11:20The Guardian gave it 2 out of 5 stars, and Pitchfork scored it 5.2 out of 10, writing that it
11:26quote, presents Lisa as the most generic embodiment of a pop star.
11:36Blackpink was the first K-pop group to headline Coachella in 2023, and Lisa took the stage alone
11:44in 2025, receiving mixed reviews and complaints that her performance was unpolished.
11:49So while many are excited to see where each girl's career could go, perhaps it's the cohesion
11:54of the group that truly keeps Lisa at her best.
12:03Michelle Williams, Destiny's Child
12:06The debut solo album from Michelle Williams was something of a big fish in a small pond
12:11situation.
12:12I heard a word saying, girl, you'll be fine.
12:19This was because Williams chose to create something personal and went gospel with her
12:24sound.
12:25Critics and gospel fans actually appreciated the move, but it certainly wasn't the sort
12:29of polished pop that defined Williams' latter years with Destiny's Child.
12:38Future solo efforts by Williams continue to do poorly on Billboard, but well within Christian
12:43and gospel markets.
12:45Unexpected was a return to form for Williams in 2008, and its follow-up, Journey to Freedom,
12:51did even better for the singer.
12:52So the case here isn't so much that Michelle Williams' solo career tanked, as much as it
12:57pivoted away from Beyonce-level stardom.
13:08Nicole Scherzinger
13:09Pussycat Dolls
13:11The solo careers of the various Pussycat Dolls saw a lot of band formations and sound
13:16collaborations, but only Nicole Scherzinger seemed to emerge as a viable breakout star.
13:21Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me?
13:25Don't you wish your girlfriend was a freak like me?
13:29There was a lot of back and forth with regards to the production of her debut album, however,
13:33essentially requiring a refresh with 2011's Killer Love.
13:45That album underperformed on the U.S. Billboard charts and received mixed reviews from critics.
13:51Scherzinger's follow-up did even worse, failing to capitalize upon the goodwill Killer Love had
13:56received from some international markets. The ex-Pussycat Doll instead pivoted to stage,
14:02movie soundtrack, work, film, and television.
14:05Oh my gosh!
14:07I don't know what just happened.
14:08Oh my gosh!
14:10You crushed it!
14:12You crushed it! Oh my gosh!
14:14Damn!
14:15I don't know what happened!
14:16AJ McLean
14:17Backstreet Boys
14:18It's fairly telling that none of the Backstreet Boys have been able to make any sort of real headway
14:23with regard to their solo careers.
14:25Oh my god, we're back again!
14:30Brother, sisters, everybody sing!
14:33Nick Carter tried, as did AJ McLean.
14:36But these boy band legends just seem to work better together than apart.
14:39McLean's solo career in particular was a blink-and-you-missed-it affair,
14:43with Have It All being released in 2010, and not really being discussed much since.
14:52McLean, to his credit, seemed to be fairly proud of what he accomplished on the record.
14:56But 2010 was a long time ago.
14:58He's released some individual songs,
15:01but there's been little to no talk of any sort of AJ McLean renaissance on the horizon at the time of this writing.
15:06And you want that love song?
15:10Da-da, da-da, da-da.
15:13Joe Perry, Aerosmith.
15:17Musical success can often be a double-edged sword.
15:20I was crying when I met you, but now I'm trying to forget you.
15:28A band's achievements can also often arrive with stressors and distractions
15:32that result in splintered lineups and embittered friendships.
15:35Joe Perry first left the Aerosmith camp back in 1979,
15:39feeling creatively stifled,
15:42and seeing the hard rock writing on the wall with Van Halen's debut album.
15:52The Joe Perry project didn't exactly achieve the success hoped by the Aerosmith Axeman, however,
15:59and Perry rejoined Aerosmith within a five-year span.
16:02Future solo albums would continue to occasionally emerge from Perry,
16:07including one in 2005 and another in 2009.
16:10But it seems as if fans only really want to hear him up on stage with Steven Tyler.
16:15David Lee Roth, Van Halen.
16:24This generationally charismatic frontman certainly meant business
16:28when it came to forming his first solo band after departing Van Halen.
16:32David Lee Roth hired the best musicians he could find,
16:42and the resulting AP, Crazy From The Heat, was certified platinum.
16:47Its follow-up, Eat Em and Smile, achieved similar accolades,
16:51but the bloom was soon off Roth's Yankee Rose with subsequent efforts.
16:55Show me your bright light in your city lights
16:59All right, I'm talking about the Yankee Rose
17:03Skyscraper and A Little Ain't Enough had to fight against waning commercial interest
17:08in highly polished stadium rock,
17:11and Roth soon explored other creative outlets.
17:14He eventually reunited with Van Halen
17:16and toured with them until Eddie's death in 2020.
17:19Mel B, The Spice Girls
17:27The case of Mel B's solo career is one that's sort of similar to the Backstreet Boys.
17:37Here, however, every member of The Spice Girls released solo records
17:41after the dissolution of the group.
17:43Some, like Jerry Halliwell, did better than others.
17:46While the career of Mel B just didn't seem to do as well as expected.
17:56Mel B's debut LP, entitled Hot, struggled to find an audience,
18:00and its follow-up, 2005's L.A. State of Mind, did even worse.
18:06Mel B's solo career has essentially stopped here,
18:09with L.A. State of Mind reportedly selling less than 1,500 copies overall.
18:16There's a profound difference between seeking out other creative avenues
18:28and following the pervasive trends of the day.
18:30The Methods of Mayhem project from Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee
18:42was a clear attempt to capitalize on the new metal and rap rock trends
18:46of the late 90s and early millennium.
18:48I made a decision a year ago to get on, you know, move on to something fresh and new
18:56because I really needed it because I was getting, I don't know, it was just making me unhappy.
19:01Lee continued down this road with this 2002 solo album Never A Dull Moment,
19:06while Tommy Land The Ride from 2005 featured a bevy of post-grunge collaborators on deck.
19:13These included Nickelback's Chad Krueger and Joel Madden from the pop-punk group Good Charlotte.
19:19These solo efforts proved, beyond any doubt,
19:22that Tommy Lee should just stick to his day job behind the drum kit.
19:31Davy Jones, The Monkees.
19:34The Monkees had to struggle mightily to step out of their creative shadow as the prefab four.
19:39Then I saw her face, now I'm a believer.
19:44The members eventually railed against their put-together nature as a commercially successful
19:48pop group, filming the experimental psych movie Head as one way to seek legitimacy.
19:54The members of The Monkees all experimented with solo careers as well,
19:58with Michael Neesmith possibly seeing the most critical acclaim.
20:01People on the streets trying to find a plan.
20:05Davy Jones, meanwhile, capitalized upon his natural good looks and charisma with a revitalized
20:12solo career of his own.
20:14Jones had already released a self-titled LP in 1965, but he struggled during his post-Monkees work,
20:21thanks to a contract that didn't allow control over his song or producer choices.
20:25I'm sorry about the mess that you're in because of that letter I wrote to you.
20:29Oh no, it's my fault.
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20:47JC Chazay, NSYNC.
20:49It isn't always a lack of trying or talent that derails one's solo career.
20:58A lot of factors can come into play, from not being able to acquire the right songs that
21:03showcase a singer's style, to other behind-the-scenes factors.
21:07JC Chazay has, particularly in recent years, been highlighted as the best natural singer from
21:14the boy group, NSYNC.
21:21Modern era, retroactive fan support doesn't exactly change the fact that Chazay's solo
21:27career didn't take off in the same way as his bandmate, Justin Timberlake's.
21:32Chazay's LP, Schizophrenic, has received cult status today among pop fans, but it was poorly
21:38promoted back in 2004, and today stands as a what-if scenario of alt-reality, NSYNC success.
21:51Were there any particularly disastrous solo careers we failed to mention?
21:55Let us know in the comments.
21:57Let us know in the comments.
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