Performing in a successful group is a cherished dream of many musicians.
Wanting to be famous, touring the world and getting a lot of money is an absolutely normal desire, but what motivates those who consciously refuse everything for a solo career?
After all, no one guarantees that outside the collective the musician will be of interest to someone, and practice shows that failure most often happens.
Nevertheless, due to creative, personal or other disagreements, many performers go free swimming despite the huge risk.
Today we’ll talk about 10 stars who left for good reason.
10. Nicole Scherzinger
This American pop / R & B singer, who, incidentally, has Ukrainian roots, came to Pussycat Dolls in 2005 as the main vocalist, becoming one of the six girls in the group.
Despite the fact that she was in the foreground in the group, already in 2006, Nicole began work on a solo album, attracting artists such as Timbaland and will.i.am.
The first single from the upcoming record was not successful, but the singer did not give up. As a result, she managed to succeed on all fronts: she is still associated with Pussycat Dolls, but her solo work is also in demand.
9. Beyoncé
Before becoming a world-famous solo singer, Beyonce Knowles performed with Destiny’s Child. As part of the trio, she was a recognizable personality in the late 90s, but realizing that the female team would not last long, she began to actively record her own songs.
So, in fact, it happened: a split happened in the group, and the singer released her first album Dangerously in Love. The record made a splash, becoming one of the main releases of the year and having won a record 5 Grammy awards.
Nowadays, few people know the names of Kelly Rowland, Michelle Williams, LaTavia Roberson and Letoia Luckett, and after all, all these girls sang with Beyoncé in Destiny’s Child.
8. Paul McCartney
Paul McCartney was a legend with The Beatles and remained just as great after the band disbanded in 1970.
Actually, the departure of Paul from the group, coupled with the litigation that he initiated, was just one of the reasons for the collapse of the Beatles.
McCartney’s solo career is practically devoid of falls, but it has a lot of ups. Repeatedly entering the Guinness Book of Records and to the top of the charts is vivid proof of this. Another fact is that his 1977 single “Mull of Kintyre” (Wings) sold over 2 million copies in the UK alone, becoming the first and still the only one with such indicators.
7. Justin Timberlake
Timberlake gained serious popularity in 1997, when the boy’s band ’N Sync, whose frontman he was, released his first album. 11 million sales were a huge success, especially since the second and third were no worse (the third record, No Strings Attached, was sold worldwide in the amount of 15 million copies).
Despite this, in 2002, Justin decided to leave the project and perform solo, and Justified's debut longplay came out the same year. The result - 2 Grammys and millions of copies.
Even more successful was the second FutureSex / LoveSounds album, recorded with Timbaland. The hits "SexyBack", "My Love" and "What Goes Around ..." soared to the top of the Billboard Hot 100 and sounded literally from every iron.
6. Gwen Stefani
The singer got into No Doubt in 1986 and took a direct part in the formation of the team. After vocalist John Spence committed suicide, Gwen took his place.
Success came to the group only with the third album, Tragic Kingdom, which included their most famous song “Don’t Speak”.
Stephanie began working separately from No Doubt in 2000, but at first it was only separate singles, and her first solo album was released only in 2004.
Record Love. Angel Music Baby., Like all subsequent ones, is very different from what the singer performs in the group: a greater bias towards pop music, and thanks to her hair color and stage appearance, many critics compared her to the early Madonna.
5. Sting
In 1977, he, together with Stuart Copeland and Andy Summers, founded the band The Police, which gained fame after the first Outlandos d’Amour album.
In 1984, the team went on a world tour, after which Sting decided that as part of The Police he had reached his maximum and it was time to leave. He did this at the very peak of the band’s popularity, devoting himself entirely to writing material for the debut longplay.
The album called The Dream of the Blue Turtles was a resounding success and became platinum, and then .. And then Sting became one of the most famous and diverse performers.
4. Fergie
Stacy Ann Ferguson released her debut solo album, The Dutchess in 2006, as lead singer of The Black Eyed Peas.
She perfectly combined solo creativity with teamwork, so the peak of her popularity coincided with the same period in the group.
Finally, she left The Black Eyed Peas only in 2018, when will.i.am. confirmed the long-walking rumors.
3. Zane Malik
This guy in 2010 came to try his luck at The X Factor, but could not get far. However, the defeat turned out to be a success: he, along with other novice performers, was combined into the One Direction group.
The team released 4 successful albums in 4 years and was at its peak, but in 2015 the musician decided to leave it.
As it turned out later, he did not lose: the debut longplay Mind of Mine hit the first line of the charts of the USA, Great Britain and several other countries.
2. Robbie Williams
Pop rockers Take That were one of the most popular bands of the 90s, dominating the national charts for 5 years, but gradually their popularity began to decline.
It was then that Robbie began to work for himself, without leaving the team.
He is now one of the most successful performers in the world with over 70 million records sold.
1. Michael Jackson
Everyone knows this story very well: as a member of the Jackson 5 family group, Michael Jackson became famous as a child, but he climbed to the top as a man.
From 1972 to 1982, he recorded 5 solo albums (still performing with The Jackson 5), and then there was the legendary Thriller, which became the best-selling album in the world. It was then that everyone was convinced that this dark-skinned guy with a strange skin disease was really the King of pop music.