Editing Spice Girls (section)

==== Signing with Virgin Records ====
By late 1994, the group felt insecure, as they still did not have an official contract with Heart Management and were frustrated with the management team's direction. They persuaded Herbert to set up a showcase performance in front of industry writers, producers and [[Artists and repertoire|A&R]] men in December 1994 at the Nomis Studios, where they received an "overwhelmingly positive" reaction.<ref name="sinclair20083334" /> The Herberts quickly set about creating a binding contract for them. Encouraged by the reaction they had received at the Nomis showcase, all five members refused to sign the contracts on legal advice from, among others, Adams's father.<ref name="sinclair20083334">{{harvnb|Sinclair|2008|pp=33–34}}</ref> In January, the group began songwriting sessions with [[Biffco|Richard Stannard]], whom they had impressed at the showcase, and his partner Matt Rowe. During these sessions the songs "[[Wannabe]]" and "[[2 Become 1]]" were written.<ref name="sinclair4049" />

In March 1995, the group left Heart Management, feeling Heart was unwilling to listen to their ideas. To ensure they kept control of their work, they allegedly stole the master recordings of their discography from the management offices.<ref>{{harvnb|Sinclair|2004|p=34}}</ref>{{refn|group=nb|According to Tim Hawes, Halliwell had tricked him into giving her the master tapes, claiming the group needed them for rehearsals. Upon obtaining the tapes, the group walked out on Heart Management and Hawes never saw them again.<ref>{{harvnb|McGibbon|1997b|pp=100–102}}</ref> After signing them to his company a few months later, Simon Fuller paid off a £50,000 settlement with the Herberts to ensure the group would not face legal problems with their previous managers.<ref>{{harvnb|Smith|2019|p=114}}</ref>}} The next day, the group tracked down the [[Sheffield]]-based songwriter [[Eliot Kennedy]], who had been present at the Nomis showcase, and persuaded him to work with them. Through contacts they had made at the showcase, they were also introduced to the [[Absolute (production team)|Absolute]] production team. With Kennedy and Absolute's help, the group spent the next several weeks writing and recording demos for the majority of the songs that would be released on their debut album, including "[[Say You'll Be There]]" and "[[Who Do You Think You Are (Spice Girls song)|Who Do You Think You Are]]".<ref name="sinclair4049">{{harvnb|Sinclair|2008|pp=40–49}}</ref> Their demos caught the attention of [[Simon Fuller]] of [[19 Entertainment]], who signed them to his management company in May 1995.<ref>{{harvnb|Sinclair|2008|pp=66–68}}</ref>

By this point, industry buzz around Spice had grown and major record labels in London and Los Angeles were keen to sign them. After a bidding war, they signed a five-album deal with [[Virgin Records]] in July 1995.<ref>{{harvnb|Sinclair|2008|pp=69–70}}</ref> Fuller took them on an extensive promotional tour in Los Angeles, where they met with studio executives in the hopes of securing film and television opportunities.<ref>{{harvnb|Halliwell|1999|pp=194, 197–198}}</ref> Their name was changed to the Spice Girls as a rapper was already using the name Spice. The new name was chosen as industry people often referred to them derisively as "the Spice girls".<ref>{{harnvb|Sinclair|2008|p=77}}</ref><ref name="sggen" /> They continued to write and record tracks for their debut album.<ref name="cripps141">{{harvnb|Spice Girls|Cripps|Peachey|1997|p=141}}</ref>