eri Horner has said “a baby is better than a number one record” as she reflected on what she is most proud of in her life.
The Spice Girls singer, 51, is married to Formula One team principal Christian Horner and they share a son together as well as two daughters from their previous relationships.
After her time in the 1990s pop girl group, she released her own music, was a judge on a number of singing competitions and has released her own books and children’s novels.
Speaking to presenter Vick Hope for the Bookshelfie podcast about what she is most proud of, she said: “I’d say a baby is better than a number one record. That’s the truth.
“I’ve been very ambitious and there’s nothing wrong with that. In fact, I think it’s fantastic and I still am, but I’d like to say that ambition should have a rebrand, that you’re allowed to be.
“Having said that, it’s balance. Holding a trophy is not going to keep you warm at night, is it? And I’ve learned that.”
She continued: “I’m really proud that I’m in a loving relationship and I’ve got beautiful children. I would say that’s very fulfilling.
“So, it’s balanced, but equally, to maintain your own identity. If I couldn’t be creative, I’d feel like I was starving.
“So, that’s why I’m very, very grateful to be able to do something alongside and still show up for my family at the same time. So, I think I’m very proud of them really, if I’m honest.”
Spice Girls rose to global prominence in the late 1990s with their number one debut album Spice, which they followed up with 1997’s Spiceworld and 2000’s Forever, which went to number one and two in the charts respectively.
The Spice Girls’ slogan “girl power” was closely associated with Horner when they were dominating the airwaves with hits like Wannabe and Spice Up Your Life.
Reflecting on the importance of “power” three decades on, she said: “I think power is something that we we all want to feel and sometimes we can feel completely powerless, it doesn’t matter who we are.
“That word, Girl Power, there’s always an evolution. It can go deeper, it can go wider and it can go for everyone.
“Ultimately it still stands strong for me, absolutely. But I think it existed before I said it.
“Look at our predecessors, Maya Angelou, she had it. Go back a bit more, Emmeline Pankhurst, Frida Kahlo, she had it, go back to the Tudor times, Queen Elizabeth I, she certainly had it.
“I think it’s existed beyond, and it goes on and it gets richer and deeper.”
The singer-turned-writer also admitted she had her “elbows out” when she was younger, but feels with maturity she has learnt to be “more considered”.
“I think (with) perfectionism, we can be our own worst judge on what standards there are”, she said.
“And when I was younger, here’s the gift of youth, you haven’t fallen down too many times and there’s a youthful bravado, maybe a naivety as well.
“So, I felt quite quite gung-ho, my elbows were out.”
Horner noted that now aged 51 she feels like she is “standing on experience”.
“Before I had bravado, and then I was in no man’s land, and now I still don’t have the answers, I still make mistakes, I made some mistakes last week.
“But, actually, the confidence is coming from a little bit of trust in myself and my experience.”
The full interview can be heard on the Bookshelfie podcast.