Dream | |
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 Dream performing on theMy2K Tour in 2016. | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Los Angeles,California, U.S. |
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| Years active |
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| Past members |
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Dream was an Americangirl group formed in 1998, primarily consisting of Holly Blake-Arnstein, Diana Ortiz, Ashley Poole, andMelissa Schuman. The group was signed to rapperPuff Daddy'sBad Boy Records label and released their debut studio albumIt Was All a Dream in 2001, which peaked at number six on theBillboard 200. The album was preceded by the single "He Loves U Not" which peaked at number two on theBillboard Hot 100, and was followed by the moderate chart hit "This Is Me".
Amid conflicts with their label, their second studio albumReality (2003) did not see a widespread release following the release of its first single, "Crazy", and the group disbanded. Dream briefly reunited in 2015 and independently released the single "I Believe" the following year before disbanding once more.[1]
The group was originally formed in October 1998. Talent scout Debbie Fontaine selected Holly Blake-Arnstein (13),Melissa Schuman (14), Ashley Poole (13), and Alex Chester (13), four teens fromCalifornia, to comprise a girl group called First Warning, which was later changed to Dream.
The group auditioned forSean Combs and were subsequently signed toBad Boy Records. Following this, the group stopped working with Fontaine, who later sued Combs and Blake-Arnstein, Schuman, and Poole, but lost her court case.[2] In January 1999, Chester was replaced by Diana Ortiz (13).
Dream released their debut single "He Loves U Not" in 2000. "He Loves U Not" peaked at number 2 on theBillboard Hot 100, and number 17 on theUK Singles Chart.[3] Thevideo for the single peaked at number 2 onMTV'sTRL. Their debut albumIt Was All a Dream was released on January 23, 2001. The second single from the album, "This Is Me", was not as successful, but the music video hit number 1 onTRL. An alternate song with the same name but different lyrics and production, titled "This Is Me (Remix)" was also released featuring rapper Kain and Sean Combs, and was later included on the compilationTotally Hits 2001.[4] Bad Boy Records had planned to release more singles fromIt Was All a Dream, but these releases were later canceled. According to Blake-Arnstein, this was partly due to the impact of theSeptember 11 terrorist attacks in 2001.[5]
To promoteIt Was All a Dream, Dream participated in the 2001TRL tour, and opened forDestiny's Child,Eve,NSYNC (No Strings Attached Tour) andNelly.[6] They were featured in a segment ofMTV Cribs.Play Along Toys releaseddolls of the group in 2001. Dream made various appearances on television shows, includingTRL,The Rosie O'Donnell Show,The Early Show,Live with Regis and Kelly, andGood Morning America.
In April 2002, Melissa Schuman left the group to pursue an acting career.[7] A lengthy search conducted by Sean Combs and the three remaining members led to Kasey Sheridan (15) joining the group in Fall 2002.[8]
Dream spent the subsequent months recording new songs for their second album. In the summer of 2003, the group released the single "Crazy" featuring rapperLoon which coincided with a sexier image.[5][9] Blake-Arnstein later noted that the sexier, more mature image pushed upon the group by Combs and their management was not a welcome change, and that she and the other members were no longer enjoying the experience.[5] "Crazy" peaked at #39 on the BillboardMainstream Top 40. Dream's albumReality was completed and was scheduled to be released in Fall 2003, but its release was repeatedly postponed by their label. The album did not see a wide release and was only released for digital download from the FrenchVirgin Megastore website.[10] Bad Boy Records later dropped Dream and they disbanded, though their dissolution was never formally announced.
Ashley Poole and Melissa Schuman pursued solo singing careers, and Holly Blake-Arnstein joined the California-based band Whirl Magnet.[5]
On May 9, 2008, Clockwork Entertainment released two compilation albums titledDaddy's Little Girl andDream Never Land. These albums feature demo songs recorded before their debut and include early member Alex Chester. Subsequently,Reality also became available for purchase oniTunes on May 13, 2008. A third compilation,Dream Back To You, was released in 2009.
Around this time, Clockwork Entertainment attempted to rebuild Dream with completely new members. The newly revived lineup consisted of Jordan McCoy, Danielle Keaton, Lindsay Taylor and Imaj Thomas. This new iteration of Dream was given a soft launch via the official YouTube channel but would fail to make a proper debut following the departure of several members.
Meanwhile, members Melissa Schuman, Ashley Poole, and Diana Ortiz started a new group under the name Lady Phoenix. A reality show documenting their search for new members was in the works, but was not picked up by any networks, and the group disbanded in 2012.[11]
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On May 11, 2015, the original members of Dream posted a video online performing a cappella version of their 2000 single "He Loves U Not".[12][13] On May 29, 2015, Dream announced they would be making a comeback and launched a new Twitter and Facebook page.[14] On December 17, 2015, Dream released a studio recording of "O Holy Night".[15]
On August 2, 2016, Dream released their first single together in 13 years, titled "I Believe".[16][17]
In 2016, Dream opened for98 Degrees on theMy2K Tour. They also performed at the 2016 Mixtape Festival on August 6 withNew Kids On The Block headlining. On August 25, 2016, former member Kasey Sheridan joined Dream on stage to perform "Crazy" at theMicrosoft Theater inLos Angeles,California.[18]
On October 5, 2016, Ashley Poole announced that Dream had once again disbanded.[19]
| Title | Album details | Peak position | Certifications |
|---|---|---|---|
| US | |||
| It Was All a Dream |
| 6 | |
| Reality |
| — | — |
| Title | Album details |
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| Dream Never Land |
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| Daddy's Little Girl |
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| Dream Back to You |
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| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Certifications (sales thresholds) | Album | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| US [21] | US Pop [21] | AUS [22] | CAN [23] | GER [24] | IRE [25] | NED [26] | NZ [27] | SWE [28] | UK [29] | ||||||
| 2000 | "He Loves U Not" | 2 | 3 | 30 | 12 | 91 | 40 | 40 | 6 | 26 | 17 |
| It Was All a Dream | ||
| 2001 | "This Is Me" | 39 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | 47 | — | — | — | |||
| "This Is Me (Remix)" (featuring Kain) | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | |||
| 2003 | "Crazy" | — | 39 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Reality | ||
| 2016 | "I Believe" | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album single | ||
| "—" denotes releases that failed to chart or not released in that country. | |||||||||||||||
| Year | Single | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | "In My Dreams" | It Was All a Dream |
| "I Don't Like Anyone" | ||
| 2003 | "That's OK" (featuringFabolous) | Reality |
| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Billboard Music Awards | Top New Artist | Themselves | Nominated | [30] |
| Teen Choice Awards | Choice Music: Breakout Artist | Nominated | [31] | ||
| Choice Music: Pop Group | Nominated | ||||
| Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards | Best R&B/Soul Album of the Year, Group, Band or Duo | It Was All a Dream | Nominated | [32][33] | |
| Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist, Group, Band or Duo | "He Loves U Not" | Nominated | |||
| 2002 | ASCAP Pop Music Awards | Most Performed Song | Won | [34] | |
| BMI Pop Awards | Award-Winning Song | Won | [35] |
After a failed attempt to get DREAM back together within the last few months, Ashley Poole and I are searching for new talent to start fresh with a new group, new sound, and new friendships. We are also looking forward to an upcoming reality show which will follow us on this new journey together. Since this will be a new group, we need a new name, so we would love to hear anybody's thoughts on what we should call our band.
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| Artists | |
