Melanie C says Spice Girls' 30th anniversary was 'emotional'

Image source, Getty Images Image caption, Mel C was talking at the Silver Clef Awards, where she won the global impact award By Mark Savage Music correspondent Published 3 minutes ago Spice Girls star Melanie C has said the 30th anniversary of the band's debut single Wannabe - which fell on Wednesday - was a "very emotional day". The singer formerly known as Sporty Spice recalled that seeing the song in shops had been "so exciting, because it was everything we dreamed of". The track went on to become one of the defining singles of the 1990s, selling more than 8 million copies worldwide, and launching the band's Girl Power agenda. "We knew exactly what we wanted to achieve but nobody imagined the scale [of what] we went on to do," said the star, whose real name is Melanie Chisholm. "We went out, we conquered the world. "We were told that we couldn't, and we wouldn't. But we did." The 52-year-old was speaking at the Nordoff And Robbins Silver Clef Awards at the Royal Albert Hall, where she was honoured with the global impact award. The Spice Girls celebrated Wannabe's 30th birthday with separate posts on social media earlier this week. Victoria Beckham said , external the song had "forever changed our lives", while Geri Horner wrote , external : "Thank you to my beautiful spice sisters." "It was a very emotional day yesterday," Chisolm said on the red carpet. "We're all in touch obviously, all of the girls, we're so grateful and respectful of each other." Image source, Getty Images Image caption, The Spice Girls were the biggest band on the planet between 1996 and 1998 She also recalled Wannabe's nail-biting first week on the charts. After 48 hours, it was expected to enter the Top 40 at number six. When the chart was finally published, it had raced up to number three. "We were just on cloud nine," said Chishom. "Then it went to number one the next week - but we were in Japan, because we'd released the album in Japan before anywhere else. "I remember we had record performances and send them back to Top Of The Pops [and] we were so frustrated because we wanted to get into that studio. "Luckily it stayed there long enough that, on the third week, we got into the studio. And then it went on to spend seven weeks [at number one], so we had nothing to worry about, really. "It changed all our lives forever. And some would say it changed the world. She was presented with her award by actor Richard E Grant, who played the Spice Girls' harried manager Clifford in the 1997 movie Spice World. To mark the anniversary, he wore one of his original sparkling pink suits from the film. Lily Allen: 'Music saved my life' Image source, Getty Images Image caption, The London-born pop star picked up the Icon Award The Silver Clef Awards raise money for the musical therapy charity Nordoff and Robbins, which helps people living with a diverse range of conditions, from autism and dementia to brain injuries, life-limiting illnesses, grief and trauma. Other prizes went to Sam