Tic Tac Toe (band) - History

History

The band was established in 1995 by three young women from the industrial Ruhr valley area: Lee (Liane Wiegelmann), Ricky (Ricarda Wältken) and Jazzy (Marlene Tackenberg). According to their record company, the three girls met at a hip hop festival. However, as many details of their biographies later turned out to be manipulated, it should be taken with a grain of salt - especially since the company never disclosed where and when said festival had taken place.

Their first single was "Ich find' dich scheiße" which became a major hit in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. The debut album, Tic Tac Toe, was released in 1996 to a great success, reaching Top 5. It spawned further singles: "Funky" and "Leck mich am A, B, Zeh". However, it was the fourth single, "Verpiss' dich", that became the band's first number 1 hit in Germany. A string of rap-influenced pop hits helped to spread Tic Tac Toe's popularity outside German speaking countries, but it was also their company's careful marketing plan what contributed to the band's success. In order to appeal to young audience, official biographies said the age of all girls was 18. That reflected only Ricky's real age as the other two vocalists were already in their twenties at that time. Much media publicity was caused by Tic Tac Toe alleged conflict with a German rapper Sabrina Setlur, which most likely was also fabricated.

In 1997 the band released their second album, Klappe die 2te. It met with even greater reception than the previous one, topping German and Swiss charts, and remains their only chart-topping album. "Warum?", a song based on a real story of the band's friend who had died of drug overdose, became the lead single. The track went to number 1 in Germany, Austria and Switzerland and remains group's best-known hit to date. Reggae-influenced "Mr. Wichtig" was released as the second single and became a Top 10 success. Two next singles charted outside Top 20, including "Bitte küss' mich nicht" which told about sexual harassment.

Tic Tac Toe were at that time at the peak of their popularity. Despite the commercial success, girls were facing personal problems. Tabloids were writing about Ricky's stress-related problems, and it turned out that the group's biography had been faked. Press reported that Lee had a husband, who would later commit suicide. Only one week later it came out that she had worked as a prostitute and was addicted to drugs. All those scandals affected the band's image. In order to improve it, in November 1997 the record company called a press conference in Munich, where girls were to contradict those gossips and prove unity. However, the conference had a dramatic turn when girls started to argue and insult each other publicly. Lee, in tears, left the room, and soon after that Ricky left the band, embarking on a solo career. Tic Tac Toe's popularity subsequently decreased.

Lee and Jazzy were performing as a duo for some time, before Sara Brahms joined the band. They recorded a single "Nie wieder" in 1999 as Sara @ Tic Tac Two, which turned out a considerable success. The third album followed in 2000, Ist der Ruf erst ruiniert..., recorded again with Sara, but released under the name Tic Tac Toe. It was promoted by three singles, with "Isch liebe disch" as the most successful one in charts. However, the album itself was a commercial disappointment and still in 2000 the band dissolved.

Tic Tac Toe reformed with the original line-up in 2005, after Ricky's return. At the end of the year the single "Spiegel" was released which was a chart success and brought the band back into the spotlight. Two albums were released in early 2006 within one month period: a hits collection and Comeback, the modestly successful fourth studio album. "Keine Ahnung" was released as the second single, but failed to enter the charts. Early 2007 saw the official break-up of Tic Tac Toe. In 2009 the band was rumoured to reform again, with Sara Brahms replacing Lee, who reportedly was struggling with depression, but the comeback was never materialized.