Reason

Reason is the second solo album by English singer Melanie C, released on 10 March 2003 by Virgin Records. It was the follow-up to Northern Star, and reached number five on the UK Albums Chart, selling 30,876 copies in its first week. Although not performing as well as Northern Star, Reason was certified Gold in the United Kingdom, with 101,889 copies sold. The album has sold 500,000 copies worldwide. The album has been released with the Copy Control protection system in some regions. Most reviews for the album were mixed. Background and recording After the success of Northern Star, Melanie C was considered the only member of the Spice Girls to have established a steady successful career as a solo artist. At this time, she was the only member of the Spice Girls to still have a contract with Virgin Records, since the rest of the Spice Girls had departed from Virgin as solo artists. Chisholm had spent most of 2000 and 2001 touring around the world in promotion of Northern Star, and planned to enter the studio at the end of 2001 to start recording her next album. During this time, things for Chisholm proved to be difficult, as she was diagnosed with depression in 1999. She later revealed that it was difficult for her to handle the publicity and hard work during the Spice Girls days, and some days she would eat too little and exercise to the point of exhaustion. At the end of 1999, Chisholm's depression worsened and she spent days in bed, unable to cope with her day-to-day routine. After being diagnosed with depression she was prescribed antidepressants for 18 months, and also dealt with an eating disorder and a hostile media reaction questioning different topics from her weight to her sexuality. During the early stages of Reasons recording sessions in November 2001, Virgin Records executives were worried about the musical style of the album, as Chisholm's biggest hits from her debut album were an R&B single ("Never Be the Same Again") and a dance single ("I Turn to You"), and Chisholm had insisted that she wanted to keep making pop rock albums. According to The Sun, a record company source stated that "both Mel and Virgin have agreed that she should keep to the rock vibe that helped her 1999 album, Northern Star, do so well. But that is where their agreement ends". Chisholm had already stated that she wanted to work with new producers, while retaining some of the producers that had worked on her debut album.