RING THE ALARM Y'ALL. A fire has started, and it is out of control. Squeeze into your old Sean John tube top and shine up your rhinestone encrusted belt buckle. DREAM (no lie) has reunited. The '00s girl group we all knew and loved just released a song for the first time since stealing from Claire's made you popular. No, this is not "all a dream" (not sorry), it's real life, babes. Their latest release is a delish rendition of the timeless holiday classic, "O Holy Night." The band has been teasing its fans on social media with news of an epic comeback, and we've been waiting eagerly in our fuzzy Kangol bucket hat.
While the band says they are reuniting sans the help of Puff Daddy, there appears to be only love between he and the group. If you can't tell already, we're more than ready for a full-on DREAM revival, complete with new material. So much so, we messaged the girl group and asked them to give us the deets on their plans for the future. That was then, this is now, kiddos. DREAM 2.0 is alive and well. Read on to find out what Holly Restani, Ashley Poole, Diana Ortiz and Melissa Schuman have been up to since the days of peasant tops and pleather.
1. Why did you decide to release a Christmas song after all these years?
Ashley: Why not? Haha! The girls and I have unfinished business and want to put a little something together for our fans. It's our way of saying Merry Christmas! WE'RE BACK!
Holly: Our lives have been individually very busy, so it's been near impossible over the years to be in the same place together. Finally, we managed to all get together this past May when the girls came up to visit me and my family in San Francisco for a weekend. We decided to sing "He Loves U Not" for the first time in over a decade and post it online for the fans. Singing together is natural and fun for us, and so we remembered that quickly and found ourselves kind of dreaming (no pun intended) about making a little music together again. The Christmas song just happened to be an appropriate way to get started since it's that time of year and we all enjoy a little holiday music.
Diana: The holidays bring out a warmth in most everyone, and we wanted to represent the warmth all of us girls feel about reuniting into the prefect holiday song. Seemed appropriate considering we all feel so blessed to make music together again after all these years.
2. There's a lot of chatter about a comeback. Can you tell us why or how you came to the decision to get back together?
Diana: Everything within DREAM has been organic. Our chemistry has never failed to amaze one another. That being said, with the amount of love, respect and appreciation we have for each other, we are excited to make music again and still give back to the fans that feel as nostalgic as we do about this reunion.
Melissa: Timing is everything. No possible DREAM reunion was realistic in the past as we didn't have a whole lot of control over the fate of our group. We've desperately desired to sing together and for our fans for a very long time. It's different now; we have the creative freedom, the passion and the commitment to each other and the fans to see this through.
3. Is Puff Daddy involved with the comeback at all?
Ashley: I run into Diddy all the time and we know he would be supportive. Every time we run into each other, he pulls me into his crew like I'm still part of the Bad Boy family. Gotta love him for that!
4. What has everyone been up to since DREAM's last album?
Holly: I've been living in San Francisco since 2004 where I completed a Master's Degree and became a registered occupational therapist working with children with special needs, as well as dabbling in practicing and teaching mindfulness-based stress reduction. I got married in 2008 and my husband Dominic Restani (hence my name change), and I welcomed our first daughter, Capri in 2013. Since then I've been mostly at home raising her while still practicing OT on a very part-time basis. In September, I gave birth to a second baby girl, Sedona. Our hands and hearts are VERY full now, but having music (and especially music with my girls) as part of this picture just seems so right!
Diana: Growing up, enjoying life, and doing what any normal human being would do if they were no longer at the "job" they had before. All of us are very strong minded, passionate, and assertive women. Those traits alone have made life feel so grand. Being present and putting importance on family has made life worth living.
Ashley: I was a solo artist and a songwriter since the group ended. I've been hardcore in the studio and learning all different facets of the music industry. I've grown a lot as a writer and artist, and I am excited to bring my new skills and knowledge to our new venture.
Melissa: After getting married in 2006 I took a hiatus and enjoyed new married life, and soon after, life as a mother when our son Elin was born in 2010. Prior to that time in my life I worked on projects like Love Don't Cost A Thing with Christina Milian and Nick Cannon, The Hollow with Nick Carter and Big Bang Theory's Kaley Cuoco. As of recently I have been busy studying and performing at The Groundlings School, developed an original online series Actress(es): A Web Series, with my friend Aphrodite Camello, and perform long/short form improv around and about the Los Angeles area.
5. What can we expect next from DREAM? A new album? Single? Tour? All of the above? And when?
Holly: We're going to start writing and recording our new stuff starting the first of the new year. As of now we have no set dates to tour. However, once we get our new music out there, with the help and support of the fans, we'll have the opportunity to get on stage and sing together. The future holds great possibility.
Amen, boo! How stoked are you for the DREAM reunion? Tell us in the comments!
Speaking of nostalgic bands, watch the Backstreet Boys show off their boy band knowledge!