When Ray asked us back in 1991 "Ya'll ready for this", did he and the rest of the 2 Unlimited team realise what an effect they would have on the dance music scene for years to come. 2 Unlimiteds debut single, "Get Ready For This" took Europe by storm, becoming an instant dance anthem classic. The voices behind 2 Unlimited are Ray Lothar Slijngaard and Anita Daniele Dels. Ray was born June 28, 1971, and Anita, on December 28 of that same year. Both were born in the same hospital in Amsterdam, Wilhelmina Gasthuis, which is located in the southern area of town.
Back in early 1991, Ray was a chef at the Netherland's Schiphol Airport, and had a passion for music. He also was a breakdancer. But did not realize he "could make a career of it." A friend of his, a rapper called Marvin D, was a member of a rap group. During one show, there was no heat within the crowd, so Ray took the mic, and started rapping and the fans went crazy. Before long, he was put in touch with music producers Jean-Paul DeCoster and Phil Wilde, who were known fairly well in Europe. Wilde had produced for AB Logic, the group behind the hit, "The Hitman".
Anita had been involved with music since an early age. "When I was small I was always singing at family gatherings." She also recollects performing in a contest before 1,200 kids. After working in the parking ticket division in a Dutch Police station, she was tapped to join Trouble Sisters, a female rap group. Marvin D appeared looking for a dancer and backing singer and asked Anita if she would like the job. "It was my first taste of show business", said Anita. She was soon tired of "standing around looking sexy". She wanted to perform, so Marvin introduced her to Ray, who was currently working with Jean Paul and Phil on the rap version of "Get Ready For This". "Of course I said 'yes'", and 2 Unlimited was born.
Ray and Anita knew barely knew each other before the group was formed, although they were both popular people at the local clubs. Their relationship was serious for a short time, but now think of themselves as brother and sister.
Their first album, GET READY, was released in the Spring of 1992, spawning "Get Ready For This", "Twilight Zone", "Workaholic", and "The Magic Friend" as singles, and all did well, with "The Magic Friend" only making it to #13 on Dutch singles charts and 11 in the UK. "Workaholic" was not released in the United Staes however. In 1995, GET READY was certified gold (more than 500,000 copies sold) in the U.S., but it did better in Europe, staying on album charts for more than two years. It was #62 on the Top 100 albums of 1993. It has sold over 2.6 million copies all over the world.
In 1993, their second album NO LIMITS was released, with the debut single, after much discussion, being "No Limit". The single only took two weeks to knock the 10 week number one song, Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You", from #1 on the UK Top Forty and stayed there for five weeks. It remained in the charts for 13 weeks in total. It hit #1 in 15 other countries: Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Greece, Holland, Italy, Norway, Protugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the then Czecholovakia. Other singles, "Tribal Dance", "Faces" and "Maximum Overdrive" also did quite well. The final single from NO LIMITS was "Let The Beat Control Your Body". It did so well, that Anita and Ray sent a pair of special 2 Unlimited cloggs to a large number of friends. One year after the albums release, it was at #17 on the Dutch Top 100 Albums chart. On 1993's chart, seven months after it was released, it was placed at #9.
Wasting no time, REAL THINGS was released in June of 1994. Their third album went straight to number one on it's first week of release in a few countries. It actually went gold the day it was released in the UK. Ray and Anita were presented with the award the day after its release, June 7, at a release party at England's Ministry of Sound club. Its debut single, "The Real Thing", was an instant hit. The second single, "No One" didn't do as well as other singles, but it hit #17 on October 1 in the UK charts and it was one of the most played 2 Unlimited tracks on European radio. "Here I Go" made it to #4 in Holland, (#1 on the dance charts on April 22, 1995) and it hit #22 in its second week on the United Kingdom charts. "Nothing Like The Rain" was released in June 6, 1995 and entered the Mega Top 50 Singles chart at #31 on the 24th. The song hit #11 on the Rabo Top 40. REAL THINGS was placed at #22 on the Top 100 Albums for 1994. After over a year on the charts, the album was placed #57 on the Top 100 albums chart for July 8, 1995, increasing with each new single released.
Finally, on October 30 of 1995, HITS UNLIMITED, their greatest hits album was released. Not many bands hope to even release a greatest hits album at all, nopt mush it being released as the fourth album. HITS UNLIMITED includes all the chart releases, plus three new tracks. "Do What's Good For Me" was the current single at the time, "Jump For Joy" was released in January and "Spread Your Love" finished things off in June of this year. The Byte version of the album contains an extra megamix, which is also available under the name "2U Megamix" on other countries editions of "Do What's Good For Me". The album sleeve includes the 2 Unlimited story, plus some history and a few unknown facts.
As for 2 Unlimited's songs being top singles of the year that they were released, "No Limit" was the #3 single out of the top 100 for 1993. On that same chart, "Tribal Dance" hit #29, "Faces", #35, and "Maximum Overdrive" came in at #85. In 1994's chart, "No One" was placed at #21, "The Real Thing" came in at #24 and "Let The Beat Control Your Body" reached at #34.
In the United Kingdom, they scored 11 top ten hits in a row there, with every single being in the top 25. The band have had #1 records in every country, except the United States, where it is VERY tough to make it in dance music.
Their albums, and singles have done so well that they have sold well over 18 million records, and at the 1994 MIDEM Conference and World Music Awards, they won 120 Gold and Platinum Records, all in one presentation! 2 Unlimited were also awarded gold and platinum records in 26 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Chile, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Holland, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Philippines, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Czechia/Slovakia, and the U.K. In Budapest on December 3, 1993, they were presented with a Goldene Europa Award for Trend of The Year. The next day, they picked up the Smash Hits Poll Winners Award for Best Dance Act in London. This was the second year in a row they won the award. Then, on January 7, 1995, in The Netherlands, they got the B.V. Popprijs 1994 award and 10.000 guilders, which was donated to the United Nation's fund for UNICEF. They were also presented with the Best Techno 12" of 1993 for "Tribal Dance", at the Winter Music Conference in Florida, USA. 2 Unlimited have also won three "World Music Awards" for the best selling artist in the Benelux area, more awards than any other artist! Beat that Oasis!
Their music videos also do well. MTV Europe has always played their videos, but MTV America has been harder to crack. In 1992, they played "Twilight Zone" on "Club MTV", their dance show. In 1995, the dance show was now "The Grind", and "Get Ready For This" was a popular dance anthem, and the video was played as well. To date, their songs are played very rarely in the US and a 2 Unlimited video has yet to make the "Top 20 Countdown". On MTV Europe, every video has made the countdown except "Nothing Like The Rain", "Do What's Good For Me" and "Spread Your Love". The video with the best entry was "Tribal Dance", which entered at #6 on May 15, 1993. It stayed on the chart for 15 weeks. "No Limit" debuted at #13 on February 13 of the same year, and hit #1 for two weeks on the 27th and the 6th of March. Their second video, "Twilight Zone" stayed on the chart for 8 weeks, hitting #6 on April 4, 1992. The next video, "Workaholic", entered at #16 on June 6, hitting #11 on the 13th. "Let The Beat Control Your Body" came in at #18 on February 2, 1994, hitting #3 on March 5, 19 and 26. It stayed on the charts for 11 weeks, one more week than "No Limit" did. "Here I Go" entered at #15 on April 1, 1995, and it was #9 on April 15.
2 Unlimited's songs are usually best when they are fast. How fast? "Do What I Like", from REAL THINGS, clocks in at 147 B.P.M. (Beats Per Minute), and "The Real Thing" at 144. "No Limit" from the album NO LIMITS, is 142, and from GET READY the Orchestral mix of "Get Ready For This" comes in at 126, and "Twilight Zone" at 129. "The Magic Friend" is 127 B.P.M. "Jump For Joy", for their HITS UNLIMITED album clocks in at 155 Beats Per Minute!
Anita reckons 2 Unlimited perform around 200 shows a year. They class their biggest concert as the Parkpop open festival in Holland, where they played to an audience of 450,000. Other large shows include other open-air festivals at The Tokyo Dome, Bercy in Paris, and Wembley Arena in London.
As if all this success weren't enough, 2 Unlimited is the first Euro Pop band to go gold in Australia, and they have been named the best Techno act in Greece, Israel, Indonesia, and Turkey. They have also appeared on the popular British sitcom "Absolutely Fabulous" and were favourite guests on the British Morning program "The Big Breakfast".
Speaking of videos, the band have released a few over the years. In the UK, there's "No Limits: The Videos", which features videos up to "Tribal Dance", featuring two versions of some, "Mega Hits", from Japan, which features 7 videos, up to "Faces", and "Hits Unlimited" in Europe and the U.S., which features all of their music videos, two live performances, and the MTV Partyzone Megamix.
In addition to their music and video collection, 2 Unlimited have gone digital or if you want to put it "Info Superhighway Interaction". A Phillips CD-i (interactive Video CD) named "Beyond Limits - One Night With 2 Unlimited", contains a few videos, interviews, audio tracks, among other smart features.
What do they think about the the United States? Anita likes the diversity of each state, and the fact that "..Americans are so nice in every state..". Ray's favorite place in the States is New York City, where he is familiar with slightly and has friends there. He likes the "people..language..clubs..and of course the women." Ray commented on their growing success in the US "When we play America it's like coming full circle. Our sound is a mix of every country. Music's the language we all speak". They toured the U.S. in early 1995, visiting clubs, and performing at sporting events.
The American media began to notice the band. The Chicago Tribune said 2 Unlimited "..has a lot to brag about". The Tampa Tribune said "Get Ready For This" is "..the smash hit that has taken command of the world's airwaves". The Entertainment News & Views, also in Florida, called them "..the Number One best selling pop super duo in the world today". And, the Brownsville Herald in Texas called their concert at J.J. Whispers, a local club, "Electrifying".
Enough about the sounds of 2 Unlimited, what styles of music do Ray and Anita like? Ray prefers rap, especially Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, and his favourite, Snoop Doggy Dogg. He also likes old school like The Sugar Hill Gang. Anita on the other hand prefers soul, hip hop, funk and jazz.
When a 2 Unlimited song is released in the charts, you are hearing the work of more than just two people. While Ray and Anita write the lyrics, Phil Wilde, and Jean Paul DeCoster, as well as selected others, create the music. They work behind the scenes and prefer it that way. DeCoster told English magazine MixMag "..there is also a very big job to be taken care of on the business side", besides the performing aspect. Another songwriter for 2 Unlimited, Michael Leahy, who said, "..from the very beginning (Desire), I have tried to tailor the words to fit them". Leahy has worked on the 2 Unlimited tracks; "Desire", "Kiss Me Bliss Me", "Invite Me To Trance", "Where Are You Now?", "Nothing Like The Rain", "Face To Face" and "Tuning Into Something Wild".
2 Unlimited were contracted under many labels all over the world. In The Netherlands it is of course Byte Records, ZYX handles things in Germany, in the UK it was PWL, the States had Critique/Radikal, with Hot Productions releasing the U.S 12" vinyl. In Canada, it's Quality Records and Greece is handled by FM Records.
Speaking of PWL (Peter Waterman Limited), they dropped 2 Unlimited from their list of bands in January, a few weeks before the release of "Jump For Joy". No official explenation has been given to date, but the whole situation is dodgy. Waterman told two British newspapers, on two seperate occasions three months apart, that 2 Unlimited had broke up and his company would never be the same without them. If they were so important to PWL (who have two bands working under them that I know of and they have yet to hit top forty in the British charts), then why limit their publicity, have very little promotion, cancel the release of "Nothing Like The Rain" and lie about them breaking up? E-mail Waterman if you wish and ask him why. That's if he is still in business, as I hope he has had many a misfortune since January.
Ignoring the band was not all PWL did since 1991. PWL was not too happy with 2 Unlimited's style of music; rapping and singing. So, in October 1991, the Orchestral version of "Get Ready For This" was released in the United Kingdom instead of the Rap Version. "Twilight Zone" through "The Magic Friend" were also edited. PWL wanted all lyrics removed from "Twilight Zone", but Phil Wilde and Jean Paul DeCoster convinced them to keep Anita's singing. "No Limit" had it's two verses of rap replaced with the now famous "Techno, techno, techno, techno" and in "Tribal Dance", Ray asked us twelve times to "Check it out". "Faces" also suffered with a basic version of the original lyrics. PWL went beyond the limit and edited all, yes all of Rays' "raps" out of their ablum NO LIMITS! PWL had it's last rule of terror, as they edited over thirty seconds of the radio edit for "Do What's Good For Me". Ray and Anita were not pleased, as Anta explained "It was like, Oh my God, we're doing nothing".
In 1995, Ray was asked where he'd like to be in five years. He mentioned he hoped to be a record producer. He achieved that goal in 1995 by creating X-Ray Records, and a production company, Raymar Productions, which he runs with none other than Marvin D. The first act on his label, T.O.F. reached the Top 10 in Holland with his debut single, "Funk It Up", and the video was voted as one of the best of the year by MTV Europe. T.O.F. also released the singles "Feel This Groove", and "Jump Around", plus an album by the same name. Other releases include happy hardcore group A.K. with "Just A Dream", and X-Ray even has jungle groups. No doubt Ray and Marvin D will get a great deal of success from their project.
Ray isn't the only one doing projects outside of 2 Unlimited. Anita recorded a few songs with Jamaican raggae artist Mad Cobra in the summer of 1996, so it will be interesting to see what comes from this.
The show had to come to an end sometime, but in many people's view, it came far to soon in June of 1996, when 2 Unlimited decided to call it a day. Anita, not giving an entirely accurate reason, went her own way. Ray was happy on continuing the band, but probably because of his own projects, decided otherwise.
But 2 Unlimited are not gone. Phil Wilde and Jean Paul DeCoster have assembled a new duo to take up the mighty task of being the new 2 unlimited. Their first song is due for release soon, so watch your MTV to see if they make it or not.
So, there it is, the story of 2 unlimited.