Rachel Lauren Stevens (born April 9, 1978) is a British singer and an occasional actress. Formerly with the successful pop group S Club 7, she has now launched a successful solo recording career.
After a successful audition Stevens became a member of the British pop group S Club 7, selling sixteen million records worldwide and achieving four number hit singles in the UK. The band broke-up in 2003 due to undisclosed reasons. Stevens' became the first member of the band to sign a multi-million dollar recording contract and released her first solo single, "Sweet Dreams My LA Ex", in late 2003, reaching number two on the UK singles chart. Her first album did not fare so well, peaking at disappointing number nine on the UK albums chart and quickly disappearing. Stevens' follow-up single also failed to gain much attention. Critics began to write her off as a one-hit wonder until she came back with the song "Some Girls" (2004) which became an instant hit in the UK, peaking at number two. In late 2005 Stevens released her second solo album, which failed to perform on the charts, becoming a commercial failure even though it was praised by the pop music press.
Stevens was born in Southgate, London to a Jewish family. Her now-estranged father, Michael Stevens, is notable for producing a guide to the best places to solicit prostitutes in London. Her mother is Linda Stevens. She attended Ashmole School in Southgate, London.
From a very early age, Stevens was drawn to entertaining people. At the age of five she began taking acting lessons at a drama school near London, but as time went on she seemed to be more interested in fashion than acting. At the age of fifteen her first big break when she beat out 4999 competitors in a modeling competition sponsored by Just 17 Magazine. Following her first modeling gig Stevens attended the London School of Fashion and after graduation worked in fashion PR, but began to lose interest and started to seek out a career in music instead.