Music video: UK girl group Flo make their debut with the MNEK helmed “Cardboard Box”

One thing I don’t think the UK gets enough credit for is that it’s been responsible for some pretty dope girl groups. Even if some of them have been pretty short lived. Everybody of course knows the Spice Girls. But there’s also All Saints. Sugababes. And I choke a little when I admit it, but also Girls Aloud. (There’s no denying some of the songs in their discography. There just isn’t.) There’s also Mis-Teeq, who I’ve shortlisted based on “All I Want” and “Scandalous” alone. And whilst I’m not a fan of their music generally, Little Mix has managed to go the distance and enjoy a level of success and longevity that we hadn’t seen from another girl group for quite some time.

And now we have a new UK girl group on the scene known as Flo. A trio comprised of Renée, Stella and Jorja. Momentous. Because it’s also been a minute since we’ve had an all Black girl group on the scene.

Whoever’s Flo management is, they did a great job. Both the song and the music video for “Cardboard Box” manage to tick so many reference boxes without it being obvious. The look of the video evoking the likes of Sugababes’ “Overload”. The round the way girl vibes which has always been a charm for girl groups with members who are from London. The sound of the song being R&B from the early 2000s. The flip phone in the music video which plays into the Y2K aesthetic. The song topic and subject matter ringing with the familiarity of Beyoncé’s “Irreplaceable” and the kiss-off songs which were a trend in the early 2000s thanks in large part to the massive popularity of TLC’s “No Scrubs”. It’s all early 2000s girl group as hell - packaged and meticulously put together in a way I’ve not seen in a girl group outside of say K-pop for a minute, aside from Boys World.

Flo’s “Cardboard Box” is co-written and produced by MNEK, who was undoubtedly brought in following the penmanship and production talent he’s contributed to Little Mix over the years. With MNEK having a production credit on their top 10 smash “Touch” and a writing credit on their number 1 hit single “Sweet Melody”, every record label with a girl group is going to be reaching out to MNEK. And that aside, MNEK has been leaving his imprint on UK music for a fair few years now, and people are finally starting to notice it. So it’s no surprise that Flo’s debut single includes his talents.

It’s early days, so there’s no word on what more we can expect from Flo in terms of new releases or performances of “Cardboard Box” that we can look forward to. But I’m intrigued by the trio based on “Cardboard Box” alone. I see the vision and the potential that Flo has. And if the idea hasn’t already been floated by Flo’s record label, then they should definitely consider having MNEK executive produce their debut album.