20 July 2023 , 20:40
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Claire Richards has revealed she and her Steps bandmates are preparing to take a break but promised the group will be back "soon".
The quintet have released four albums in the last five years and have performed up and down the country for thousands of fans but will now be putting themselves first. But the group have plans to work together again in the near future and will be performing at Brighton Pride in just a number of weeks.
In recent weeks, fans have been treated to solo performances from Claire Richards who was joined on stage at Cardiff Pride by bandmate H to perform their hit, DJ, as well as Lisa Scott-Lee headlining a string of pride events.
Speaking exclusively to the Mirror, Claire, 45, who is preparing to release her second solo album, Euphoria said: "Obviously we've got Brighton pride in August but apart from that, we are, taking a break.
Claire Richards has confirmed Steps are taking a temporary break following their Brighton Pride performance (Redferns)"Pride came up and it was something that we wanted to do for a long time, so that's why we're doing it. At the moment, everyone's just concentrating on individual stuff, which is, it's nice and it works for us when we do that because it means that when we do come back together, it's so it's fresh again and we're excited about getting back on stage and wanting to do it.
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"But as and when that is, at the moment, I don't know – it won't be too long! Faye (Tozer) is doing 42nd Street, Lisa's in Dubai, Lee's (Latchford-Evans) got his fitness business and H is painting pictures."
But fans needn't worry as Claire insists the group aren't splitting up as she said: "We had to, it keeps it fresh, not just for us but for everybody.
The group have been continually working since 2017 (Getty Images)
Claire is gearing up for the release of her second solo album, Euphoria (JOSEPH SINCLAIR)We'll definitely be back, we've had a very full-on, since 2017, we've released four albums in five years and three of them were studio albums – that's a lot for anybody. I think everybody just needs a little chill and a little break and it'll make it exciting when we do come back."
Claire went on to joke that "back in the day" the group "stuck the album on and sang along to that" but 26 years later, they have proven their vocal abilities demonstrated through their live performances. "I love the fact that maybe back in the day, we didn't do that so much and now we absolutely do it," she said before adding: "We've proved that we can do the job we applied for in the first place.
"There's definitely something that happens when we're on stage together that is unexplainable but it just works, I think the blend of everybody - especially like me and Faye, there's a lot of the harmonies, maybe it is that ABBA thing, maybe it was geared up to work."
Discussing her upcoming record, she said: "I'm quite excited, I'm a bit nervous, obviously, you've got to be a little bit, you just never know. I'm very excited, it all feels good, it feels like we've made a really good record that people are going to love, it's really exciting."
Her first single, I Surrender is available to download/steam here while Euphoria is available to pre-order here.