Keisha Kerreece Fayeanne Buchanan (; born 30 September 1984) is an English singer and a founding member of the girl group Sugababes alongside Mutya Buena and Siobhán Donaghy. With the Sugababes, she had six number one singles and two number one studio albums, making them one of the most successful British pop acts of the 21st century. Buchanan was sacked to leave the group in September 2009 and was replaced by Jade Ewen. Buchanan returned to the group in 2012 with the original lineup.
In 2012, she and her former Sugababes bandmates Buena and Donaghy confirmed their reunion. The original trio was not able to release music under the name "Sugababes" as it was still being used by the then-current members of the group. Instead they released music under the name Mutya Keisha Siobhan before securing the legal rights to the Sugababes name in 2019.
Early life
Keisha Buchanan was born on 30 September 1984 in Westminster, London, to parents of Jamaican descent. She first met and befriended future Sugababes member Mutya Buena in primary school. She recognised her from an appearance on a talent contest TV show presented by Michael Barrymore. Buchanan is a Christian. She attended Kingsbury High School alongside bandmate Mutya Buena.
Career
1998–2009: Sugababes
In May 1998, Siobhán Donaghy and Mutya Buena, both aged just 13, had been signed as solo artists, but decided to work together after performing at the same showcase. While working in the studio, Buena invited her best friend Keisha Buchanan to watch them. Manager Tom decided the three girls were to be a trio, likening their different appearances to the United Colors of Benetton campaign. Originally dubbed the Sugababies, the group's name was tweaked to Sugababes when they were signed by London Records to give the group a more mature image.
The group's debut single, "Overload", peaked at number 6 on the UK Singles Chart in 2000 and was nominated for a BRIT Award for Best Single. The group co-wrote most of the tracks on debut album One Touch with the help of All Saints producer Cameron McVey. One Touch peaked at number 26 on the UK Albums Chart. The album produced three more top 40 hits—"New Year", "Run for Cover" and "Soul Sound". The sales of One Touch did not meet London Records' expectations, and they dropped the group in 2001. The album was later certified gold by the BPI and had sold 220,000 copies in the UK by 2008 according to Music Week.
During a Japanese promotional tour in August 2001, Donaghy left the group. She stated initially that she wanted to pursue a fashion career, but was eventually diagnosed with clinical depression amid reports of in-fighting amongst the group's members. Donaghy later stated that she was forced out of the group by Buchanan and called Buchanan the "first bully" in her life. Former Atomic Kitten member Heidi Range was announced as Donaghy's replacement.
Having already started work on a second album with new member Range, the trio looked for a new record label, eventually signing to Island Records. Their first single on the new label, "Freak like Me" scored the group their first UK number 1 single. Follow-up single "Round Round" also debuted on top of the UK Singles Chart and peaked at number 2 in Ireland, the Netherlands and New Zealand. Both singles were certified silver by the BPI. On the back of the success of the singles, the group's second album, Angels with Dirty Faces, debuted at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart and was later certified triple platinum, selling almost a million copies in the UK alone. It is to date their highest-selling album. In the UK, the third single from the album, a ballad titled "Stronger", gained the girls their third consecutive top ten hit in their native country. The track was released as a double-A side with "Angels with Dirty Faces" in the UK, the latter song chosen as the theme tune to The Powerpuff Girls Movie. A fourth single, the Sting-sampling "Shape", made the top ten in the Netherlands and Ireland in early 2003.