Eras

Kylie Minogue: 2. She Don’t Need Anyone

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Episode notes

Join Scott Mills for the ultimate celebration of the UK’s best-loved pop star, who this year headlines Radio 2 in the Park on Sunday 17 September.

The 90s are well underway, and Kylie Minogue is in uncharted territory. After splitting with powerhouse production team Stock, Aitken and Waterman, she’s joined forces with indie label Deconstruction Records, spurning the advances of a slew of record industry suits.

For Kylie, it’s an era defined by experimentation. A new look, a new ethos and a host of unexpected collaborations: M People, Pet Shop Boys, Manic Street Preachers, Nick Cave and more.

It’s not always an easy ride. As an artist, she’s maturing in the public eye. Caught between the worlds of pop and ‘credible’ indie, Kylie fiercely resists pigeonholing from the press and fans alike.

Through revealing interviews, both brand new and from the BBC Archive, you’ll witness one of pop’s great metamorphoses. A process that takes the girl who was Charlene, and molds her into one of pop’s savviest operators, following her own road to megastardom.

On the cusp of a new millennium, Kylie’s ready to dominate the charts. However will she pull it off?

Contributors include Keith Blackhurst, David Tennant, Beverley Knight, Jessie Ware (who collaborated with Kylie on the single Kiss of Life released in October 2021), Jack Savoretti (who duetted with Kylie for their 2018 song Music’s Too Sad Without You), Jake Shears (who collaborated with Kylie for her 2004 single I Believe in You, as well as her 2010 album Aphrodite and their 2018 song Voices), and Radio 2 presenters Rylan Clark and Dermot O’Leary.