OTTAWA -- "They definitely have talent. They're very real, and they come from Canada. But it wasn't long enough."

Fifteen-year-old Laura Licari of Ottawa succinctly spoke for a number of special ticket winners who crowded in the CHUM Market Media Mall's York St. parking lot to hear the Ottawa debut of Sugar Jones, the all-girl group formed from the Global TV series Popstars, as part of yesterday's CHUM Canada Day Backyard Party.

In just 20 minutes, Maiko Watson, Sahara MacDonald, Andrea Henry, Julie Crochetiere and Mirella Dell'Aquila covered the basics: Opening with a cappella snippets of Back To Life and singing their band name over and over, the girls then plugged their R&B-flavoured self-titled debut (If You, How Much Longer and Days Like That, accompanied by a backing track), and finished off with an encore of O Canada, also sung a cappella.

Short. Sweet. To the point.

Needless to say, the five have the pop-singer act -- tight jeans, blouses that show off some skin, rhythmic gyrations, polite on-stage banter -- down pat, even when gusts of wind almost swept Sugar Jones off the stage on several occasions. Fortunately, no bad hair-and-makeup-day complaints emerged.

It's still way too early to rate the girls on their performance -- frankly, Sugar Jones is still in promotion mode at this stage of the pop-star game -- but if the a cappella singing is any indication, some decent voices have emerged from the Popstars experiment.

And they appear to have developed a significant fan base in this city. Dozens of Byward Market passersby peered through the gates to see what the fuss was about.

The goings-on inside following the show were orderly, though just as hectic.

'BIGGEST FANS EVER'

"There's four little girls here all decked out who've been here since 2 p.m.," Aylmer mom Wendy McEvoy said as she glanced over to see 10-year-old daughter Amanda and her three friends get inside to have autographs signed.

"They're their biggest fans ever."

Is McEvoy a fan, too?

"I guess I am now," she said.

First off, some introductions: Real world, Sugar Jones. Sugar Jones, real world.

Those who eagerly tuned in to Global's reality TV docusoap Popstars saw thousands of young women audition to be one of five members who go on to form a new pop act.

The group then goes through a bootcamp a la the ABC-TV series Making the Band en route to making an album for Universal Music Canada.

From that 13-episode series emerges Sugar Jones, comprised of Julie Crochetiere, 20, from Beaconsfield, Que; Mirella Dell'Aquila, 19, St-Leonard, Que.; Andrea Henry, 21, Hamilton; Maiko Watson, 19, Winnipeg; and Sahara MacDonald, 24, Vancouver.

And from there, it's on to bright lights, big cities, perks and instant pop stardom, right?

That may be how it works on reality TV, but reality, as Sugar Jones is finding out, works a tad differently. Are they ready for what challenges lie ahead?

"We hope that we can make it up to the level that people are expecting of us," Henry says during a phone interview. "We are getting plenty of good opportunities so far."

Adds Crochetiere: "The series was a stepping stone to get to this point. The focus for all of us the whole time has been to be doing music and putting out an album. It just happened that we ended up forming a group, and that's how it's going to be. We're so happy."

They have a right to be happy. According to SoundScan Days Like That, the first single from their self-titled debut CD (released Tuesday), has already cracked the Top 5 singles charts in Canada, even spending a couple of weeks at No. 1.

But performances are starting from ground zero. Since their premiere at a tiny club in Toronto, they've been doing mostly shopping-mall appearances, including one yesterday at HMV in the St. Laurent Centre.

Performing

(Tonight at 6, they perform for contest winners at the CHUM Market Media Mall Studio, 87 George St. -- the public can watch the show from outside.)

What's taken some adjustment is being recognized as Sugar Jones, the TV pop stars.

"We perform a lot, we rehearse a lot, but all that's done late at night," Crochetiere says.

"What's interesting is when people come up to tell you, 'Remember that part where ...' Because they see it as a TV series part, it's like a movie to them."

Henry, in particular, can relate to the movie scenario. Initially, she didn't make the final cut. Her spot was instead filled by 21-year-old Toronto bartender Marla Joy Berman. But Berman was cut when she admitted stealing a handbag from a fellow contestant last October and charging $2,311 to her Visa card.

"It was weird. I had no idea that was why Michael was coming by my house at that time," Henry says. "My initial reaction when I saw him was, 'Oh yeah, that's cool' because I wondered if he could hook me up with something, get my name out there ...

"But when he told me I was in the group, I went, 'What are you talking about? I was not in the group, now you want me in the group.' Weird."

Given the Popstars framework, one would assume that out of Sugar Jones' singing labours would come a pop album. Not so.

Instead, Sugar Jones is chock full of R&B and soul flavourings.

"We all knew what the base was going to be" Henry says. "It's cool how together we deviated away from the pop."

With various producers, writers and backup singers pitching in, the girls consider I Got U -- featuring vocals from Toya Alexis, a Popstars contestant -- a personal favourite.

But there are other perks to being a pop star. Mainly, they get to meet other pop stars.

"Mirella got to meet J.C. from 'N Sync," Henry says with schoolgirl glee. "So I'm like, 'Mirella, can you just relax? It's only J.C. Okay, yeah he's cute ...' Don't get me wrong, they're nice guys. But Mirella was having a heart attack over him.

Many perks

"Anyway, I was stirring my tea and I looked down for some reason. I was staring at feet, so I moved my eyes up. I knew it was a black guy, saw this face and went hi-eee-yi ..." The face belonged to R&B singing great Brian McKnight, sending waves of ecstasy through Henry.

Asked if there were any

Turns out that Popstars is even more of a reality show than anyone anticipated.

Yesterday at Global TV's press conference, Popstars producer Michael Geddes addressed reports that some of the members of the Popstars band Sugar Jones feel abandoned now that the series has gone off the air.

"We took five people out of obscurity and made them pop stars," Geddes told TV critics gathered in Toronto. "We put them up in a luxury apartment and gave them per diems. These kids thought that they had won the publishers clearing house prize."

Sorry, kids. Now that the show is over, the five female band members have been kicked out of their cushy Toronto digs and left to fend for themselves.

And that's how it should be, says Geddes. Regular pop stars don't get a free ride. It's dues-paying time.

Sugar Jones currently has a No. 1 single, and shipping orders for the debut album are strong, Geddes says. Now it is up to the record company to guide their career.

And if they have to make that 15-hour ride on the tour bus to get to their next concert, that's all part of being a pop star, says Geddes.

The producer also announced plans to launch Popstars 2 next January. Like the Australian model, the new series will feature guys and gals in a new five-member band.

Auditions are to take place in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal. Last year, 4,000 women between 18 and 25 auditioned to become the first Canadian Popstars.

Geddes expects that mixing horny boys and girls together in the new group may introduce a "sexual dynamic" to the new series. And the audition songs will change. "We won't be using Dancing Queen again," he vows.

Sugar Jones will not be featured in the new series, although Geddes says there is a possibility that Lone Eagle Entertainment would produce a follow-up concert special.

Geddes' next project, Search For A Supermodel, will take viewers beyond the catwalks and into the cat fights. The eight-part reality series, set to debut this September, will follow model wannabees, some as young as 14, to New York as they compete for a contract with the Ford Modeling agency.

Sugar Jones, the manufactured female pop act whose lives are documented each week on the hit TV series, PopStars, will host their first-ever autograph signing.

The girls will be on hand at Zellers, in the Bramalea City Centre, on May 5.

No doubt the event, taking place from noon until 2 p.m., will turn up eventually on the PopStars TV show.

Those attending the signing will be able to purchase Sugar Jones' first single, Days Like That, at Zellers only that day. Fans can also get a free sample of Lady Speed Stick while quantities last.

In case you're wondering, the female deodorant is the sponsor of the event.

TORONTO -- Is it too late to rename the show R&Bstars?

That question came to mind after Sugar Jones, the group assembled on TV's Popstars, made their official live singing debut in Toronto last night.

The show's five finalists put on the brief, two-and-a-half song performance for about 300 industry and media types -- and a select group of fans -- all invited by Sugar Jones' co-creators, Universal Music, to the This Is London nightclub on Richmond St. W.

Group members Sahara MacDonald, 24, Mirella Dell'Aquila, 21, Julie Crochetiere, 22, Maiko Watson, 20, and Andrea Henry, 23, sang a quick a capella snippet of Soul II Soul's Back To Life before unveiling two original numbers, including first single Days Like That and How Much Longer?

R&B LEAN

Both new songs had a distinct R&B lean -- more Destiny's Child than Spice Girls -- though Days was the catchier of the two.

Singing time was divided evenly between the five women, as they performed over pre-recorded backing music. The sound was non-descript, but the singing was strong, and some howling feedback from the mikes helped point out that Sugar Jones don't need to lip-synch.

More curious, though, was the way Sugar Jones seemed to be already living up to the second part of the Popstars title.

As seen at the group's press conference to announce their name last week, the singers have been at the busy hands of stylists and groomers while sequestered in Toronto, and each member sported her own primped-but-casual look.

A gaggle of young girls assembled at the foot of the stage to chant the group's name before showtime, while us more jaded folk laid bets on things like who'll emerge as Sugar Jones' leader, and who'll go solo first.

CIRCULATED

But the most telling moment came when MacDonald, Dell'Aquila, Crochetiere, Watson and Henry were circulated through the crowd to meet guests and sign autographs -- each flanked by two towering, stone-faced, suit- and headset-wearing body guards.

There's Popstardom for you. Or is it just called protecting the investment?

TORONTO -- The most exciting spectacle during the debut performance of Sugar Jones, the girl-group created on Global TV's reality show "Popstars", wasn't the girls but the mad house outside This Is London, a club located on Richmond St. West in Toronto.

The line-up for the invite-only show was a who's who of the Toronto music business, media and die-hard pop/reality show fans who'd won contests through radio, newspaper and website promotions.

"Everyone knows someone" shouted a frustrated bouncer who wielded the polka-dotted rope in front of the entrance with the fervor of a gladiator as the crowd clamored for special treatment - listing media passes, relation and seniority as a means to get through the door.

The most interesting guests told brusquely to wait their turn in line like everyone else? A mysterious man holding a bouquet of roses for "Julie" (the name of one of the Popstars" who was spotted at a College St. Laundromat with said flower-bearer recently), Latoya, a semi-finalist for Sugar Jones who earned her own solo development deal with Universal after impressing the "Popstars" judges with her vocal strengths and Justin Grey, Sugar Jones' producer.

As the line slowly filed inside, the five members of Sugar Jones - Julie Crochetiere, Mirella Dell'Aquila, Andrea Henry, Sahara MacDonald and Maiko Watson - all chosen through a long series of call-backs and auditions all filmed for the TV show, made a brief appearance on an above fire-escape to yell friendly greetings at Latoya.

"You look like a star," they shrieked.

Once inside, contest winners, industry people and media personnel mingled. Grey seemed slightly nervous when questioned about Sugar Jones' upcoming performance but said the group had "great songs".

When asked about the last episode of "Popstars" which found the girls reduced to tears about the direction Grey was taking their sound into, (they wanted less pop, more soul), Grey explained the dilemma.

"There are two schools of thought," he said. "On the one hand, they're mature in that they have a specific idea about what they want. On the other hand, they have to realize there will be concessions."

Grey went on to say that what the episode didn't show was that he'd been flung into the studio without "much direction" and had to decide how to mould Sugar Jones' sound. He also pointed out that after the confrontation, the girls were allowed back into the studio to rerecord the song with him.

Although the how was scheduled from 6p.m. until 7:30 p.m., the girls didn't actually hit the stage until 7:30. Before that, Randy Lennox of Universal music introduced the judges who had handpicked the final five members.

Some judges who's on-camera personality sometimes comes across as unsympathetic, namely Brian Hetherman, received boos from the audience although Hetherman later admitted it was mostly his record-label friends who decided to heckle him for fun.

Finally, after a slightly awkward introduction and overheard whispers from back stage from the girls saying "I love you guys", Sugar Jones took the stage singing a cappella harmony and crooning "Sugar Jones" again and again before breaking into a short version of the dance hit "Back To Life" by Soul II Soul/Caron Wheeler .

Sugar Jones then quickly launched into their debut single "Days Like That". Although there was some slight feedback at the beginning, the group's vocal performance was strong and catchy. The audience quickly bopped along with the song's infectious chorus and yelled their appreciation when it was over.

Each of the girls looked stunning onstage although some were suffering from an obvious case of nerves. The standout performances were given by Crochetiere and Henry who owned the stage and whose solo verses met with an appreciative roar from the crowd.

The girls finished up their two-song debut with a soulful mid-tempo ballad presumably titled "How Much Longer" which showcased their obvious talent.

Although the show was short, it was enough to silence critics who expected lip-synched bubble-gum tracks. Instead Sugar Jones provided a tight, impressive showcase and possibly, a number-one single.

When the set was over, Michael Geddes, head of Lone Eagle Entertainment which produces the show and the group's manager, had one thing to say about the performance: "Awesome".

Hetherman was visibly pleased with the show and said that Henry, who was added to the line-up after Marla Joy Berman left the group for legal reasons, was a pleasant surprise. In past episodes of "Popstars" Hetherman had expressed doubt about whether or not Henry's sometimes shy personality would be able to deal with the "Popstars" situation.

"The group was the final piece of the puzzle for Andrea," he said. "Once she was in this group of girls, she was great."

After a brief break each of the five group-members circulated through the audience speaking with each person one-by-one and signing autographs for young contest winners and fans of the show.

"You've made this the best day of my life," sighed one young girl as MacDonald signed an autograph for her.

"You've made this the best day of my life," she responded.

You've gotta hand it to Sugar Jones. The all-female quintet has managed to become one of Canada's most famous pop groups without releasing a single note of original music.

Even Winnipeg's Maiko Watson is bemused at the fan following they've already amassed on the Internet, where TV's Popstars now have two official Web sites, at www.popstars.ca and www.sugarjones.ca.

"And apparently there are fan Web sites now and that kind of thing and it's really overwhelming. It's just kind of funny to me because we haven't even come out with any music yet -- like no one's really heard what we sound like, so it's kinda funny."

Actually, after eight weeks on Global TV, viewers are intimately acquainted with the vocal talents of Watson, 19, and her mates, Hamilton, Ont., singer Andrea Henry, 21, Quebecers Julie Crochetiere, 20, and Mirella Dell'Aquila, 19, and Vancouver's Sahara MacDonald, 23.

But their Popstars status gets cred when their first single, Days Like That, debuts on Global Ch. 12 tomorrow at 6 p.m. The video debuts on April 15 and Global has added three episodes to the original 13 to chronicle the making of a full-length album with Universal Music.

"I'm excited to finish recording the album and just get out there and start performing," Watson says, noting Sugar Jones' first gig is April 2 at an industry party.

"Hopefully, once we're done with the album we'll be doing a lot more shows. I think we're going on tour this summer, so it's gonna be busy, it's gonna be fun."

Born in Guyana, Watson came to Canada as a baby. Her mom Beatrice and sister Bahiyyih, 17, still live in Winnipeg, and Watson has performed here with a hip-hop dance group and rap duo Mood Ruff.

A Kelvin High School grad, she attended the University of Winnipeg for a year but took last year off to seek work in the music business. That went well.

She beat out 4,000 hopefuls in mass auditions, and Sugar Jones is now working with songwriters and producers whose clients include Nelly Furtado, Jacksoul and McMaster & James.

But Watson says she's not forgetting her past. During a visit to Winnipeg a few weeks back, she was reminded there's no place like home.

"Even when I was just out, like, people would just come up to me and congratulate me," she says. "I'd just like to thank everyone in Winnipeg for the support because I appreciate it so much. It's so nice to know that, and I'm so proud to be from Winnipeg."

DAILY GRIND OF A POPSTAR

Watson says the life of the Popstars is a lot of work:

Working Out
The girls do an hour of weight training with a personal trainer two or three days a week, and try to fit in a 40-minute cardiovascular workout five days a week. "For me it's not that different because I've always worked out, I have a membership at the Y, it's nothing really new to me," Watson says. "I think it's cool, I like to stay in shape."

Working It
Voice and dance/choreography rehearsals and occasional extras like wardrobe selection and a session with a media trainer who gave them tips on handling the press and conducted practice interviews. They've just finished a shoot on a video for Days Like That, with director Noble Jones, who's worked with Mary J. Blige, Big Sugar and I Mother Earth. Now, they're rehearsing for their first performance on April 2, at a party hosted by Toronto's KISS 92-FM radio station.

Down Time
"We talk on the phone a lot. We're all always on our phones because it's the only connection we really have to home. We're sponsored by Motorola so we each get our own cell phone and we get free long distance. We're on it all the time. I keep in touch with everyone from Winnipeg and all my friends"

Dinner Time
"We haven't really had so much time to cook now, so we usually grab a bite to eat outside or something. But we try to cook when we can because it's easier to eat healthy when we cook," Watson says. Their personal trainer has helpful diet advice, but sometimes, the girls prefer to help themselves. "We listen to what he says and then we modify it," Watson laughs. "I like anything with cheese on it. I'm a big cheese fan. I like pizza." She also misses her mom's curried chicken, but not this week. Sister Bahiyyih just arrived for a visit bearing a care package.

Home Work
Sharing a high-rise condo overlooking Lake Ontario in downtown Toronto, the girls get a per diem and free rent, but no room service. "We do everything ourselves. We've got the place but we take care of it. We cook for ourselves, we don't have like a maid or anything like that. We take the subway. It's not all like glamourous."

My boss wanted me to watch at least one instalment of Popstars so that I could comment on Canada's new made-for-TV pop group, but I never got around to it. I was busy trying to jam an icepick into my eardrums.

The must-see episode revealing the final lineup and the name of the group - Sugar Jones (chosen by the girls themselves, indicating a "craving for something sweet") - ran opposite the Oscars. So ... I don't know these girls. I heard the single, found it lame, frankly don't care.

But at least they're up front about the "manufactured" part of it. As teen pop impresario Lou Pearlman knows, bubblegum pop groups are often created by cattle call auditions, the members chosen as much for looks as singing and/or dancing talent. In this case, they just put the results in a reality TV show. The final five of Sugar Jones were whittled down from a musical bootcamp of more than 4,000 would-be Spice Girls. They have to have something going for them.

For anyone who doesn't know, PopStars is the Canadian, female version of MTV's Making the Band, which yielded the boy band O-Town - not to be confused with Mytown (Irish boy group) or Crazy Town (L.A. rap 'n' rock band) or O-Ring (defective part that may have caused the space shuttle Challenger disaster). Despite dismal reviews for its self-titled debut album, O-Town was a hit - for about a week. According to Power-92 assistant program director Chad "the Pog" Martin, the song Liquid Dreams peaked at about No. 25 in North America and then sank like a stone.

"It was more of a curiosity factor," he says.

Which is precisely why Power 92 will add Sugar Jones's new single, Days Like That - as much of a snappy pop confection as one might expect - after it's released on April 1.

"It's definitely something that's going to grab the attention of our listeners who have been watching the series," the Pog says. "I was pleasantly surprised at the sound of it and what came out of the group. It definitely fits into the mould of what we're playing and the sound that's going on right now."

Will Sugar Jones keep its flavour on the bedpost overnight? The TV show was a hit, drawing Survivor-like ratings, especially in Toronto. Canada's PopStars is a clone of the Australian show of the same name, which yielded the all-female group Bardot. Who? Exactly. There are no guarantees in this business. But remember that the Monkees was a made-for-TV pop group. So what if they didn't write their own songs? It wasn't about the music. It was about the rebellion.

After a small change following a scandal - one of the finalists stole a credit card and was booted out - Sugar Jones consists of Julie Crochetiere, Maiko Watson, Mirella Dell'Aquila, Sahara MacDonald and Andrea Henry - ranging in age from late teens to early '20s and hailing everywhere from Vancouver to Quebec. Maybe I don't know my teen pop like I should, but they look terrific.

Their debut album is expected in June.

TORONTO -- Sugar Jones sounds like the title of the latest Quentin Tarantino movie. Instead, it's the name of the five-girl band chosen on Popstars.

The five finalists for the making-the-band show were introduced to the press yesterday in Toronto. From bottom left: Sahara MacDonald, 24, and Maiko Watson, 20, both hail from Winnipeg; Mirella Dell'Aquila, 21, and Julie Crochetiere, 22, are from Montreal; and in the back left, the newest member Andrea Henry, 23, is from Hamilton.

Henry joined the band after one of the original finalists, Marla Joy Berman, was kicked out of the band after pleading guilty to a theft charge last month.

"We all wish Marla nothing but the best," said Crochetiere, "but we're thrilled Andrea is here and we think we've ended up with the best possible band."

Why Sugar Jones? Red-haired MacDonald says it has a catchy, retro hook. "Plus Jones just felt right, as in a craving or a crush," she says.

The five young women are all being sequestered in Toronto while they're being groomed for stardom. They held hands throughout the press conference and even offered an impromptu, soulful rendition of Amazing Grace.

The series continues Sunday nights at 7 p.m. on Global.

TORONTO -- Canada's latest "Popstars" were unveiled in Toronto on Monday.

The girl group, saddled with the unlikely moniker of Sugar Jones, was created through an open audition across Canada that has been documented for the eight weeks on the Global TV/Lone Eagle Entertainment series "Popstars".

According to Global, "Popstars" is the "highest rated Canadian, non-hockey program". The success of the show has encouraged the network to add two extra episodes of the series and pick up the show for a second season.

Unlike ABC's "Making The Band" -- which resulted in the birth of American boy band O-Town -- the second season of "Popstars" will not continue to follow the exploits of Sugar Jones, but will focus instead on the creation of an entirely new pop group, which will include both men and women.

Meanwhile, the five finalists who survived the brutal open-call and a week of intense musical and dance auditions are: Sahara MacDonald, Julie Crochetiere, Mirella Dell'Auila, Andrea Henry, and Maiko Watson.

Sitting in a small theatre in downtown Toronto, the girls are well coiffed and expertly dressed. They hold each other's hands and inform reporters that they're very "touchy-feely".

Sunday night's episode of "Popstars" featured a number of chaotic events, including the exit of one of the original five members, Marla Joy Berman, who recently plead guilty to stealing a handbag. Andrea, her replacement, has been with the group since November.

Questioned about Marla, Lone Eagle Entertainment boss Michael Geddes was reluctant to discuss the issue.

"We had a situation that was real life," he says. "It was four minutes in the show, and we moved on."

"We all wish her well," says Maiko. "But we're trying to focus on what's important right now."

The group members are now concentrating on recording music and are very vocal about their desire to write material for their first album.

Sugar Jones has a contract with Universal Music Canada, which will release their album later this year.

This Sunday, Sugar Jones will debut their first single, "Days Like That," on "Popstars". The song will be released to radio the following Tuesday.

Although the group didn't write "Days Like That", Sahara says at least one of their own songs will find its way onto their debut CD.

"We've had a lot of creative insight into things," she says about the group's progress.

Sahara and the other members also had a say in the band's name.

"I have a bit of a thing for second-hand, vintage clothes, second-hand books," explains Sahara.

The singer found a bright-pink book while on a second-hand shopping excursion one day that was called "Sugar Street".

She liked the "retro, old term for cravings" but thought "street was too sweet".

Then she and the group came up with Sugar Jones.

"It's very representative of our music," says Andrea.

Universal's Brian Heatherman, who was an original "Popstars" judge, describes Sugar Jones' music as a "mish-mash, a funky stew".

"The songs are great," he says. "No one can predict whether people will buy it or not, but you know, music is turning and the girls really want to bring an air of credibility to the project, and I think that's showing through."

Since Sugar Jones is a "creation" in the same way as the Spice Girls were, some expect the Canadian girl act to follow in the footsteps of Ginger, Sporty, Posh, Scary and Baby.

"We're trying to avoid stereotyping each individual," says Sahara when questioned about who in the group is the "leader" and who is the "romantic". "We have no intention of having one lead singer."

To prove to their small audience that they really can sing, the five girls broke into a chorus of "Amazing Grace", after glancing over to Geddes for an official OK. Their short performance featured impressive harmonies and won a burst of applause from the room.

TORONTO -- The months of living in secret, just waiting for their protective bubble to burst are over for five young women who beat the odds to become Canada's first made-on-TV pop stars.

First there were 4,000, then 25, who were reduced to 10. From there, a final five were chosen, which dropped to four after a minor calamity and was bumped back up to five again -- this time for good.

Having been selected from among thousands, the women of Popstars have talent, style, personality and looks to spare. They've already gone through a gruelling process of preparation and weathered a secret scandal.

Now all they have to do is survive in the vicious, cutthroat, cannibalistic world of the music industry.

The final five are Julie Crochetiere, 20, from Beaconsfield, Que.; Maiko Watson, 19, from Winnipeg; Mirella Dell'Aquila, 19, from St-Leonard, Que.; Sahara MacDonald, 23, from Vancouver; and Andrea Henry, 21, from Hamilton.

As revealed on the program Sunday night, they will henceforth be known to the music-buying public as Sugar Jones, a name coined by the girls themselves.

They weren't the original selection.

Marla Berman, 21, a Toronto bartender who made it as one of five finalists on the hit television reality series, pleaded guilty last month to stealing a handbag from a fellow contestant and racking up $2,311 on her CIBC Visa card.

She was ejected from the group after the incident last October, to be replaced by Henry. In their first official interview, the current members of Sugar Jones said they bear her no ill will.

"There are no hard feelings at all," says the dark-eyed Dell'Aquila, the youngest member of Sugar Jones.

"We all came pretty much strangers to each other," adds MacDonald, the tall, feisty redhead of the group.

"We wish Marla the best and there's no doubt in any of our minds that she's talented. But we have a band that has ended up working out great for all of us. You know, everyone has their own life outside of this before they came in."

Michael Geddes, the show's creator, says the incident shook up the entire production.

"It was unfortunate," he says. "She got in trouble. And she flew in the face of the confidentiality of what we were doing. By having a number of people up to the apartment she gave away the identity of the band. She broke a very, very clear rule.

"It was real life, it certainly affected things and hence it's in the show. It has caused us a tremendous amount of grief and chewed up a lot of time. Nobody would have wanted that to happen."

The experience hasn't been entirely negative; Geddes says he and his production company Lone Eagle Entertainment will do it again next year, though what shape the next project will take hasn't been finalized.

"The fortunate thing is, the five that are in this band are great friends. They've become tight as a group can be because they've all endured a very unique process."

Sequestered for the last six months in a sunlit condo high above the Toronto waterfront, the members of Sugar Jones say they've gelled far more than they expected.

"It kind of feels a little bit like it's a dream," says soft-spoken Crochetiere.

"You're taken out of the world that you know and you're thrown into something that you don't really know but you feel like you've been waiting for."

There's a kind of nervous anticipation among the women as they relax on couches in their living room, though it's tempered with a keen desire to have their first single Days Like That revealed to the public. Then they'll feel like the real show has started.

Henry, the last addition to the group, says they're all a little surprised at how well they've been getting along.

"I'm with my girls -- I feel like I've known these girls for so long," she says. "It's actually spiritually refreshing. It has been the best few months of my life so far."

Musically, the five have already exceeded the expectations of the groups producing the show, Lone Eagle Entertainment, Universal Music and Global television. The girls have had far more creative input into the music than was originally planned.

"Everybody has different strengths, even musically," says Henry. "It brings so much into the band -- Maiko (Watson) writes music, so does Sahara (MacDonald) -- we're all good at different things. "

"We all wanted to sing," adds Watson, who has some studio experience as a singer in Winnipeg. "I never thought that I would be in a girl group. But I am so happy that I am now because it's such a good experience and it's so good to go through it all together because we're all feeling the same way."

How the music-buying public will feel is a different matter. The TV show itself has been a hit, the March 18 episode drawing 635,000 viewers in Ontario alone. But record sales for Canadian artists have dropped over the last two years by an estimated six per cent and the market will decide whether Sugar Jones lasts a year or a lifetime.

As far as the girls of Popstars are concerned, it's way too early to think about long-term goals.

"We're not really focusing on 'What ifs?' " says Henry.

"As long as the audience is still there for us and we're still making good music that's all that matters. If that means we're around for the next 10 years, great. If not, fine. The important thing is we get the chance."

SOME FACTS ABOUT POPSTARS:

Members: Julie Crochetiere, 20, Beaconsfield, Que.; Maiko Watson, 19, Winnipeg; Mirella Dell'Aquila, 19, St-Leonard, Que.; Sahara MacDonald, 23, Vancouver; Andrea Henry, 21, Hamilton.

First single: Days Like That

First album due: June 2001

Band name: Sugar Jones

Producers: Lone Eagle Entertainment, Universal Music and Global television.

Scandal: Original final five member Marla Berman pleaded guilty to stealing a handbag from a fellow contestant and racking up $2,311 on a credit card. She was also cited by the show's producer for breaking confidentiality by inviting strangers to the members' private condo.

The final five band members will finally be named tomorrow night on the hit reality music series, Popstars.

Unfortunately, one of the original five was already named -- in a Brampton court.

Twenty-one-year-old Marla Joy Berman, a finalist on the making the band reality series, plead guilty last month to stealing a handbag last summer from fellow contestant Dayna Herman during the show's original star search.

Berman racked up $2,311 on Herman's CIBC Visa card.

Popstars executive producer Michael Geddes confirmed for The Sun yesterday that Berman is off the series, and that a previously rejected finalist has replaced her.

"It really threw a curveball at us," said Geddes, also one of the judges on the series. "We're ready for reality as reality show producers, but we weren't ready for this."

Geddes said he learned of the incident only after the police charged Berman with the theft.

Berman was one of five young women chosen to form an all-girl band after an intense, cross-Canada talent search. The remaining four finalists, plus the last-minute replacement, are all being sequestered in Toronto, where they are being groomed for a recording career and an eventual concert tour. Their names will be made public on tomorrow's show.

Geddes said the robbery came to light shortly after the final five were chosen last fall.

"We found out about it third-party," he said. "It was an issue with the law."

Naturally, the news rocked the other finalists.

"They were just completely bummed out because it concerned someone who was living under their roof," Geddes said. The turn of events provided an unexpected second chance for the newest member of the group.

"Within a short period of time, she was told she's not in the band -- and then she was told we'd like to have her in the band," Geddes said. "Quite frankly, it was a roller-coaster ride of emotion (for her)."

Geddes said the shake-up hasn't hurt the band.

The producers have scheduled a press conference in Toronto on Monday to introduce the newest band member, plus the other four finalists -- and to field further questions about the theft's impact on the band and the series.

Last Sunday, 635,000 viewers tuned in to Global in Ontario, roughly 1.3 million viewers nation-wide. Global communications vice president David Hamilton claims that, outside of sports, Popstars is the highest-rated and most-watched Canadian-produced show on any network in Canada.

In fact, the network has extended the current series by three episodes, bringing the total order to 16. Global and Lone Eagle Entertainment are also set to announce that a second season of the show has been ordered.

This isn't the first time a legal matter has threatened to derail a Canadian reality series. Last year, a husband-and-wife couple on History Television's Pioneer Quest was disqualified after the husband was charged with sexual assault the morning that the series was launched. The couple was quickly replaced.

Similar events have plagued --or boosted -- U.S. reality shows. Most recently, a couple was thrown off Temptation Island after failing to disclose that they had a child.

In every instance, the ratings have only increased as a result of the mishap.

"It's not scripted and it's certainly not contrived," Geddes said. "That's just the way the cards fell." (More on: Popstars).

TORONTO -- Somewhere in this city five young women are holed up, anxiously awaiting a debut that could bring them fame and fortune -- or get them laughed out of town.

They are the chosen few, a handful who survived out of the 4,000 or so that attended gruelling cross-country auditions for Popstars, a reality TV show that begins on Global on Feb. 4.

Popstars is a Canadian search-for-the-stars series that chronicles the making of a musical girl group, from audition to the launch of a CD in the real world.

And its producers know the real world can be cruel. The group will have to battle the stigma of being "manufactured," on top of just trying to compete in a dog-eat-dog industry. But they think the final five will gain credibility when the public sees what they can do.

"We've got five very talented women that we're thrilled about and they're now a force of one, they're a group," says Michael Geddes, president of Lone Eagle Entertainment and the man behind the whole experiment.

Tryouts began last summer in four cities -- Montreal, Toronto, Calgary and Vancouver -- a cattle call to which thousands of wannabe female pop stars between 18 and 25 flocked.

They were winnowed down to 10 finalists, and one episode will document both the elation of those who make the final cut and the disappointment of the other five who came close but got the axe.

Just who the final group are won't be revealed until the seventh episode. Until then, their identities will remain a closely guarded secret.

"Yes, they're a manufactured act, probably along with 80 per cent of the music out there -- that's fine," says Geddes.

"But we're going to be true to the fact that this isn't an exercise in getting in and out. It's an exercise in making something great and hopefully sustaining it long term."

Popstars is based on a hit Australian TV premise, a reality show that tracked the making of the girl band Bardot, which ended up with a huge following and a hit record.

More recently, ABC and MTV in the U.S. aired Making the Band, which created the male quintet, O-Town. That show was the brainchild of Lou Pearlman, developer of the Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync.

There's also an American version -- also called Popstars and based on the same concept -- that began earlier this month on the WB network. Heading up the list of producers for that show is Vancouver music producer David Foster.

That others have trod the same ground doesn't bother Geddes. He says the quality of the music will be what differentiates the Canadian Popstars from others.

"We were looking for the five best talents in Canada to make a recording project. The show is really a documentary of that. When the show is over these girls are a bona fide act -- they are out there and the market will determine how successful they are. That means we have never taken our eyes off the music."

Allan Reid, a talent scout for Universal Music Canada (which will produce the actual album and support the group with promotion), says choosing the music has been almost as laborious as choosing the girls.

"We've been through close to 900 songs, literally from all over the place," says Reid.

"When we first got into this, we had an idea of what we wanted to create. We knew it wasn't going to be the Spice Girls and we don't see ourselves trying to clone Backstreet (Boys) and Britney and that kind of pop genre.

"It will not be bubblegum music. It will be a very credible mix of soul, R and B and pop."

Though the final five -- who have been living together in a downtown apartment since the final cut last fall -- were chosen for their singing talent and charisma, they have also proven to be promisingly creative as well.

"The girls we've selected, they're actually writing songs themselves," says Reid. "We didn't know that until we put the five of them together and started asking questions."

Neither Lone Eagle nor Universal plans to abandon the group after the show ends. In fact, says Geddes, the end of the program will herald the beginning of the group's real career.

The five women already see themselves as more than a disposable pop band, adds Reid.

"They look at this as their career," he says. "They want to be able to say to their friends, their family, their peer group, 'I believe in what I'm doing. Yes, I was assembled and put together, manufactured as part of this TV show, but they've put me together with four other people I gel with.' These girls, seriously, they feel like they're soulmates."

FACTS ABOUT POPSTARS:

What: A 13-part TV series documenting the creation of a Canadian "girl group."

Who: More than 4,000 women between the ages of 18 and 25 auditioned. Five were chosen.

When: Sundays on Global TV starting Feb. 4 (7 p.m. in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia; 6 p.m. in Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan; 8 p.m. Atlantic).

Web site: www.popstars.ca

Quote: "We're telling a real-life story. There's a tonne of emotion that we've documented, a tonne of drama, and it's quite interesting watching women bare their souls and give it up as they have and get down to the wire." -- Producer Michael Geddes.