Jackie O and Sophie Monk open up about their 20-year friendship
From Popstars to The Masked Singer, Jackie O and Sophie Monk have stayed close for two decades. In a candid and freewheeling chat, the best buddies talk about the moment their friendship was sealed and why it is stronger than ever.
Stellar
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This year saw Sophie Monk and Jackie O come full circle when they once again found themselves as contestant and judge on a television-singing competition. The pair catch up with Stellar to reminisce about tearful midnight phone calls, sharing jobs and their close friendship of 20 years.
Stellar: Do you remember when you first met each other?
Sophie Monk: Yes, of course. It was in 2000 when we filmed Popstars. I’ll never forget seeing Jackie and thinking, “Who is this girl?” because she was so gorgeous and I was in awe of her. She really took me under her wing, because I was quite an insecure girl, getting into the industry, and we just kind of hit it off, didn’t we, Jacks?
Jackie O: Yeah, we did actually. I just couldn’t believe that Sophie could be insecure because she was so beautiful. There was a photo shoot and there was something about jeans…
SM: That’s right. I remember the jeans thing. They brought racks of clothing for everyone and all of the jeans were a size 8, and they had to get in different clothes because I couldn’t fit into them. I went into the bathroom crying and Jackie came in going, “Don’t worry, you look beautiful,” so that made me feel better. I was about 19 and was so insecure at that age.
JO: You and I got talking and we had so much in common. We immediately opened up to each other about things we probably hadn’t told many people before.
As a judge on Popstars, Jackie, you held Sophie’s fate in your hands.
JO: I never really looked at it like that. While I had a vote and loved Sophie,
it’s not like I had the power to bring her into Bardot or not. There were more powers at play there.
SM: Also, Jackie, you were the nice judge.
JO: I didn’t really know much about the music industry in terms of putting a band together. I wouldn’t have had the confidence to do that. I know enough about it in terms of being on the radio and what girl bands work, and from my perspective it was more marketing, and there was no-one more marketable than Sophie. And I was right, she’s lasted 20 years later. People are still talking about her and people still love her.
SM: Well, I don’t know about that. But they are still talking about me [laughs].
Sophie, it sounds like you didn’t know who Jackie was when you first signed up. Is that right?
SM: No, I didn’t. Back then you didn’t have internet… we’re talking old school.
JO: Back then I was anonymous, mostly. I remember after the first episode went to air, I was like, “I bet I’ll walk down the street and just everyone will be looking at me.” [Laughs] And then I walked outside and not one person even noticed me. It was a slow trickle, but for you, Soph – and the Bardot girls – it became more intense as the show went on. You were followed everywhere, weren’t you, by paparazzi?
SM: Yeah.
JO: It must’ve been so crazy to go from unknown to that in an instant.
SM: It was bizarre.
So after Popstars, you kept in touch?
SM: Yes, plus we worked a lot together in radio and other bits and pieces. But then I left and went to LA for 10 years and got caught in that bubble for a while. We still spoke quite a bit, but now we talk every day. We’re closer than ever now.
JO: I was pregnant, and in that time our lives went in different directions. Now, Sophie has all of these great stories that she tells me from her time in LA.
SM: And I filled in for you on the radio show while you were pregnant.
What was it like stepping into Jackie’s radio-presenting shoes?
SM: They’re hard shoes to fill, that’s for sure. The poor listeners. When I would do the pop quiz, I was such a terrible reader, I couldn’t get through even three questions for the contestant to win any money. I think they missed you a lot, Jacks.
JO: But you were very funny. The listeners loved you.
SM: I’m not much of a reader. I’ve gotten through life without it, so why start now?
You say you’re closer than ever now?
JO: Yes, we talk on the phone almost every day. You are there whenever I need you, Soph. I’ll call in tears at midnight and you always pick up the phone and I know by the end of the call I’ll be good.
SM: Oh, you sweetheart. It’s exactly the same with you. I had a problem the other day, we were talking, and then something happened so I rang Jackie back straight away and I burst into tears.
Sophie, when you were asked to compete on this season of The Masked Singer, what ran through your mind as far as how you were going to handle it with Jackie?
SM: I just thought that if I told her, it wasn’t going to be as fun. Honestly, I also thought I’d get kicked out in the first round, but I stayed in it for a few weeks, so I had to keep it up.
JO: I love that you kept that a secret, and I know how hard that would have been for you. You tell me everything!
SM: Otherwise you would have had to lie, which everyone would have known because it’s easy to tell when you’re lying.
When you took your mask off, for the two of you it was as if no-one else was in the room.
SM: It felt like that. And I was thinking how here I was 20 years after Popstars, singing again in front of Jackie, who was a judge. I was like, “But only now, I’m dressed as a stupid dragonfly!”
With this year marking the 20th anniversary of Bardot, there has been a lot of talk about reunions. Did The Masked Singer play a part in why you weren’t involved in any reunion activity?
SM: No, that didn’t have anything to do with it. I’m working on a lot of other projects at the moment and I haven’t spoken to the girls for 18 years, aside from one. The reunion wasn’t actually the big deal that everyone made it out to be. I’m working on a music direction that is much more aligned with where I’m at in my life and I’m excited for everyone to hear it.
JO: It was so long ago, and like you say, you haven’t kept in contact with them, and I haven’t either. Which is a bit odd, to just go, “Hey, let’s get back together.” I know how you feel about singing, I know how you felt about those days, and I totally get why you want to focus on other things.
When the two of you are together, what music do you listen to?
JO: We don’t even have music on, do we?
SM: No, we don’t. We just talk non-stop… and it’s all the stuff we could never say on air [laughs].