Innosense

Lore & Background

Innosense was formed in 1997 under the management of Lou Pearlman and Janet Lynn Harless. The original lineup included Danay Ferrer, Mandy Ashford, Nikki DeLoach, Veronica Finn, and Amanda Latona. Britney Spears was briefly a member but left to pursue a solo career before any recordings. The group's name was intentionally misspelled to avoid sounding like 'innocent little four-year-olds.' Their inspirations included NSYNC and the Backstreet Boys. Ashford had been a member of the Attache show choir with Lance Bass, who recommended her to Pearlman.

In 1998, Innosense released the single 'Wherever You Are' with a video released in Germany. Latona left the group to go solo and was replaced by Jenny Morris. In 2000, the band released the album So Together, whose lead single 'Say No More' peaked at number 20 on Billboard's Hot Singles Sales chart but never charted on the Billboard Hot 100. The album itself did not chart. In 2001, the group appeared in the teen movie Longshot. Morris left in 2001, leaving the group as a quartet. The second single 'Rain Rain' was released only in Germany in 2002 and failed to chart. Their song 'To Know the Unknown' was featured on the soundtrack for the film Longshot, not on the Pokémon 3: The Movie soundtrack.

Innosense disbanded in 2003. After disbandment, Ashford modeled for Playboy and became a spokesmodel. DeLoach returned to acting with roles in North Shore, Windfall, and as the mother of the lead character in MTV's Awkward. Latona signed a solo contract with J Records, releasing two non-charting singles, and later became a professional bodybuilder, entering her first contest in 2003. Latona dated Backstreet Boy AJ McLean and was featured in a 2002 New York Times Magazine article about J Records' grooming of her career.

Reader's Guide

Innosense occupies a footnote in late-1990s pop history as a girl group managed by Lou Pearlman and Janet Lynn Harless, notable for briefly including Britney Spears before her solo breakthrough. Despite the high-profile management and connection to Spears, the group achieved limited commercial success. Their album So Together failed to chart, and only one single, 'Say No More,' reached number 20 on a Billboard sales chart. The group's legacy is largely tied to its members' later careers: Mandy Ashford modeled for Playboy, Nikki DeLoach became a television actress, and Amanda Latona pursued solo music and professional bodybuilding. The group's song 'Rain Rain' was later recorded by Cher, and their track 'To Know the Unknown' appeared on a Pokémon film soundtrack. Innosense remains a curiosity for pop enthusiasts as a Pearlman/Harless project that never achieved the fame of contemporaries like NSYNC or the Backstreet Boys.

Did You Know?

• Britney Spears was initially a member of Innosense but left before any recordings.
• The group's name was intentionally misspelled to avoid sounding like 'innocent little four-year-olds.'
• Mandy Ashford was a member of the Attache show choir with Lance Bass, who recommended her to Lou Pearlman.
• The song 'Rain Rain' was released only in Germany and was not recorded by Cher.