M.O

Career

Frankee Connolly had been part of Mini Viva until that duo split in 2010, while Nadine Samuels and Annie Ashcroft were members of the girl group Duchess until 2012. M.O was formed in late 2012 after Connolly met Samuels and Ashcroft at music industry events. The name M.O stands for Modus Operandi, a Latin term meaning 'a particular way to do something. The group's initial aim was to bring back old school 1990s music, citing TLC, J.Lo, Aaliyah, and All Saints as inspirations.

They made their debut with a remix of Brandy and Monica's 'The Boy Is Mine' on the YouTube channel SB.TV in 2012, receiving positive feedback and being championed by Ed Sheeran. Their first promotional single 'Wait Your Turn' followed, along with other 2013 releases including 'Ain't Got Time' and 'Hot'. In early 2014, the Jess Glynne-penned track 'For a Minute' was released as their official debut single, entering the UK Indie Chart at number 6. Their second single 'Dance on My Own' entered the UK Singles Chart at number 49 in August 2014, and the group was nominated for a MOBO Award in the Best Newcomer category that year.

In 2015, they released the single 'Preach', co-written by Starsmith and Joel Compass, and signed a record deal with Polydor, also releasing the promotional single 'Love the Most' with the HeavyTrackerz. In 2016, M.O released the extended plays Good Friends and Who Do You Think Of?, the latter spawning the single of the same name which reached the UK top 20, was certified silver, and sold over 375,000 copies. In July 2016, they signed a US deal with Interscope Records.

Their next single 'Not in Love', featuring rapper Kent Jones, peaked at number 42 in December 2016. On 26 June 2020, the group released the EP Modus Operandi, featuring tracks such as 'Who Do You Think Of', 'Ex at the Party', and 'Going Out of My Way' featuring Mr Eazi.