Mel B has a net worth of approximately $10 million, rebuilt following widely publicized financial difficulties during and after her divorce from Stephen Belafonte. Born Melanie Janine Brown and known globally as Scary Spice, she is one of five members of the Spice Girls — the best-selling female group in history — and has built a parallel career as a television personality, author, and stage actress spanning three decades.
Updated March 2026: According to Billboard and multiple entertainment outlets, Mel B returned as a judge on America’s Got Talent Season 20 in 2025 and is actively teasing a Spice Girls 30th anniversary reunion for 2026, which would mark the group’s biggest commercial opportunity since their 2019 Spice World Tour grossed over $100 million. She also married hairstylist Rory McPhee in July 2025.
Melanie Janine Brown was born on May 29, 1975, in Leeds, Yorkshire, England. She was raised in the Harehills area of Leeds in a working-class household; her father, Martin Brown, is English, and her mother, Andrea, is of Jamaican descent, giving Mel B a mixed-race background that made her a pioneering figure of diversity in 1990s British pop culture. She attended Intake High School in Leeds and later studied at the Intake Sixth Form College. Her ambition to perform led her to audition for a girl group in 1994, alongside four other young women — Victoria Adams (Beckham), Melanie Chisholm, Emma Bunton, and Geri Halliwell — who would become the Spice Girls.
The Spice Girls launched globally in 1996 with the single “Wannabe,” which reached number one in 37 countries. The group went on to sell over 100 million records worldwide, making them the best-selling female group in history. Their albums — Spice, Spiceworld, and Forever — produced hits including “2 Become 1,” “Say You’ll Be There,” and “Stop.” Mel B was branded “Scary Spice” for her boisterous personality and leopard-print style.
Beyond the Spice Girls, Mel B released two solo albums: Hot (2000) and L.A. State of Mind (2005). She appeared on Broadway in Rent and Chicago. On television, she served as a judge on America’s Got Talent from 2013 to 2018 — during which she reportedly earned approximately $2.8 million per season — as well as on The X Factor Australia and Dancing with the Stars. In 2019, she participated in the Spice Girls’ Spice World Tour, which grossed over $100 million across 13 dates. She received an MBE in the 2022 New Year Honours for charitable services. In 2025, she appeared in the Apple TV+ production KPOPPED and returned as an AGT judge for Season 20. She has been actively hinting at a Spice Girls 30th anniversary reunion for 2026.
Mel B married hairstylist Rory McPhee in a ceremony in London on July 5, 2025, with a second celebration in Morocco in August 2025. She has three daughters from previous relationships: Phoenix Chi Gulzar (with dancer Jimmy Gulzar, from her first marriage 1998–2000), Angel Iris Murphy Brown (with actor Eddie Murphy, born 2007), and Madison Brown Belafonte (with producer Stephen Belafonte, from her third marriage 2007–2017). Her divorce from Belafonte in 2017 was highly publicized and financially damaging, but she has spoken openly about rebuilding since then. She now lives on a 15-acre farm in the Yorkshire Dales, England, which she has described as a source of stability and peace. Victoria Beckham remains one of her best-known former bandmates.
Mel B’s net worth is estimated at approximately $10 million as of 2026. Following widely publicized financial difficulties during her divorce from Stephen Belafonte, she has rebuilt her wealth through her return to America’s Got Talent, her 2019 Spice Girls tour, and her memoir advance. A potential Spice Girls 30th anniversary tour in 2026 would significantly add to this figure.
Mel B married Rory McPhee, a hairstylist, on July 5, 2025 in London, with a second celebration in Morocco in August 2025. She was previously married to dancer Jimmy Gulzar (1998–2000) and producer Stephen Belafonte (2007–2017).
Mel B was born on May 29, 1975, making her 50 years old as of March 2026. She was born and raised in Leeds, Yorkshire, England.
Mel B stands 5’5″ (165 cm) tall.
Yes. Mel B has three daughters: Phoenix Chi Gulzar (born 1998, with Jimmy Gulzar), Angel Iris Murphy Brown (born 2007, with Eddie Murphy), and Madison Brown Belafonte (born 2011, with Stephen Belafonte).
As of 2026, Mel B is a judge on America’s Got Talent Season 20, which returned to the air in 2025. She has been publicly teasing a Spice Girls 30th anniversary reunion for 2026 in interviews and on social media. She also appeared in the Apple TV+ production KPOPPED in 2025 and married Rory McPhee in July 2025.
Mel B currently lives on a 15-acre farm in the Yorkshire Dales, England. She has spoken about the property as providing a sense of safety and grounding after a difficult decade, describing it as a place where she feels truly at home.