| Holly Blake-Arnstein | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Holly Blake-Arnstein |
| Born | August 3, 1985 United States |
| Genres | Pop, Dance |
| Occupations | Singer |
| Years active | 1998–2003 |
| Labels | Bad Boy (1998-2003) |
| Associated acts | Dream |
Holly Blake-Arnstein (born August 3, 1985) is a former American singer and dancer. Arnstein is best known for being the lead singer of the pop group Dream in 1998 until they disbanded in 2003.
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The quartet was originally formed in October 1998 by talent scout Judith Fontaine, who selected Holly Blake-Arnstein (born August 3, 1985), Melissa Schuman (born August 21, 1984), Ashley Poole (born May 10, 1985), and Alex Chester, (born December 28, 1984), four teens from California, to comprise this new girl group. The original name of the group was First Warning but later changed to Dream.
More changes were in store: the girls left Fontaine and were then signed by Sean Combs to his Bad Boy Records label, and in January 1999, Chester was replaced by Blake-Arnstein's best friend, Diana Ortiz (born September 23, 1985). Fontaine later sued Sean Combs and Blake-Arnstein, Schuman, and Poole, but lost her court case.[1]
Dream released their debut single "He Loves U Not", remixed by Marc Mozart, in 2000 and their debut album It Was All a Dream was released on January 23, 2001. "He Loves U Not," charted in three countries, peaking at #2 on the Hot 100 Singles Chart in the United States. The video for this single peaked at #2 on MTV's TRL and became the first video by a girl group to be retired from the countdown. The subsequent single, "This Is Me," enjoyed a fair amount of success as well; the music video hit #1 on TRL. The final single and video from the album was "This Is Me (remix)" and featured rapper Kain as well as Sean Combs. The song was also featured on the compilation Totally Hits 2001[2]
During this time, Dream participated in the 2001 TRL tour and opened for artists such as Destiny's child, Eve and Nelly.[3] They were featured in a segment of MTV Cribs. Play Along Toys released dolls of the group in 2001.
Though Bad Boy Records had planned to release "Miss You" and "In My Dreams" as the third and fourth singles, respectively, from It Was All A Dream, the singles were never released (though promotional copies of the latter were shipped), partly, according to Arnstein, due to the impact of the September 11 terrorist attacks in 2001.[4] Little was heard from Dream until April 2002, when Melissa Schuman left the group to pursue an acting career. Sean Combs appeared on TRL on April 3 to announce the news, noting that there were no bitter feelings [5]. A lengthy search led by Combs and the three remaining members led to 15-year-old Kasey Sheridan (born December 28, 1986) becoming the newest and youngest member of the group in the early fall of 2002 [6].
Dream spent the subsequent months recording new songs for their second album. In the summer of 2003, the girls returned to the scene with a new, sexier image[4] and a new single featuring rapper Loon called "Crazy."[7] The single and its video did not receive the acclaim and success of "He Loves U Not," and the second single from the album, supposedly "That's OK," was never released. Dream's album Reality was to follow in May, but its release kept being postponed, and it was ultimately never officially released. Dream was then dropped from Bad Boy Records, and the group subsequently disbanded, although their dissolution was never formally announced.
Members Ashley Poole and Melissa Schuman are currently pursuing solo singing careers. Member Holly Blake-Arnstein has joined the California-based alternative band Whirl Magnet.[4]
In September 2005, a group of fans discovered that the unreleased Reality CD was available for purchase from French Virgin Megastores. It is speculated that the CD was released in France to keep Bad Boy Records from violating the album release contract with Dream while saving as much money as possible.
In April 2006, an MTV News article discussed the reasons behind Dream's break-up. Blake-Arnstein was interviewed for the article and noted that the sexier, more mature image pushed upon the group by Combs and their management was not a welcome change, and that she and the other members of Dream were no longer enjoying the music and the experience [4].
As of May 9, 2008, three years after their 2nd album "Reality" leak online, Dream has two unreleased albums available on iTunes to buy. The albums are Daddy's Little Girl and Dream Never Land. There has been speculation that those songs might have been their second album if Melissa hadn't left the group back in 2002.
In July 2008, Dream's "official" second album, Reality, was posted on the US iTunes Store. It lists as having being released on May 13, 2008 under the label BAD BOY WORLDWIDE/ClockWork Entertainment/2620 Music. The album, along with the previously released Daddy's Little Girl and Dream Never Land can all be found under the Dream name under the Hip-Hop/Rap Genre, while their first album is still listed under Pop.
Arnstein left the entertainment industry after Dream disbanded in 2003. She joined a coverband "Whirlmagnet" for a short while. In 2008, she was asked by Melissa Schuman if Arnstein would like to make a comeback with a new Dream album, but she declined. She now attends college and married Dominic Restani, who was also a former singer. The two met when Arnstein was in Dream and Restani was in his group. Arnstein remains friends with the girls of Dream and keeps in contact.
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