PYT: Pack your things

[Times photo: Mike Pease] On the brink of a stardom that never happened, from left: Ashley Niven, Tracy Williams, Lydia Bell and Lauren Mayhew in 1999.

By DAVE SCHEIBER, Times Staff Writer
© St. Petersburg Times
published May 20, 2002

The all-girl group from Tampa has split up after losing its record deal.

In the summer of 1999, four 13-year-olds from Tampa began the ride of their lives, following a teen-pop path paved by Britney Spears, 'N Sync and the Backstreet Boys.

One moment, Lydia Bell, Lauren Mayhew, Ashley Niven and Tracy Williams were middle-schoolers. The next, they were new pop ensemble PYT, with a record deal from Sony, mega-manager Johnny Wright at their side and a spot on 'N Sync's summer caravan.

Like, wow If these four 13-year-olds from Tampa had gazed into a crystal ball six months ago, they probably would have fainted. A deal with Sony? Opening for 'N Sync and Britney Spears? No way! Shrink-wrapping a girl group The record company gave them a name. Then it gave them a hip-hop sound. Now it has given these four Tampa girls a look somewhere between sporty and sexy. Will the public buy the package?

During a New York tour stop -- site of the first of two St. Petersburg Times stories on the rise and packaging of PYT -- the girls crowded around a TV on their bus with another newcomer, Mandy Moore. She had just received a copy of her debut video, Candy, featuring PYT in guest roles.They watched wide-eyed, a dream moment for an act seemingly going places quickly.

"I feel like this group will be big," proclaimed label honcho David McPherson, who signed PYT.

Fast-forward to last October.

A gig at Tampa's Guavaween featured PYT and Mandy Moore -- now a big name in music, movies and TV. But for PYT, it was the end of the road.

Soon after, the group was quietly dropped by Sony/Epic, as many labels streamlined after Sept. 11. The news was publicized only on the group's many Internet fan pages. McPherson did not return a call last week, and label publicist Tracy Bufferd issued a no comment.

So what happened? How did PYT wind up O-U-T?

Music observers agree on several points. Unlike the somewhat older Moore, Sony executives weren't sure how to market youthful PYT. It began as a sweet pop act. But Sony put the brakes on the debut album, hoping to make it edgier. New tunes were cut, but by then, other girl groups like Dream and Wild Orchid had hit the scene. The market was also shifting to the sultry, urban sound of Destiny's Child.

So Sony thought PYT's best shot was a makeover -- as hip-hoppers.

[Times photo: Cherie Diez] PYT on tour in '99. The group began as a sweet pop act but its record label soon wanted an edgier sound.

"But honestly, these are private school girls -- I don't think it was a natural fit," says Cynthia Gries, whose Entertainment Revue in Tampa trained the girls, and who first brought PYT to Sony's attention.

"I think they should have gone back to a pop thing," says Clay Bushong, the last of PYT's four managers. "The (label) was always making changes to this or that, and never really gave them a true launch. They shot the video, but at the last minute, they didn't release it. It was just ineptitude at the label. The whole marketing of PYT was confusing."

In the end, what had looked like a major coup getting Wright didn't pay off. He was too busy with 'N Sync and Spears. PYT earned fans, but few CD sales.

"You can have all the talent in the world, and the biggest music company behind you," adds Gries, "but the bottom line is that you have to sell records."

"Their story is the story you see pretty much everywhere else," says Tony Novia, an editor at industry publication Radio & Records. "The two highest failure-rate businesses are the toy business and the record business. When you look at all the album releases a year, maybe 35,000 in all, you're lucky to see maybe 20 to 25 of them selling platinum (a million copies). You're looking at an overall failure rate percentage in the high 90s."

To Novia, the success of any group "comes down to the record."

Unfortunately for PYT, the delays in releasing their debut record left the group to perform for two years without a product to pitch.

After being dropped, some of the girls wanted to shop PYT to other labels. But Lauren Mayhew, who had a role on Guiding Light, decided to focus on her acting. She signed with ICM talent agency, recently appeared in an episode of Law and Order, and is up for other TV and film roles. Lauren is also writing songs and performing in a duo called Turning Point with Lydia Bell, who hopes to pursue a Broadway career.

Tracy Williams has held national auditions for a new pop group, which will have three girl singers and two male dancers. She has converted a home in Tampa into a recording studio and rehearsal space. Ashley Niven wants to enjoy being 16, but will likely return to making music.

Other than Lauren and Lydia, the girls aren't spending time together for the first time in years. "By the end, the pressures and tensions from the label had run off to the girls," says Bushong, who now manages Lauren. "They needed some time away from each other."

Says Lydia of the group's breakup: "It was time for us to move on and pursue other opportunities. And, in a way, it was kind of a relief to know you have a little bit of a normal life back."

But Lauren speaks for all when she reflects on PYT's whirlwind experience as pop stars. "I wouldn't trade those three years for anything in the world."

On the Web

Though PYT is no longer together, a handful of fan sites continue to keep up with the Tampa foursome of Lydia Bell, Lauren Mayhew, Ashley Niven and Tracy Williams. One of the most complete is PYT Universe (http://www.efanguide.com/pyt/index.html), done by a PYT fan in Venezuela. Another fan is devoting an entire site to updates about Lauren (http://laurenmayhew.cjb.net). Multiple links to PYT pages can be found at another site (http://www.ultimatetopsites.com/music/pyt). Fans can watch Lauren and Lydia perform in their new duo Turning Point at 7 p.m., June 6 at International Plaza in Tampa.

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