The most successful German girl group of all time – that was the No Angels.
More than 20 years ago, Sandy Mölling (41), Lucy Diakovska (46), Jessica Wahls (45), Nadja Benaissa (40) and Vanessa Petruo (43) stormed the charts with their hits. But just three years after the company was founded, the girls went their separate ways for the first time. There was a short comeback in 2007 and 2021 – but without Vanessa.
Why? In an older “Spiegel” interview (2014), Vanessa explained that the stress in the band had increased her depression at the time. In 2021 she could not be there for professional reasons.
Speaking on Instagram, she said: “As some of you may know, my life has taken a different direction since the band broke up over 20 years ago. It wasn’t an easy decision for me, but I never lost my passion for music. It just changed into a different form – I enjoy making music privately and expressing my creative energies in other ways.”
She wishes the other girls all the best and is happy that the No Angels are making music again. “We just drifted apart and are now going different ways. I will always cherish our time together in the band and am grateful for the wonderful memories we created together.”
The No Angels posted Vanessa’s statement on Instagram
THEY continue to make music: Nadja Benaissa, Lucy Diakovska, Sandy Moelling and Jessica Wahls
The reaction of the ladies shows that there is no bad blood between the band members: All singers shared Vanessa’s post on their own Instagram accounts.
What Vanessa Petruo is doing today
After the end of her music career, Vanessa Petruo studied psychology at the distance learning university in Hagen and then did her master’s degree in “cognitive neuroscience” in Dresden. There she worked as a research assistant at the University Clinic Dresden in child and adolescent psychiatry.
A picture of Vanessa Petruo from her university in the USA
She kept this career path in neuroscience – and moved to America. Vanessa completed her PhD in December 2018 and has been working as a post-doc at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles since 2020.
A “post-doc” is the name given to scientists who have obtained a doctorate after completing their doctorate – and are working at a research institute or university for a limited period of time.
