2 Unlimited

Formed as a Belgian/Dutch techno and dance-pop act, 2 Unlimited rose to become one of Europe’s dominant ensembles in the first half of the 1990s, moving 18 million records and placing number-one singles in every European territory. England alone saw eleven consecutive releases reach the summit of the national charts. Across the Atlantic the 1991 debut album Get Ready later yielded the enduring smash “Get Ready for This,” which resurfaced two years after its initial release and remained a staple soundtrack in sports arenas nationwide for decades afterward.

The project originated in 1990 when Belgian producers Phil Wilde and Jean-Paul DeCoster, already known for their earlier work with AB Logic, sought a fresh outlet for their material. After being introduced by Marvin D. to Dutch rapper Ray Slijngaard and Dutch vocalist Anita Doth—both previously members of Marvin D.’s rap collective—the producers assembled 2 Unlimited. Their first single, “Get Ready for This,” climbed to number two on multiple European charts in 1991, and the full-length Get Ready appeared the following year.

Those early singles, capped by the group’s first Dutch number one “Twilight Zone,” set the stage for the 1993 follow-up No Limits. Its title track topped the charts in fifteen European countries plus Canada and stands as 2 Unlimited’s biggest commercial success, while additional cuts such as “Faces,” “Tribal Dance,” and “Let the Beat Control Your Body” also performed strongly. The subsequent album Real Things sustained the momentum with further hits including “The Real One,” “No One,” and “Here I Go.” The 1995 best-of collection Hits Unlimited marked the final release by this lineup, after which Slijngaard departed to oversee his X-Ray label and Doth turned to television and radio presenting before later collaborating with Mad Cobra.

At the close of the decade DeCoster and Wilde enlisted fresh Dutch singers Romy van Ooijen and Marjon van Iwaarden, who helped deliver the 1998 Dutch Top Ten single “Wanna Get Up.” The fourth studio album, II, surfaced that same year but achieved only modest results, prompting both vocalists to exit in 1999. Although various remix packages, among them the 2004 CD/DVD set The Complete History, continued to surface, the group largely stepped back from new activity. Slijngaard and Doth rejoined forces in 2009 for select nostalgic concerts under the 2 Unlimited name and subsequently recorded together as the duo Ray & Anita, issuing several singles that entered the Dutch charts.

In 2012 Ray & Anita reunited with DeCoster to reactivate 2 Unlimited, returning to the stage the next year. A high-energy modern remix of “Get Ready for This” by Steve Aoki propelled the track back into the Dutch Top 30. Another shift occurred in 2016 when Doth left to pursue her solo work and Kim Vergouwen stepped in as the new vocalist. The group continues to tour its catalog of hits throughout Europe.