Iconic noughties pop duo The Cheeky Girls are reportedly now employed at car dealerships, having temporarily "hung up their hotpants". The Romanian pop act, consisting of identical twin sisters Gabriela and Monica Irimia, rose to prominence in the early 2000s with a series of top ten singles including The Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum).
After initially capturing public attention on Popstars: The Rivals in 2002, The Cheeky Girls, aged 43, have achieved multi-million record sales. Throughout the years, they've established themselves as recognisable figures, something Monica describes as a source of particular "pride".
For now, though, they've "hung up their hotpants", partly because of day jobs that are worlds away from their musical careers. The sisters are presently "toiling away" as "salespeople at Audi dealerships", according to Closer magazine.
The twins revealed to the publication: "Having two so radically different jobs is amazing. It's like having two identities, and we love that."
Gabriela and Monica's entry into the automotive sales sector was first disclosed in a 2021 report, which confirmed that Gabriela had begun working as a salesperson at a Hyundai dealership in York, reports the Mirror.
Monica, whilst pursuing the same profession, secured a position at a different Hyundai dealership in Lincolnshire. She explained to The Sun on Sunday that they required a "solid business" for their future, emphasising that the motor industry would "always be good business".
Monica expressed: "Being an entertainer is fantastic, but like it was with Covid, if you don't have a solid job or business, how do you survive? Gigs all disappeared for two years during Covid, but we didn't stop making money."
She further added: "Sometimes we only sleep two-three hours to do the gigs and get to work, but it's worth it."
Gabriela revealed that she was relishing her new role and hinted at the possibility of them opening their own dealership in the future, given the "glowing" reviews they've received from customers.
She described the twins as "busy bees" and suggested that they might invest in their own dealership in due course. She shared her love for driving and cars, calling it a "passion for me".
Their mother, Margit, seemed fully supportive of their new venture into car sales, implying that the twins couldn't remain Cheeky Girls forever and needed to "have a business".
She posed the question: "Let me ask you this: can you be a Cheeky Girl when you're 60? She needs to have a business and realises that girl fashion is now cars. Women are changing their cars every year."
Despite being considered a novelty act, The Cheeky Girls have had a fair share of success in the music industry. Their debut track, Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum), climbed to number 2 in the UK charts and sold a commendable 1.2 million copies globally.
Some of their other popular songs include Take Your Shoes Off, (Hooray, Hooray) It's a Cheeky Holiday! and Have a Cheeky Christmas.