Girls Aloud by Louis Walsh until 2005 when Hilary Shaw replaced him. The new group competed with the boys' winning group, One True Voice to have 2002's Christmas number one single. Girls Aloud won the battle with their single "Sound of the Underground", produced by Brian Higgins and Xenomania. The song spent four consecutive weeks at number one and was certified platinum in March 2003. The song received critical acclaim; Alexis Petridis of "The Guardian" stated that "it proved a first: it was a reality pop record that didn't make you want to do physical harm to everyone involved in its manufacture".
Girls Aloud was increased to £30 million the following year, following Cheryl Cole's appearance on "The X Factor". All five members were included in a 2010 list of Britain's richest stars under 30. Reviews of Girls Aloud's debut album noted the high quality of the album compared to output from other reality show contestants. In 2004, David Hooper of BBC Music exclaimed that "Girls Aloud are currently British pop royalty [...] in the ultra-fickle world of TV-generated pop, Girls Aloud have real staying power." Andrew Lynch of entertainment.ie said, "Girls Aloud really shouldn't have made it as far as a second album.