Belinda Carlisle is so glad she agreed to take part in The Go-Go’s new documentary film because reuniting with her bandmates helped her “understand my part in the toxicity” surrounding the group’s tumultuous relationships.

Carlisle fronted the group, also comprising Jane Wiedlin, Margot Olavarria, and Elissa Bello, since 1978, but turmoil between the members caused various line-up changes over the years, and with them, a lot of hurt.

Although The Go-Go’s haven’t released a studio album since 2001’s God Bless the Go-Go’s, they’ve continued to tour with a line-up featuring Carlisle, Wiedlin, Gina Schock, Kathy Valentine, and Charlotte Caffey – who reunited at the Sundance Film Festival in January for the premiere of the film.

Speaking to Entertainment Weekly, the singer, who has also enjoyed a hugely successful solo career with hits including Heaven Is A Place On Earth and Leave A Light On, admitted reflecting on the past four decades was an emotional experience.

“When we were approached to do this documentary, we hemmed and hawed about it,” she shared. “We weighed out the pros and cons, but we still couldn’t commit because we were scared, and understandably so.

“When we finally decided to do it, we spoke to Allison [Ellwood, director] and told her we’d do it but we wanted 100 per cent creative control, and she explained that that’s not how this works.

“We are very thankful we took the chance because it wouldn’t be the documentary it is today without her. She totally got us.”

Since working on the film, the girls have been back in the studio for their first new recording in nearly 20 years, Club Zero, which is out now. And Carlisle admitted the whole experience was a turning point in their relationship.

“Seeing them again and seeing it on the big screen, where everything was so loud, made us really very emotional,” she recalled. “We feel that it’s a great way to bookend a career, and a lot of healing was done through that documentary.

“I won’t go into great detail about it because a lot of it was personal, but some of us have very complicated dynamics. There were a lot of realisations that I know I made even when I was being interviewed. I thought, ‘Wow! I didn’t clearly understand my part in the toxicity until I was actually spewing it.’

She concluded: “When you throw in money, drugs, and egos, it’s just so much… I wasn’t my best self back then, for sure. I was able to be the lead singer of the Go-Go’s and sing these really great songs, but I didn’t participate in the creativity as much as I could have if I hadn’t been strung out on drugs.

“Now we can really watch this documentary and reflect on how much we’ve been through together and be proud of what we accomplished.”

The new documentary, titled The Go-Go’s, debuted on Showtime in the US last month.