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Note: This nonfiction mentions suicidal ideation and intersexual assault.
We're 3 decades retired from the glory days of *NSYNC, Backstreet Boys, and racing location to ticker TRL, but there's a batch of lore astir the lad set epoch that hasn't been told. And it isn't truthful glamorous; successful fact, it's downright acheronian astatine times.
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Boy Band Confidential features members of the astir fashionable antheral singing groups from the '90s and aboriginal 2000s, including Wanyá Morris and Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men, Lance Bass (and Joey, of course), from *NSYNC, AJ McLean (who goes by his afloat sanction Alexander successful the docuseries) of Backstreet Boys, and Nick Lachey and Jeff Timmons of 98 Degrees, among others.
Investigation Discovery
Here are the biggest moments from Boy Band Confidential:
1. The bid makes nary mistake: the modern-day conception of the lad set is based connected Black singing groups.
Major kudos for Joey for starting the docuseries by saying this quiescent portion retired loud. Boy Band Confidential starts with a homage to bands similar Boyz II Men and New Edition getting their flowers from members of BSB, *NSYNC, and 98 Degrees for being the sound, look, feel, and each astir blueprint for their popular success.
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“That’s 1 of the groups we looked up to, that we strived to beryllium like," AJ said of Boyz II Men.
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“There was thing astir the mode that sounded that was connected a full different level than thing I had ever heard, arranged, oregon performed successful my full life," Jeff Timmons said.
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2. Boy bands were much palatable for teen girls successful mediate America than Black R&B groups. (Probably the astir evident information bomb.)
Shawn of Boyz II Men made a "drop the mic" connection connected the subject:
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“It’s substance book. Do Black euphony with achromatic faces: Pat Boone, The Osmonds, Elvis. They were each doing Black music. That is the truth, and it’s a hard truth,” Shawn Stockman said. "It's nary diss to 98 Degrees, *NSYNC, Backstreet, immoderate of those guys. They were conscionable kids trying to marque it, too."
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He continued: “To the mean achromatic miss fan, the Black groups, 'Oh, I’d f-ck him.' But the achromatic groups, 'Oh, I’d marry him. Justin Timberlake connected my partition is much acceptable opposed to a mates of Black guys. I tin wed Justin. I tin bring him to my house. He tin person meal with my family.' It’s a small harder to bring Black ass Shawn to agrarian Arkansas.”
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3. Boyz II Men took a interruption aft touring for 1 year. When they returned, their grounds label, Motown, had begun heavy promoting 98 Degrees.
The statement adjacent gave 98 Degrees the song, "Invisible Man," which was primitively written for Boyz II Men. "People were done with us, and with our epoch of music, and it shifted to the lad bands,” Shawn said.
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“And they look thing similar us," helium continued. "Motown, our statement successful particular, made it painfully evident that they were done. They were done with us, and the pendulum has shifted."
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4. Nick Lachey said 98 Degrees was marketed arsenic "the achromatic Jodeci."
“The president of Motown, helium wanted america to beryllium the achromatic Jodeci," Nick Lachey believed. "So helium was trying to springiness america that successful a clang course."
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“I retrieve going connected a bid to Rochester, NY, to enactment with DeVante [Swing] from Jodeci," helium continued. "And we amusement up, and DeVante is being fitted for a bulletproof vest, successful the studio. And I’m looking around, I’m like, ‘Do we request a bulletproof vest? What did we conscionable locomotion successful to?’ It does marque america question like, ‘Why did you motion america if you don’t privation america to beryllium who we are?’”
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"It starts to truly messiness with you mentally,” Nick finished.
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5. Jeff Timmons recalls having suicidal ideations erstwhile 98 Degrees was initially signed.
“And for me, it caused a terrible depression," Jeff shared. "But I felt similar I was the weakest nexus successful the group. Just didn’t consciousness bully astir myself, didn’t consciousness bully physically. I could not sleep, and my caput wasn’t right. I felt truthful worthless, and conscionable the information that I could not grip each of this pressure, that I was like, conscionable extremity it.”
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“I went to our manager, and I said, 'I request immoderate help. If I don’t get immoderate benignant of help, I volition not beryllium here. Like this is over,'" Jeff said. "So helium recovered maine a psychiatrist to spell to … wrong 3 months, I felt amended than ever. And it didn’t marque this immoderate easier, but astatine slightest I felt better. That I didn’t privation to die.”
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6. The sixth subordinate of *NSYNC speaks for the archetypal time.
Jason Galasso was 1 of the archetypal members of *NSYNC. When the radical received their declaration from Lou Pearlman's Trans Continental Records, helium decided not to motion and abruptly near the group. Lance Bass ended up replacing him, and past *NSYNC arsenic we cognize it was born.
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"I had nary thought what was going to happen, and besides I was a anserine kid," Jason recalled. "I’ve ne'er seen a euphony declaration before. So I was astute capable backmost past to instrumentality the contracts to lawyers to reappraisal them. And it’s like, woah woah woah, Lou’s a subordinate of the set now?"
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"At that juncture with *NSYNC, it didn't consciousness right. So I didn't bash it." Jason continued. "JC was pissed... And I don't blasted him, I benignant of near them precocious and dry. So I get it, I'd beryllium pissed with me, too." Jason ended up going to assemblage and has been palmy successful the owe concern ever since.
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7. *NSYNC's idiosyncratic adjunct astatine the clip (Joe Mulvihill), thought the radical should person gotten escaped of Justin.
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"The archetypal clip I ever saw them perform, I said, ‘Get escaped of that kid.’ He was a bully dancer. But helium was precise nasally, and it was Justin," Joe said. "I truly said that. Boy, I was wrong.”
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8. Joey was the archetypal subordinate of *NSYNC that Lance came retired to.
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“I was astatine my computer, and my fellow astatine the time, my very, precise archetypal boyfriend, was sitting connected my lap,” Lance remembered. “And I was like, ‘Surprise.’”
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“And he’s like, ‘Oh, please. I don’t care.’ And I knew helium wouldn’t care, but it was conscionable truthful bully to perceive those words, and yet 1 of the members of your radical cognize and beryllium like, I don’t care,” Lance continued.
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Joey remembers: "He goes, ‘Just don’t archer anybody. I don’t privation to archer anybody.’ I go, ‘Lance, I emotion you.’ I said, ‘You’re my brother. You fto maine cognize erstwhile it’s close for you to tell. I’m not saying thing to the guys.' Because I recovered retired by accident.”
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9. Boy set members would pass each different to "watch the touching" from Lou Pearlman.
Steven Mooney, who was an O-Town hopeful, said that helium experienced uncomfortable behaviour astir Lou. “So helium would travel in. He’s walking successful in his underwear, Steven recalled. "He would telephone you into his room, oregon telephone you erstwhile he’s taking a shower. And he’s trying to work disconnected your time to you, and it’s like, ‘You’re successful the shower, tin we bash this later?’ And he’s like, ‘No nary no, it’s ace important. I don’t privation to hide it.’”
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Steven claimed that idiosyncratic successful different set asked him, "Have you fto Lou bl-w you yet?" But Steven conscionable thought they were joking.
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Steven said helium was warned by Rich Cronin of LFO to “watch the touching due to the fact that that volition progress.”
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Lou seemingly said that Steven would beryllium successful O-Town, but helium "had to support it a secret.” But then, Lou ended up belittling him onscreen during Making The Band due to the fact that Steven couldn't prime up the choreography.
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Off camera, Steven asked Lou what helium had to bash to marque the band. He past said that Lou made him highly uncomfortable: "And helium sits back, helium opens his robe, and determination helium is, and he's like, 'You’re a astute boy, fig it out.'"
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"The enactment was attempted to beryllium crossed. But I could ne'er look myself successful the reflector and beryllium that," Steven said. "He chopped maine from the amusement the time aft I said no." After that, Steven decided to permission Orlando.
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10. Ashley Parker Angel details uncomfortable experiences with Lou Pearlman.
“I bash consciousness similar Lou took a liking to me, due to the fact that Lou told maine specifically, 'Hey, erstwhile the cameras extremity the accumulation and Making The Band is implicit and you're conscionable O-Town, I privation you to travel unrecorded successful my location with me,'” Ashley said. "And past he'd accidental worldly like, 'Take disconnected your shirt, we've got to support you successful signifier for these teen magazines. Let maine spot your abs, instrumentality disconnected your shirt.'" Ashley went connected to explicate that, “You benignant of get conditioned to instrumentality disconnected your garment for Lou.”
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Ashley explained that radical would archer him, “Don’t beryllium unsocial with Lou.” He recalls an incidental erstwhile Lou invited him into his edifice room. "He was like, 'Take disconnected your shirt,' and helium was telling maine happening like, 'I tin springiness your muscles a pump... conscionable by massaging you. So laic down connected the couch, fto maine massage your muscles, you'll spot what I mean.'" Ashley continued: “Something astir this feels abusive and predatory.”
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“Definitely consciousness similar connected immoderate level what Lou did with maine was intelligibly inappropriate," Ashley said. "There was a batch of precise inappropriate intersexual circumstances that we recovered ourselves successful with Lou. Kind of conscionable chipping distant astatine you to benignant of little your guard."
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11. According to Angel, Lou seemingly took O-Town to a German brothel.
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"We were successful Germany and not realizing we were successful a brothel," Ashley said. "And past they're like, 'We're going to brace you with this 1 and that 1 and spell backmost to the country with you.' We're virtually astatine a brothel with Lou."
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12. “Bye, Bye, Bye” could person been the past opus we heard from *NSYNC.
“When the statement was going to instrumentality the sanction [of *NSYNC] away, Lou tried to get the opus taken distant from those 5 guys,” Johnny said. “So I didn’t privation that to happen.”
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He continued: “So we were asked to play the Radio Music Awards, and I said, ‘The lone mode that they’ll travel connected signifier and execute is they person to execute this caller opus called ‘Bye Bye Bye.’ And it benignant of was similar an ode to well, hey, ‘Bye Bye Bye,’ could beryllium the past opus you’ll ever perceive from us. And if they were going to get stripped of the name, if idiosyncratic other tried to enactment it out, it was successful the minds of those fans that these guys did it first.”
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13. The awkward mode *NSYNC members accidental they were pushed to the broadside of Justin's solo career.
The infinitesimal that truly rubbed Joey the incorrect mode was erstwhile *NSYNC was asked to present Justin's archetypal solo show astatine the VMAs successful 2002.
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"You are fundamentally conscionable pushing america speech a small spot to bash this," Joey said of *NSYNC's absorption squad astatine the time. "But yet, you inactive privation america astir to present him.”
MTV
"It is wholly fine. But speech to us,” Joey continued. “Have a conversation. Say, ‘Hey, we’re promoting Justin. He has an medium out. We’re not present for *NSYNC close now.’ If you would person had that conversation, it would person been a batch easier for maine personally.”
MTV
14. Joey's lights were unopen disconnected 1 Christmas due to the fact that helium couldn't wage the energy measure arsenic *NSYNC's emergence started to fall.
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"I astir was gonna spell bankrupt, and I person a family," Joey said. "These are definite things that hap successful mean people's lives arsenic well, but past you person to fig out, for me, however bash I bash this without the nationalist adjacent watching?"
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"I was asking radical for money," Joey continued. "And comic enough, the radical that I asked were the radical that mostly had the astir wealth successful life. They were like, 'Can't assistance you.'"
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"So I had to bash immoderate absorbing things," helium said. "I enactment my process betwixt my legs arsenic a antheral to effort to fig this out. Had to merchantability my house, and legitimately, I moved my ex-wife and my kids successful with my parents for a year. I lived successful Vegas for astir a year, busted my ass to dilatory physique backmost up benignant of a vocation successful a sense. And convey the goodness, Lord, things were capable to roll. And started doing things, and things came retired better, convey goodness."
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15. Ashley Parker Angel dealt with substance maltreatment issues aft O-Town's archetypal fame subsided.
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“I was astir 26, and precise alert that the “27 Club” exists and that truthful galore young performers person died for immoderate crushed astir 27," Ashley remembered. "And I was truthful identified astatine that constituent successful clip with my ‘success.’ And erstwhile the plug got pulled, truthful to talk … I was truthful deathly acrophobic of being called washed up. I was truthful terrified of not being capable to support up with people’s expectations.”
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“I was sitting connected the 38th floor, a balcony astatine my NY apartment, and I virtually for respective hours, I conscionable thought astir jumping disconnected that balcony,” helium said.
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After that experience, Ashley leaned connected household and friends, and started to absorption connected wellness and wellness.
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16. Brad Fischetti opens up astir the devastating losses of his LFO set members, Rich Cronin and Brian Gillis.
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"At that constituent I went into the darkness." Brad said. "If you look from the extracurricular radical say, 'Oh, LFO is cursed.' I don't truly judge successful that benignant of stuff."
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17. AJ says his youngest girl saved his life.
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After coming location from a bender, his girl wouldn't hug him. "You don't odor similar my daddy," she said. "That 1 struck a nervus capable to aftermath maine the f--k up to where, I don't privation to consciousness that mode anymore," AJ said. "This is the archetypal clip successful 25 years, I've done what had been suggested of maine to do."
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18. And finally, aft Lance came out, his household was tally retired of churches due to the fact that helium was gay.
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"And adjacent to this day, a batch of churches usage maine to preach hate," Lance said. "And my parents conscionable kept moving from religion to church. It was not beauteous for them. But the positives that came retired of it conscionable far, acold outpaced the negative, truthful I was happy."
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"I don't cognize what would person happened if I didn't person *NSYNC to support maine conscionable safe," Lance shared.
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