Below are the three steps on how to be in a boy band:
1) After signing with a very suspicious middle-aged man, release two or three albums that simply own the charts, captivating the minds of young audiences, while weathering the vitriol of people who claim to really know music. Tour the world with well-choreographed, high-priced, over-the-top-shows that sell out stadiums.
2) Break up, citing “creative differences.” Launch a briefly successful solo career in an attempt to cash in on fan loyalty.
3) Reunite with your former bandmates for one last world tour, knowing full well that people will pay top dollars for the right to say they went to one of your shows.
In the late 80s to early 90s, New Kids On the Block was definitely in Stage 1. The incredible success of singles like “Be My Girl” and “Hangin Tough” (my personal favorite) is the reason people thought acts like 'N Sync and The Backstreet Boys could make it. Last summer, the New Kids were in Stage 3. But in 1999, we all got to enjoy Stage 2.
In one year, we saw the release of two former Kids’ solo projects. Jordan Knight put out a self-titled album and Joey McIntyre gave us Stay the Same, with its’ second single, “I Love You Came Too Late.”
Unfortunately, Joey’s solo work did not fare very well. Stay the Same peaked at #49 in the U.S. charts. And “I Love You Came Too Late” shows us why. The songwriting is predictable. The choreography is weak. All the makeup in the world can’t hide the fact that Joey was 27 at the time. Plus, I think they could have gotten a more attractive girl to play the love interest. All in all, it was a poor effort.
The Circle of Boy Bands is an enduring and mysterious phenomenon. Try as they might, all of these baby-faced musicians end up returning to the act that made them famous in the first place. Remember this in 2019, when you are shelling out $400 for front-row tickets to the No Strings Attached Tour.
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