By: Erica Murphy (Syracuse University)
Ever wonder what happened to the harmonies of N’SYNC. Did Hanson cut their hair since the ‘90s? Where did O-town come from and where are they now. Is LFO still singing about summer girls? Growing up in the ‘90s meant listening to boy bands. It was inevitable. I know many girls who still break it down to “Dirty Pop” and the famous Backstreet Boys’ “I Want It That Way” is a popular long car ride to the beach sing-a-long. But I often wonder what happened to all those young fellows that were such a significant part of my childhood? As a little girl, I was convinced that Brian Littrell was my first kiss. I had his face plastered across my bedroom walls, and I certainly made my marks if you know what I mean. If I didn’t have those vivid and embarrassing memories, I would forget that I was obsessed with boy bands at all! They are virtually nonexistent nowadays and to me, that is quite a tragedy. For all those college students who yearn to relive their childhood, I thought I would give you a little update on what happened to those talented and smokin’ hot boys.
Ever since Lance Bass came out of the closet in 2006, N’Sync has been sent away to goodwill and virtually forgotten. But what happened to those five individuals? We all know that Justin Timberlake is still in the spotlight. Once the band went on hiatus and Justin began his solo career, N’Sync never reinstated its ‘90s dominance. However, Timberlake has continued singing and his first two solo albums made him one of the most commercially successful singers in the world (I’m sure his dance moves also added to his fame a little). He worked with Madonna, played a young Elton John, and even became involved in an unforgettable scandal with Janet Jackson. He has certainly kept busy. Admitting his sexual identity was just a small part of Lance Bass’s life after N’Sync. He formed his own film production company in 2007 and appeared on the Broadway musical Hairspray for its entire five-year stretch. J.C. Chasez also tried a solo career like Timberlake, but unlike Timberlake, his was not as successful. He now appears as a judge on American’s Best Dance Crew. Joey Fatone and Chris Kirkpatrick lost much of their stardom when N’Sync collapsed. Fatone appeared on Dancing with the Stars in 2007 and has hosted a few shows. Kirkpatrick fought his decreasing popularity by battling with Eminem. He was actually featured in one of Eminem’s songs after Kirkpatrick said that Eminem’s arrest in 2000 was karma. His latest gig was appearing in the CMT’s show Gone Country.
For those of you who did not know, O-Town assembled from the first season of Making the Band. But that season finale did not end their television careers. Two more seasons were made, making O-Town the first cast of a reality TV show to remain the same in their second and third seasons. “Liquid Dreams” was the bands first big hit. They later released “All of Nothing,” which was their last single that received airplay. The band attempted to write their own music and prove themselves as artists, but this dream essentially deteriorated the band. Apparently lyrics like “I dream about a girl who’s a mix of Destiny’s Child, just little touch of Madonna’s wild style” were just too big a feat for the members of O-Town. Ashley Angel attempted a solo career, was given his own reality show on MTV titled There and Back again, and played Link Larkin in the Broadway musical Hairspray. Trevor Penick signed a record label that was unsuccessful. Erik joined the Army. And the rest is history, literally.
If anyone read last weeks Time, you would have seen that Hanson did in fact cut their hair. I’m sure they struggled greatly with the decision, but it was one that had to be made. Despite many negative opinions of Hanson, their debut album, Middle of Nowhere, actually earned three Grammy nominations. But after record label troubles, their success dwindled. They are still recording, but they now record under their own label 3CG Records. In 2007, Hanson released the first episode of their documentary on iTunes. The Entire documentary titled Strong Enough to Break was made into 13 episodes for release by podcast. After their acting stint, Hanson went back to the studio for another album. They just released “Shout It Out” on June 8, 2010 and recently toured with Hellogoodbye. It appears that Hanson has managed to remain in the public eye as a band, but I really hope they steer away from performing “MMMbop.” That is the epitome of ‘90s pop and should not be brought into this new decade.
Who would have thought that Hanson was the sole ‘90s boy band to make to 2010? N’ Sync, O-Town, Backstreet Boys, LFO, 98 Degrees, BB Mack, Dream Street, B2K, all managed to kill their careers as aspiring bands. I wonder if it was that brotherly love that managed to keep Hanson motivated and civil? If that means the Jonas Brothers have a long career ahead of them, I might need to recruit some volunteers to help me sabotage their success. Let me know if you are interested.
