At the turn of the millennium, the battle lines in the boy-band wars were fairly clear. You were either on Team Backstreet Boys or Team ‘NSync. Some fans took a Switzerland-like stance and professed equal love for both groups, but they were mostly full of shit. Everyone had a favorite.
The cold war turned hot when ‘NSync’s Chris Kirkpatrick and the Backstreet Boys’ AJ McLean dated the same woman a couple of years apart. “I wanted to punch AJ’s lights out for a little while,” Kirkpatrick said years later. “I guess he was talking smack to her about me, so I confronted him on it and wanted to kick his ass.”
There was also the small matter that both groups were managed by Lou Pearlman, signed to Jive Records, and produced by Max Martin. Backstreet Boys moved more albums overall, but ‘NSync shattered all industry records when No Strings Attached sold 2.4 million copies its first week out in 2000. ‘NSync also produced the only genuine solo star of the two groups — Justin Timberlake — which is why they disbanded in 2005. Backstreet Boys, meanwhile, are still going strong over 30 years after they formed.
This year, Backstreet Boys are off the road, which frees up McLean up for a collaborative tour with ‘NSync’s Joey Fatone that will officially mark the last vestiges of any sense of rivalry between the two groups. They have yet to finalize the set list, but expect them to cross the boy-band streams by playing each other’s songs throughout the evening.
We hopped on a Zoom with McLean and Fatone to hear about the history of their supposed feud, how they came together for this tour, what fans can expect once they take the stage together, and the ultimate dream of an ‘NSync/Backstreet Boys mega tour.
Joey, what’s your first memory of being aware of a new group called the Backstreet Boys?
Joey Fatone: Oh, God. I might’ve been one of the first people to actually know about the Backstreet Boys, because one of the first shows I ever went to was over at Sea World. No … wait … was it the Tupperware Convention Center [in Orlando], AJ? Holy cow.
AJ McLean: The Tupperware, yes. Over off of freakin’ OBT [Orange Blossom Trail].
Joey: I knew them before Brian [Littrell] and Kevin [Richardson] were in the group. I knew the Backstreet Boys before they were really the Backstreet Boys.
What were your first impressions of them?
Joey: “Why is everybody else doing this and I’m not doing that? That’s what I want to do.” I saw New Kids do it back in the day too. “Why am I not doing that?”
AJ, what’s your first memory of Joey?
AJ: Before I knew anybody else in the group, just from hanging around in the Orlando area, Joey was doing stuff at Universal, and I knew people at Universal, and we crossed paths quite a few times. I knew that he was a singer. But the first time I knew about ‘NSync as a whole was when Lou [Pearlman] and our previous manager, Johnny [Wright], had kind of signed them. We had heard that they were kind of similar to us, but we didn’t really know. We had been going already and we were just burnt out, fried … tour, tour, tour. And Disney came to us and they asked us to do a special of some sorts.
Joey: It was a concert special that they were doing with a lot of different artists that were doing performances around Universal. They were doing that a lot.
AJ: We basically said, “We’re tapped out, no, but thank you.” And the fellas [‘NSync] took our slot.
Joey: And we said, “Thank you.”
AJ: The rest is history. That changed things for them, kind of overnight really.
The boy-band lore is that the Backstreet Boys were initially less than thrilled that this new boy band was suddenly on the scene. Is that true?
AJ: No, it’s not “less than thrilled.” Look, there was always healthy competition. Period. But because there was no social media, because we all weren’t hanging out together … back then press was different. It was magazines. There was no online. So the press was basically depicting this theory that we were against each other, and that was never the case. And we never really had an opportunity, either group, to speak on it because everybody’s lives were going full speed. We did multiple shows with these guys. We did the Radio Music Awards, Billboard Awards.
Joey, is that how you saw it?
Joey: Yeah. A few of us always would talk and say hi to each other, but they always kind of … kept us away just to make it a competition to make us do better. We were like, “What could we do just to be above everybody?” It wasn’t like, “Oh, we need to beat them. We need to be better than them.” It was more like, “No, man, let’s try to do what we’re going to do, and we just want to be number one.” But when you get older, you start to realize, “That’s not even the main purpose of anything because if we all are able to go on the same thing, who cares if we’re number one or number two?”
AJ: Yeah.
Joey: When we finally got together, it was always like, “Do we have any animosity?” It’s like, “No.” They just kept us away from each other because of what was going on with the whole Lou thing, becoming a sixth member. They didn’t want us to talk to each other about what was going on behind the scenes with Pearlman.
AJ: Yeah, I think probably the only time that some of my boys were a little bit … was when Jive Records signed ‘NSync. We had the same label, same managers, same producers. It was like, “OK, now it’s a little too much. We can all coexist and we can all help each other, but now it’s like everyone’s doing the same thing.”
You guys both worked with Max Martin. Did you ever hear a song he gave the other group and think, “Damn, I wish we had that one?”
Joey: Well, you’ve heard an ‘NSync song, you’ve heard a Backstreet song, you’ve probably heard a Britney song. You’ve probably heard an Usher song. You’ve probably heard a Katy Perry song, a Celine Dion. There’s a lot of other ones that sound, around that time, very similar because you have “Larger Than Life.” You have “I Want You Back” and you had Britney’s “Oops! … I Did It Again.” And all those sounds and tones are very, very … they’re all Max Martin.
AJ: One of my all-time favorites from those guys is “Digital Get Down.” I just love the lyrics. I love the flow of this song. Who produced that?
Joey: What’s his face … David Nicoll. Do you remember him?
AJ: Yeah! There were songs of theirs that me, personally, I’m like, “Man, that would’ve been a great Backstreet record.” “Pop” was one of them. “Gone” too. It’s funny because “It’s Gotta Be You” and “It’s Gonna Be Me” were both like … You’re just changing one word. “It’s Gonna Be Me” is one of my favorite ‘NSync videos. I thought that was genius with the dolls.
Joey: Thank you, sir.
AJ: It was comparable to “Backstreet’s Back” where we did full makeup. But I really think “It’s Gonna Be Me” was ‘NSync’s “Backstreet’s Back,” video-wise.
Joey: We never had the bodies to do the rain stuff. That didn’t work for us.
AJ: You weren’t missing out on anything. Trust me.
Joey, what were your favorite Backstreet Boys songs?
Joey: “Quit Playing Games,” that’s my favorite song. It’s quite possibly my all-time favorite. The first time I heard it, I was like, “That’s a badass song. You sons of bitches, damn it.” And “Larger Than Life” is a great one too. When you take a song like that apart and deconstruct it or just listen to the harmony, you realize it’s just dope. You have got to give credit where it’s due.
How did you first get the idea for this collaborative tour?
Joey: It really started with my idea of having different guys from different groups. The idea of it came back way back when I did Dancing With the Stars. It was with Drew Lachey, Joey McIntyre, and Joey Lawrence. My whole idea was more of a Rat Pack feel.
AJ: That’s a lot of Joeys.
Joey: It was three Joeys and a Drew. So we wanted to have something like that, but it never took off the ground. I don’t think they understood my vision, but they liked the idea. I started doing this Joey Fatone and Friends show with different artists. The last thing that we came up with was myself, A.J., Wanyá Morris from Boyz II Men, and Nick Carter. It took a lot of convincing, but they were the only guys that went, “Yeah, OK, we’ll do it.”
But now that everybody sees it, they’re like, “Oh, my God, this is the frickin’ greatest thing ever.” I said, “It’d be fun if we sang each other’s song and then either poke fun at each other and then maybe we can do some new material. What about songs that you’ve never sang before and always wanted to sing?” So that’s how that became about. And I started doing shows with Dee Snider and Scott Stapp and all these people. But of course, what really worked was me and AJ.
AJ, how does it feel to sing ‘NSync songs? It’s gotta be weird, like seeing Mick Jagger do “Hey Jude” or something.
AJ: Well, I’ll take that compliment. Honestly, it’s really fun. It’s fresh because I have no shame in saying I am an ‘NSync fan. I’m a fan of good music, and they’ve got great songs, and they have an amazing catalog. So to get up there and to sing these songs with a member of that band, it’s just fuckin’ cool.
One of the other things that I love about this show is that we have a live band, so we can change the show from night to night. This show is just ever evolving. We’re going to sing each other’s songs and sing songs of other groups that we’re fans of that take you back, whether it’s Green Day or Nirvana. We just added Lady Gaga to the set. It is like a Vegas revue. It’s got a little bit of everything. It’s got comedy, it’s got heart, it’s got great music. It’s got a lot of great interaction with the audience.
Joey, how do you feel when you sing “Backstreet’s Back?” Is that a weird moment for you?
Joey: One time I yelled, “Give it up for ‘NSync!” at one of the shows. It automatically went to my brain out of nowhere. I’m used to hearing my guys sing the songs every night. To hear a different person sing those lines differently from what you’re used to, I like that. It’s a change of pace. I’m sure AJ hears Nick every night singing certain lines. He doesn’t often hear me sing one of his lines. So it’s different, and I think it’s a cool, fun take on it.
Are you guys doing choreography?
AJ: Yeah, there’s one or two songs that they have a staple dance move that the fans kind of want to see, whether it’s “Bye Bye Bye” or it’s “Backstreet’s Back.” So Joe and I will teach each other the moves, and we’ll throw it in there just for one chorus and the crowd goes nuts.
We did a show that was Joey, Nick, and Lance during Pride. Joey and Lance taught Nick and I the choruses to “Bye Bye Bye.” So the four of us did full-on choreography, and the audience went nuts. They were like, “Oh, my God, you guys know the moves?” It’s like, “We’ve known them for years — we’ve just never done them together live in a show.”
A ton of Nineties nostalgia conventions have popped up in recent years. What do you think is driving that?
Joey: What goes around comes around in a circle. It sounds funny to say that we’re kind of nostalgia. We are, but we’re not. We’re still working and still doing things, but our songs and our music, you got to be real. It’s over 20 years now, 30 years for some of our songs.
A lot of these women are now in their 30s, 40s. They have children; they want an outlet. They want something to experience. They want to relive their childhood. So this is something almost like giving thanks [to fans] for all the years that you’ve been supportive for us.
What have these conventions been like for you, AJ?
AJ: It’s one of my favorite things I’ve ever done. We’ve done meet-and-greets and it’s so fast-paced, you don’t really get to spend quality time with your amazing fans. And doing these Cons, you’re going at your own pace. So when you’re at your booth and the fans come up and they get an autograph and they get a photo, you could talk to one girl for 15 minutes if you want to.
You get to hear them tell you these great stories of why they’re fans and how they’re moms now, and they got their kids into it now, this whole new generation. It reminds you why you love what you do, and it just keeps you going.
Plus, Joey and I are both geeks. We take breaks during the Cons, and we’ll walk around and buy stuff. I’m a huge comic book nerd. So I’m getting comics, and then Funkos. My poor wife is just like, “I don’t understand.” I’m like, “You’re not supposed to understand. This is what I like.” There’s worse hobbies I could have. Comic books and Funkos and sneakers. Those are my vices.
The usual lifespan of a boy band is five years. The Backstreet Boys are now past 30 years. Have you guys defied gravity to keep this thing going?
AJ: It’s a testament to the fans. They have been so loyal, and they have kept by our side through thick and thin. We’ve had inner turmoil. We’ve had deaths in the family. We’ve had rehabs multiple times. We’ve had management dysfunctions and all these things. But we always go back to it’s about the music first, and then it’s about the fans. And for a group like us to be here coming up on 31 years this April, it’s never happened. And I don’t know if it’ll ever happen again.
Joey: The thing that really sets me and AJ apart from everybody else is we are performers. We love to perform onstage. Whatever it is, let’s go for it. Whether it be acting, whether it be singing. So I think that’s kind of why this works as far as us performing onstage.
Joey, when ‘NSync split, you were relatively young. It forced you to go out and really reinvent yourself.
Joey: Well, thank God it didn’t force me. I wanted to. It wasn’t like, “Oh damn, I’m out of a job. What have I got to do?” It was more or less, “Holy shit, these doors are opened. Let’s see if I can walk in. I may suck, but let’s find out.”
I always wanted to do Broadway. Right after ‘NSync, I did Rent on Broadway. I did Little Shop of Horrors on Broadway. And then when I did Dancing With the Stars, people saw my personality. People were like, “Oh, he’s not just a guy from ‘NSync. He’s actually a person that actually acts.” It was interesting the path that I had to go through, but it was amazing.
AJ: Joey’s got to fulfill a lot of dreams that have been on my plate since I was six years old. I’m a huge fan. I mean, I grew up in musical theater, so to be able to do Broadway someday is on my bucket list. To do a movie, on my bucket list. Joey’s done three My Big Fat Greek Weddings.
AJ, speaking solely as ‘NSync fan, are you hoping they tour one day with all five of them?
AJ: Honestly, I am. And there’s been so many talks. Even before Trolls and before them coming together again, there’s been so many years of talks of Backstreet and ‘NSync touring together and a stadium tour. I’m not trying to start a new rumor. But if Backstreet, ‘NSync, and Spice Girls did a tour together, the world would melt down.
There are no stadiums big enough for a tour like that.
AJ: What a great, almost like send-off moment that would be for everyone’s career. And it’s only for the fans, to say one big giant thank you for years and years of being loyal fans to all of us.
Joey, I know Justin is pretty busy with his own tour this year. But are you hopeful that maybe in 2025, 2026, or whenever, you guys might reunite for a tour?
Joey: Anything’s possible. Let’s be honest. I never thought that ‘NSync would get back together and even do a new song. Maybe to do a performance, but never a new song and have something on a Trolls album. It’s pretty crazy. It’s like when someone said, “Oh yeah, you’re on the charts.” I’m like, “Oh yeah, I guess I am.” It’s been a while.
AJ, is there talk of a new Backstreet Boys record? You guys had a legit hit on the last one.
AJ: We definitely have a lot of things coming up that are kind of on the QT, but definitely we are not done. We want to go back to Vegas at some point down the road. We would love to go back to do another residency, a little longer. We didn’t even expect the residency that we did to go two years. It was supposed to be nine shows, and it became 81 shows, the fastest-selling residency in Vegas history.
But 2024, we’re all taking a break. We’re doing a couple of one-offs. I just released my first single. I have my first EP coming out shortly, and then there will be even more music from me over the course of the summer and the end of the year, and then eventually touring on my own.
But being able to do my solo stuff in this show with Joey, it’s an honor, it’s a privilege, and I’m very grateful for it because I get to be myself even more so in a show like this. Joey and I are very much paralleled universe. We’re very much similar individuals in many facets of our life, onstage and offstage. We really complement one another. But there is definitely some really big things on the horizon for Backstreet.
The Beach Boys are still touring in their 80s. There’s no reason you can’t do the same thing.
AJ: Kevin said that we would love to be the Rolling Stones of pop. I mean, crap, we’re coming up on 31 years. Before you know it, we’re going to blink our eyes, and it’ll be 40 years. I don’t think we’ll be dancing at 40 years, just so you know.
Joey: I think Kevin is going to look exactly the same. I think he drank vampire’s blood. He’ll look exactly the same, and have hair.
AJ: I’m very jealous of that, by the way.
Joey: We’re all jealous.
People are never going to stop wanting to hear you guys sing these songs.
Joey: I’m going to be 90 in Vegas going [sings “I Want You Back” in an old man’s voice], “You’re the one that I want/You’re the one that I need.”
AJ: You do it until you can’t or you do it until you don’t love it anymore. That’s it. And we will forever love what we do because we bring joy to people that you’ll never know on a personal level necessarily, but for 90 minutes to two hours a night, you get to go on a journey with these amazing fans and let them relive their childhood or inspire them.
So is this tour the final bit of evidence that any Backstreet/’NSync feud, real or imagined, is 100 percent over?
Joey: I don’t think there’s been any animosity since 1997. Chris and AJ had a thing, but that was because of a girl.
AJ: We dated the same girl two years apart, and that was it. Now we’re the best of friends. We have so much in common. He’s a dad. I’m a dad. He’s married. We’re boys now.
There’s been a lot of debate over which group was bigger. What’s your take?
Joey: I mean, there’s no competition. We are. We’re the biggest group ever.
AJ: Clearly, 30 years says everything. I mean, come on.
Joey: Here’s what I think about both. It’s a test of time to talk about Backstreet. They’re the longest, I guess, boy band, that have ever done that in longevity, and I’m sure they’re going to keep doing it, which I commend them for. And then you’ve got us, where one of our guys made it big and is doing his own thing, but now we’re all kind of slowly thinking of what we can do now that this Trolls thing has taken off. It’s a possibility now.
Every year that passes, the demand for an ‘NSync tour just grows. It’ll be such a big deal when it happens.
Joey: I don’t know if I want to be there for it. I’m nervous.
AJ: I’ll be front row, man. It’s going to be really hard for me not to want to jump onstage and sing all your songs.