If loving the Backstreet Boys and New Kids on the Block is wrong, many crowds don’t want to be right. That seems the best way to explain the enthusiasm of the mainly female crowds that have begun to jam arenas to see the two boy bands that are now all grown up.
“I always say we are entertainers,” said Howie Dorough of the Backstreet Boys. “We have been tied up with this band for many years and are proud to put on … quality shows for families of all ages. … People like to live in the moment and also live in certain songs and memories.”
| Onstage |
| NKOTBSB |
| When: 7:30 p.m. Friday |
| Where: Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW |
| Info: $40 to $110; 202-397-SEAT; ticketmaster.com |
Although the bands broke out in the 1980s and 1990s, respectively, that doesn’t mean they rely on old-school members to reach fans. They used social media to allow fans to choose the songs they wanted to hear in concert and on their joint recording. Dorough makes it clear that while they are happy to play the old favorites, the new music has progressed with the times.
“The subject matter we are talking about, whether in interviews or songs, had definitely grown and naturally progressed,” he said. “We don’t want anything to be too forced. We do what comes naturally.”
Apparently, so do their fans. There has been plenty of speculation that many fans — now in their 30s — would introduce the NKOTBSB to their kids. Some expected a bit of a low-key nostalgia fest.
Recent concert reviews report that couldn’t be further from the truth.
“It wasn’t so much squealing as constant, loud screaming. People 30 rows back would constantly yell the name of their favorite Kid or Boy, just trying to get a look,” wrote Marah Eakan for A.V. Club of Chicago in a review of the May 25 show at Allstate Arena in Rosemont, Ill. “A woman, there with her 5-year-old son, brought a whistle that she blew, constantly, like a track coach. There were neon poster-board signs. There were people clearly angling to get backstage. There were a lot of custom-made shirts, and there were hardly any men there.”
Although some of the bands’ members have made headlines through the years, they’ve settled down into adulthood themselves. That’s something that will be reflected in the shows, said Dorough.
“I have always lived the motto if I’m publicized, I want my mom and my family to be OK with it,” he said. “My mom taught me to be good to others. I live a normal life. We’ve never been crazy rock/pop stars searching for attention. I am myself, in my own skin.”
