MUSIK ENCYCLOPEDIA

The Backstreet BoysSingers
Born: 1993
Birthplace: Orlando, Florida
Best known as: The pop singers of "All I Have to Give" and "I Want It That Way"
The Backstreet Boys' self-titled debut album won them a 1998 Grammy as the year's best new artists. They quickly became one of the hottest pop groups of the late 1990s. The quintet's members were Alexander "A.J." McLean (b. 9 January 1978), Brian Littrell (b. 20 February 1975), Howard "Howie D." Dorough (b. 22 August 1973), Kevin Richardson (b. 3 October 1972), and Nick Carter (b. 28 January 1980). In their early days the Backstreets were especially popular with young girls and were rivals to a similar teen group,'N Sync. In 2001 the band announced delayed a world tour while McLean entered a New York clinic for treatment of depression and alcohol abuse. McLean came back, and in later years the band continued to tour with a more grown-up sound. Their albums include Millennium (1999), Black and Blue (2000), and Never Gone (2005).
Extra credit: Carter's younger brother Aaron Carter has performed with the band and became a pop star in his own right... Aspiring model Angel Carter is Nick's younger sister and Aaron's twin.










April 1993: Tates Creek High junior Brian Littrell joins cousin Kevin Richardson and singers Nick Carter, A.J. McLean and Howie Dorough to form Backstreet Boys, an Orlando-based group that got its name from a local teen hangout called the Backstreet Market.
1994: Backstreet Boys sign a recording contract with Jive Records.
October 1995: We've Got It Goin' On, the band's first single, is released in England and the United States. It peaks at No. 69 in the United States, No. 54 in the United Kingdom and No. 1 in Germany.
September 1996: Backstreet Boys, the group's first album, is released in England and peaks at No. 12, selling millions. The band develops a fervent European following.
June 1997: Quit Playin' Games (With My Heart), the group's first U.S. hit single, is released. It peaks at No. 2.
August 1997: The group releases its second album, Backstreet's Back, in the United Kingdom and a debut album in the United States, Backstreet Boys, that includes hits from the European debut plus material from Backstreet's Back. It becomes the third-best-selling album of 1998 and has sold 8.8 million copies.
May 1998: Brian undergoes successful open-heart surgery for a congenital hole in his heart.
May 1999: Backstreet Boys' second U.S. CD, Millennium, sets a first-week sales record: 1.1 million copies. It's sold 6.8 million copies in the U.S.
Aug. 14: Backstreet Boys sell out all dates on their North American tour in one day, including a Nov. 26 show at Rupp Arena.
Sept. 25: The group sells out an added-on Nov. 27 concert at Rupp in 24 minutes, breaking the old sell-out record of 31 minutes, set by Garth Brooks in April 1998