Lou Pearlman

Judge Conway: "I don't see any reason as to why the defendants can't go forward. There are just too many questions of fact as to Mr. Pearlman and his dealings with them."

Let's not waste time on this. With infamous quotes from him and his team(TransContinental Records)such as "there are going to be boybands around as long as there are young girls who want to look at great-looking guys" and "If this means 'N Sync will cease to exist, there's another group right behind them," it's a wonder how respected people in the industry can still look at him in any sort of positive light. I don't wanna think of any human being as undeserving of their success, but when I look at Pearlman it's like, "You know what, just shut up." He played games with *NSYNC's career and health, and to this day he continues to give great meaning to the oh-so-suitable name of "unscrupulous, greedy businessman." His control and unconscientiousness were subtle, to be sure, but now that it's out in the open I'm amazed as to why the industry and some of us fans still allow, even promote, his doings?

O-Town comes to mind. For Chrissakes his actions and hypocrisy are portrayed on TV, yet for some reason people are accepting this and even cheering it on(Image of a girl screaming "I LOVE YOU!" to a member she don't even know the name of comes to mind)...could Pearlman actually be right to a degree? That it doesn't matter the quality of a band, but only the marketting, the hype, and the sex appeal? A few times I get a little uncomfortable thinking about that(But then I go and listen to "I Thought She Knew" and that feeling goes away:)).

Don't know the specifics of the infamous lawsuit? For a comprehensive outside look at the events of thus, go to http://come.to/nsyncguide and look under "Scrapbook," then scroll down to where it contains an almost daily update of articles concerning the trial details. It's fairly unbiased except for areas in which Lou is obviously in the wrong(Which are many...incidentally, of course).

Just so you know, my first instinct is to trust this man, and I do. He seems okay and not too self-serving. But the following is just me and my paranoid self voicing my paranoia.

Johnny's their manager, isn't he? Then why would he let them get into that kind of a mess in the first place? Why didn't he give them further warning about the legalities of their contracts? It's not like he wouldn't have been able to see it coming. What kind of business is he running if he'll just let his clients go blindly down a dark alley like that?

The bottom line is that when it comes down to it, Johnny also has a lot to do with the manufacturing of their boyband identities. He managed both Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears. Yes, they and *NSYNC form the chart-topping triumvirate, but at what price? Their true identities? They were very obviously placed in certain "typecasts" to start their careers and even today function under those to a degree.

The guys say they have full control over their careers, but in the end don't they still have to answer to their manager? I know I'm being this huge tight*** about it and most probably I'm just filling my own head full of crap...but as Justin says, "It's a screwball business and there are a lot of players who will straight-up lie to you." Still, with all my skepticism aside, Mr. Wright has proven many, many times to be a loyal friend to *NSYNC and to my knowledge never faltered before in his support of them. If anything else I have faith in the man. But sometimes I just get the impression that he is first and foremost a businessman...and to a businessman, business first.

You know, I used to tolerate teenies. Now I can't stand them. At all. I'm not talking about crazed fans, 'cause God knows most *NSYNC fans are crazed anyway(Like me), I'm talking about no respect, wild teenies who bring a bad name to other fans and make it so *NSYNC has to fit into their versions of "perfection."

I wasn't totally against them 'cause they contribute a lot to the phenomenon that *NSYNC has become. But they are basically what most people think of when they think of *NSYNC fans; The screaming, crying, half-clad, out-of-control teenage girls that grace *NSYNC's fan universe. I'm not saying that I won't scream insanely or go out-of-control if I were to go to a concert, but they keep people from viewing *NSYNC fans and *NSYNC themselves in a broader and more respectful light, and I do not want to be stereotyped like that(Even if as I guy I'm automatically stereotyped as unable to be a fan anyway, that's a whole other issue). I mean, there is a time, place, and borderline for that.

And they contribute, partly, to *NSYNC having to fit into certain stereotypes themselves. Most grow out of teenybopperism. Unfortunately, they grow out of *NSYNC as well. It's a give-and-take; If there weren't teenyboppers to make *NSYNC what they are today, there is a small(small, small, small, small, miniscule, insignificant, minute, indefinite, unnoteworthy, small)chance that I would never have known of them(But a chance that I'm not willing to take!). On the other hand, they take so much away from *NSYNC's credibility. Sad.

I feel very strong about these topics. Too often have I heard of *NSYNC treated inhumanely, rudely, or immaturely purely because they are celebrities. I'm against rumors, tabloids, the works. I'm against people who treat the guys of *NSYNC as icons to be broken down like they have no feelings. I'm especially against false fans, ie fanatics, stalkers, people who are in it only for the looks or only because they are currently "in," people who like one member and dislike the rest, people who constantly change their favorites. Just because they are celebrities doesn't mean they are immune to what we do. As one site said so clearly and perfectly, they signed a contract to do what they love and share that love with us, not to give up their humanity and privacy for the media and the critics and even the fans to go all out on and be blowhards to them. Yes, they do have the right to be pissed. If you don't understand what I'm about and actually need for me to explain further about this, then you obviously won't understand anyway.

People who know what I'm saying and totally agree with my words should check out the links on my RESPECTFUL causes page and cliques page.

I'm very not amused by Wade. I don't know why. Okay, so I do know why, but I really don't know how to say it without sounding hypocritical:(...It's not like I just suddenly thought of this, this has been going on in my mind for a while now and after looking at recent articles I just decided to get this off my chest, because insofar as my site goes I have never really talked about Wade. Okay, I'm going to be uncharacteristic for a bit and basically just list off the reasons, okay?

1. He's a hard@$$. That's the impression he gives me and that he himself doesn't deny. If not hard@$$ then at least he's very stoic. I don't jive well at all with hard@$$ types, despite knowing that at heart they are not bad people. I dunno, that's just the way I am, growing up the way I did, I don't like being near them and I don't like hearing about them. I don't remember ever seeing him laugh.

2. He seems(emphasis on seems)ungrateful. He talks about all these things he has done and how he's worked with all these celebrities...I've never seen him like, actually thank people. Talent he may have, prodigy he may be, he's nowhere if the business no one hires him, what's more he's nowhere in life if no one likes him. Which brings me to my third point:

3. Does it seem to anyone else like he has an ego(>_<)? In every interview he seems to feel the need to bring up just how much he is respected. I don't know...respect, yes I do have that for him. Admiration? That's another story. He practically said that he single-handedly staged the entire PopOdyssey tour. Eh...I have a large quota of patience for huge egos, but dude. You are not *NSYNC. They don't work for you. You work for them and the fans.

All in all I just don't know if he deserves the...glitter?...that's being applied to his every name. I know Wade is talented. He's amazing. If he can get *NSYNC to keep on doing that thing they do then why the heck do I care if he works for them:)? At his age(About a year from mine, give or take)to have done all that, I wouldn't friggin' blame him at all if he did have an ego. Heck I'd cut him some slack if I thought that was true. But to be realistic and somewhat existentialist fame doesn't cause you to become the way you are, you do. If Wade acts that way then that's just the way he is, and I'm not down with that. Especially since he could hardly be considered a celebrity in the first place...

Now folks, I'm not stupid. I realize that for all it's worth these points could very well be my own little musings. I know I'm biasing. I know I'm stereotyping. I know very well that if *NSYNC didn't like him at least as a friend then as a colleague, they wouldn't hire him and they wouldn't write songs with him. I know that I'm going off of hearsay and judging him without knowing him personally. I know I'm being as unforgiving as the people who look down on Bobbie simply for being her.

So I ask you to prove me wrong:). If you think you can say something to me that will improve my regards for Wade, then by all means do so! Here is my e-mail, I look forward to you guys changing my mind for the better.

"A lot of real young people out there are being spoon-fed garbage," says Richard Patrick, leader of aggro-rock band Filter. "Thank God that Korn and Rage Against the Machine are still kicking. I don't trust anyone who doesn't write their own songs. I think kids will want something real next, someone who writes, produces and sings. When we make music, it's our baby. That's what's missing in this corporate teen stuff. They take some kid from the Mickey Mouse Show, teach her to dance a little, add a little hip-hop beat and have a hit. By the time she's 25, she's going straight downhill freaked out on too much Xanax. Excuse me, is this music? No. It's pretty, but it's tinfoil, not platinum. It has no substance."

This is concerning Tim Commerfield's "climb" at the VMAs...As to what Commerford's motivation was, though others attributed it to his champagne consumption prior to the show, Moore thought the bass player was "just bored," citing his increasing agitation with some aspects of the show, especially Britney Spears' cover of "(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction," Sisqo's win for "The Thong Song" and the army-like procession of Eminem lookalikes. "In America, we reward the mediocre," Moore said, quoting Kurt Vonnegut. "The more you're like 'N Sync, the faster and higher you'll climb. Rock & roll used to be about playing music that stood for something. Now it's background music for Burger King and McDonald's commercials. I think the bass player of this band is against really bad MTV props."

"There's no future," Cooper says of pop's kid stuff, pointing to waning interest in still-young Hanson and the Spice Girls. "They have no legitimacy. They try, but it's hopeless."

Ah, so that's what you think, eh? Well, I think you should shut up, but hey.

I'm so tired of constantly hearing about how *NSYNC aren't true musicians or they're just an act. Yeah, they haven't screwed a blow-up doll or induced rapes at their concerts or removed a rib bone to use as a drum yet, but hey, give them time(Note tone of extreme sarcasm). You wanna talk about freaking out on Xanax? Show me an angry rocker who hasn't had some twenty pounds of cocaine in his system at some point.

As much as I enjoy the true music that *NSYNC creates(True music, rooted deep in the origins of what music is supposed to be...you know, with actual chords and melodies and harmonies and musical concepts?), more than that they are role models to me. I can say to myself, "What would *NSYNC do?" without any sort of cynical tone. Rob Thomas and Fred Durst are cool and all, and they're both people I respect, but Rob can get a little scary(Sorry!)and Fred is a freak on a leash(Korn's song, I know, but hey). As musicians we may appreciate their work but as serious role models for young, impressionable guys?...maybe.

There is infinite truth to the idea that there are many bubblegum acts who are fake marketing tools, but I have faith in the few acts that are real and driven by love for true music. Consider this...

Johnny Wright: "Britney and 'N Sync have proven they're not one-album sensations. A key factor is growth. Britney's showing a little edge and more grown-up themes. On the third album, we'll step it up a bit. In the past, you saw an act develop an audience based on a specific sound and image, and on the next album they do a 360 to try to expand their audience. The audience they have feels alienated. Our main focus is to never forget who our true fans are. With that loyal core, we could be around forever."

So my advice to those who scoff at *NSYNC legitimacy: You might wanna stop whining long enough to think about your own images, 'cause you're right, there are going to be those who stick around and those who fade away. Guess who I'm rooting for.

I'm basically with the artists on this one...There is no convincing argument that Napster is not illegal or really helps record sales significantly. Ulrich may have a crappy way of saying it, but he's right. It's a black industry, giving people free stuff that others worked hard on. It's a blasphemy against the music industry and musicians that people could just go on and take their work. Because as much as they love it, it's still work that they expect to get paid for.

So what's the problem? I actually like using Napster.

No I mean, I use it a lot. I love Napster. It's very easy to use and it's convenient and it gives me access to great things. I confess that I would feel real annoyed and betrayed if they suddenly decided to shut it down. I mean, isn't that taking it a bit too far...? Isn't there some way to make it so Napster becomes commercial?

What does annoy me is when people go, "Oh, Lars is stupid 'cause he's taking away our Napster! He's got enough money already, go bug someone else!" It's not as cut-and-dry as that, and I hate it when people can only look at one side of the issue(The side that conveniences them the most).

What I personally feel is the best thing to happen to television. It's not for everyone, but I still urge people to watch it. Sarah Michelle Gellar...words cannot describe. Oh yeah, and Angel's cool too. One complaint I do have, though, is that a lot of Buffy "fans" seem to spend a lot of time tearing up the show. I mean yeah, it's just a TV show, not real, and obviously not catered to everyone's liking, but I don't see how someone can be a fan of something if all they do is complain about how that something doesn't meet their standards of perfection.

I talk exclusively about the WB 'cause it's considered the teen network, and I'm a teen.

I'll admit, sometimes the WB network gets so full of itself I just wanna smack it across the face and shout, "Dudes! You're not as cool as you think you are!" But then I remember that that's basically the case for television in general, and I like it again, mostly because it brings me Buffy, but hey...

A quick rundown of WB shows: I generally like all their supernatural/Sci-Fi shows like Roswell and Charmed, though I think Charmed could do with a little more energy(I know I'm gonna be dissed so bad for sayin' this, but right now it's just like episode after episode of chicktalk), and Roswell's also lacking some various degrees of whupp@$$. I watch these two shows, but can't really be considered a fan, I guess.

7th Heaven...I guess I'm supposed to like it; After all you're talking to the guy who freakin' cried watching Touched by an Angel(I will not ever elucidate on this, don't ask me to X_X). Well, I do like it and wouldn't mind watching episodes of it. But, ultimately...the kids are idiots and the adults are psychotic. It feels dumbed down. Some of it is just downright ridiculous. Most of you saw that episode where Lance guest-starred...remember that situation with Simon and the cigarettes? It's like, "Uh, yeah, um, I'm like doing an experiment on like how pressured kids are to like to do things like smoke if they're like not allowed to or something, so I guess I'll just like smoke some myself." SMACK!!!

Though I have to give it props for trying and mostly succeeding to be a positive and likeable family drama(We have too few of those nowadays).

Dawson's Creek and Young Americans: Okay most of you already know what I think of this, but seeing as it introduced me to the world of Katie Holmes the least I can do is to give the new season a shot. Young Americans, blah. Tell me when it becomes a little less blatantly sex-advertized.

Felicity: I never really watched it in the beginning and even less today, only when it seemed that the Pink Ranger was gonna have an important role(I am evil!), but it seems okay, and the episodes I saw were really funny. Like any other show that you don't regularly watch, though, it loses you in the storylines often, and you never really get down to enjoying it.

Sabrina the Teenage Witch: I used to think Melissa Joan Hart's really funny, but for some reason now I don't. I think she's trying a tad too much for attention.

I think MTV might be one of the most cynical and hypocritical networks in contemporary television. I mean, I love it and watch it a lot, but lately I've looked at it, its news crew, even some of its shows as just phony. Mostly how it can't seem to make up its mind about who to support or what to promote. I'm sure some of those guys really do like *NSYNC, but really, for the most part the network just looks at bands like *NSYNC as sensationalism, a good story to report, a good hype to ride on. Usually that's not a bad thing, as their promotion helped *NSYNC's sales tremendously, and I'm not saying that those producers have any malicious intent towards its musicians. But it makes you wonder.

You think those guys really like controversial rappers so much as to promote them like they do? Yeah right! It's a contest for them to get the biggest ratings and win the largest crowd support. It's sensational. It lowers my respect for them about a ton. But I love MTV anyways, it's the weak-willed individual that I am.

I honestly believe that if people watched more Free Willy, our world would be a much better place.

I'm also very much into Japanese Anime. Now, I don't especially recommend it to people in the states, 'cause DiC and other such companies did a flat-out horrible job at their translations and casting of the voices. Cool stuff like Gundam Wing now sound like Relina's twenty-five or something, even if the actress herself isn't that bad or totally at fault. "Amara" and "Michelle," originally Haruka and Michiru, lesbian couples extraordinaire from Sailor Moon, have been changed into being cousins. Oh, the perils of Teletubby censorship; They show stuff like Dragonball Z totally unedited, which is basically a half hour of pure violence and the action of chopping people in half with energy blades and shooting lasers through their hearts. Then for issues relating to homosexuality they splice it until it becomes something very much like incest, which apparently is more suitable for children to see. And no, even in the original they never did anything sexual, so there was really no point...What's wrong with America? Not that I have anything against Dragonball or America or animated violence in general, mind you. I mean, my favorite anime of all time is Saint Seiya, the granddaddy of all animated bloodletting. But yeah, I do realize that none of my viewers know what I'm talking about, so I'll just stop...

I don't know why smoking isn't illegal. I seriously don't.

For those of you who don't agree with me, I assume that none of you have ever been woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of your own father hacking out his lungs and puking in the bathroom.

What's weird is that I usually have no problem with jokes about drugs and stuff, even ill-humored ones. Well, sure, if it's the only thing you can think of to mention about JC on your site then it gets annoying, but generally my tight***edness concerning jokes about this junk is fairly limited.

Back to seriousness, I have very close to no sympathy at all for people who decide to use drugs these days. Yeah, back in the 60s and 70s they didn't quite understand the risks of it, but in this day and age...I mean, take smoking for example: Peer pressure my ***. To refrain from smoking is not a hard choice to make at all, peers or not. Peer pressure is one of the freaked up and overrated thing in the world. People tell me, "Oh I know it's bad, but it don't matter. I do it 'cause I want to." Right...well, least that's a better excuse than saying "I did it 'cause so-and-so was doing it."
I support DARE and DATE and all those programs to the end, but sometimes I wonder if they've got the right message themselves. MTV mentioned this just a bit...as with the case with a lot of other teen issues(Early sex, drinking & driving, etc.), they're basically basing their entire campaign off of fear, and to me teenagers are kinda, well, immune to fear. It's like, "Don't do this! It's gonna kill you!" Yeah, well, eating a carrot the wrong way is gonna kill me too. In my oh-so-limited opinion, we shoulda had something like TRUTH a long time ago, something that just straight-up gave you the da** facts. Yeah, the bodybags commercials are a little rude for me, but really, who's gonna go and argue with them or their sentiments?

I'm a treehugger, basically. But as of now I haven't really done anything extremely ohmygoshI'mcool for the protection of our earth except maybe recycling a lot.

I'm not an atheist, but I don't have any set religion that I follow. I'm kinda like a wannabe-Christian:P; I want to believe in God but can't find room in my life to have faith in Him...I've read passages of The Bible, and it basically claims that Man should subordinate himself in all ways to his formidable Lord, who shalt inspire awe and fear in his sinful children. Hardly the caring and loving teachings that I thought I would find. The fact is that more people have been killed in the name of God than for anything else.

But what the Bible teaches more than anything else is to have faith, in yourself and in a higher power that will protect you. That I admire and wish I could have.

What I do believe is that there was a real-life person named Jesus of Nazareth who enlightened countless people's lives and changed western civilization as we know it, and that because some of us happen to be stupid he was forced(though arguably willingly)unto death. Was he divine? A Messiah? I wish I could say that I believe so, but the only thing I can offer is a hesitant "maybe."

Gosh she irritates me. She reminds me so much of this public speaking teacher I used to have who I hated so much because she was so openly rude to everyone. Ma'am, if you're gonna go around thinking you have the right to decide other people's lives, you can at the very least be polite about it.

My favorite superhero, in the upcoming movie he's gonna be played by Tobey Maguire, which I'm actually glad about. But they're gonna make his web-shooters organic, which I'm absolutely against. There's alteration of details for the sake of the times and efficiency, and then there's this: Blatant and intentional tainting of a trademark issue for a trivial and pointless end. It don't matter that Stan Lee himself okayed it...It'll never rest easy in my head.

Okay, I didn't think much of this book series when it first started either, but it grew so much on me. Yeah I know it's supposed to be for younger readers, but the author herself stated that she doesn't write these series with the limits of age in her mind(Think Harry Potter). Take my advice for and don't watch the TV show on Nickelodeon beforehand...it's not horrible but it doesn't come close to comparing with the original book series.

Arguably the most popular RPG video game series in history, and definitely one of the best, it revolutionalized game-playing and graphic designs in general. It was my one of my very, very first conscious obsessions.

I know I talked(ranted, cursed, raved)about my dislikes about other sites in my "What I don't like about other sites" page, but really it doesn't take that much for a webpage to please me, and most of my opinions wouldn't apply with other people anyway, as they are mine. But you know, I guess that if you've received, like, ten or more hatemails towards your site, you might wanna take things into account just a bit. And I'm not talking about stupid hatemail, like from jack@$$es who decide to make clear their jack@$$edness to the world(You know what I'm sayin'). If there are lots of people actually writing you their serious and honest disapprovals about your site, the least you can do is to hear them out a bit.

Despite all the hypocrisy and shallowness I know I display, I must mention that I am very firmly against the idea that "if you have nothing good to say, just don't say it at all." If everyone was expected to just shut up if they had something in the least contrary to say, we might as well just devolve back into McCarthyism or for all the world cares. But I'm just sayin', there no such thing as a good "hate site." In retrospect that should be obvious, but it's amazing how often we forget that; Though both are admirable, tolerance and respect are not the same things. Tolerance is a compromise, a kinda lazy way of saying, "You do your thing, I'll do mine, isssaaaaallll good." Respect constitutes actually understanding about the matter and giving it due attention to both sides of said matter. I choose to respect.

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