Yeah, so I know why I like *NSYNC...but that doesn't say a lot for the mass majority of other guys who, for some reason, don't.
A visiter wrote in my guestbook, "i have this crazy theory that every guy on the planet either likes *nsync, likes *nsync a lot (u apparently, lol), likes *nsync but doesn't want to tell anyone, or religiously worships *nsync secretly." Lol:) Thanks for your insight, Simone, you're actually quite right in your concepts.
There are a lot of guys who like *NSYNC and other boygroups more than they'd like to let on. My older brother, for one, sings right along with the Backstreet Boys(X_X Imagine living in my household). But he will never, ever, for the life of him go out and say directly that he likes them(He doesn't, really...he just doesn't dislike them)and will never go out of his way to support them.
Most other guys just refuse to let themselves enjoy *NSYNC. One guy in my school's Men's Ensemble, of which I was a part of sophomore year, heard me humming "God Must Have Spent..." and he got this incredulous look on his face. He was all, "Dude, you're not singing *NSYNC, are you?" I was a little surprised, I mean, why shouldn't I be listening to *NSYNC? And for that matter, why shouldn't he be listening? He takes dance class. He sings just as much as I do. He's a cool guy, doesn't smoke or whatever. Yet he will never admit that what he does isn't all that far from *NSYNC themselves.
*NSYNC isn't just a girls-only type of group. For all their female-oriented marketing, they have a sound and demeanor that stretches across all boundaries. Many guys have admitted to liking them...but why is it that the mass majority of guys refuse to let themselves in on the phenomenon that is *NSYNC? I, as an insider, will now answer this question as painfully direct as possible.
It's gay.
Don't try and deny that you know exactly what I'm talking about. I mean absolutely no disrespect at all towards homosexuals or the guys of *NSYNC, but there's no other way around saying it like this: In our time, in our situation, with the hype of *NSYNC as it is, the idea of guys listening to a bunch of prettyboys singing about love is totally not masculine. It's a gay concept.
And I'm sorry I have to put it this way, too, but bear with me: In our current era, one of the most degrading things you can say to a heterosexual male is to call him gay. It's not an assumption, but a fact. And if a guy says that he likes *NSYNC, he makes himself an easy, easy target for these kinds of barbs.
Take an example: Myself. What was the first thing I told you folks about me, when you first came onto my site? It's part of my freakin' opening intro; I specifically and clearly stated that I was straight. Because if I don't, what would you automatically assume about a guy who worships *NSYNC? It's okay, we know what you're thinking.
When a girl goes and says she likes *NSYNC, the worst someone can say of her is that she's a teenybopper(...Okay yeah, that would be pretty harsh anyway:P), but no one's saying that she shouldn't be. And because people assume that *NSYNC fans are always girls, guys who support *NSYNC are posted as feminine(Not saying that gay people are necessarily feminine, just tryin' to draw a comparison here). For most guys, feminine is not an okay concept. That's why most guys won't even allow themselves to like *NSYNC. They shut it off, paint other stereotypes about *NSYNC, treat the concept of *NSYNC as an enemy figure, which leads to going out of our ways to not like them.
Because *NSYNC is so hugely cool and popular, girls would assume this behavior can be blamed on simple jealousy(Actually, for me that's kinda true;D Hey c'mon! If you were me you'd be jealous of *NSYNC too), but really it's beyond that, going into cultural psychology.
So what? Does that mean that all guys are secretly appreciative of the music and image etc. that appears in boy groups but don't wanna admit it? Well, as much as I'd like to think that, most likely it's not true. *NSYNC has universal appeal, yes, but for some people it just ain't their thing. Just as many girls don't like *NSYNC(I wouldn't know how to explain this...:P), people in general have their own tastes in music.
But I can say with almost 100% certainty that there are many guys who miss out on the pop phenomenons of our time merely because of the cultural biases we place on them. Many more are afraid to "come out of the closet."(You know what I mean!) No one's to blame, really, but the situation has to be acknowledged.
I don't expect the situation to change anytime soon, either. It's not something that happens overnight. It is something that can happen. The first thing people need is to be informed of it. Yeah, guys can like pop music. Sure, it's gay. And yep, at some point we need to stop caring.