Source: Toronto Sun, Sunday, January 11th, 1998, Comment Section, Page 13.

"Ever-buddddy (dooo, doo) ... Ever-buddddy (dooo, doo) Back--street's--back--c'mon!"

--The deadly mantra that's been going through my head since I took my eight-year-old son to see the Backstreet Boys.

And I can just hear Michael now, rolling his eyes and saying, "Dad, that's not the way it goes!"

Planted on chairs like guests on Oprah, facing a studio full of screaming kids and thousands more just outside the window, the Backstreet Boys held court midway through their MuchMusic Intimate & Interactive special last week.

Nick! A.J! Kevin! Howie! um, uh ... Jordan, Danny, Sleepy ... uh ...

They'd danced, fooled around and sang, and made their way outside to acknowledge the colder fans. And now that they were taking a breather, the fans were returning the favor--girls coming up (hand-picked by Master T), desperate for official approval, demonstrating dance moves to their favorite songs from the Boys' eponymous debut and the recent platinum Backstreet's Back.

"Um, I wanna ask the guys what they'd be if they weren't Backstreet Boys," said one sweet young fan. Kevin (or was it Brian?) went on to say something about acting or performing or something.

"I think he'd be a Power Ranger," snacked somebody behind me in the old folks' section, just out of camera range.

The old folks' section. Who could have conceived of such a thing? It's no coincidence that I saw my first concert--Alice Cooper--at 13, the age at which I was considered old enough to take the bus to the other end of Winnipeg at night. Having my parents drive me around would have involved my explaining who I was seeing and probably showing them a picture of Alice. And then it would have been game over.

But parents chauffeuring their kids was the big story of Backstreet mania. There was even that special section of the SkyDome where they let the codgers sip coffee while their kids hyperventilated down on the floor.

How old is old? CITY/Much babe/entertainment specialist Tracey Melchor, 27, brought her niece to the Intimate & Interactive ("I wish I had an aunt like me when I was a kid," she said). We were in agreement that the music wasn't half-bad and, as she said, "At least none of them is a Satanist."

BACKSTREET BOYS ... They're big with both girls and boys. As we talked, I had one eye on Michael and his pal Kyle as A.J (or was it Nick?) slapped Kyle's palm. They had deer-in-the-headlights looks on their faces from being so close to their heroes.

And that's one of the overlooked stories of Backstreet-mania--the fact that the Backstreet Boys have boy fans. They're not into it for puppy love, but for the coolness factor. They're not as demonstrative as the girls, and so are less likely to end up on camera. (Case in point: Amid the paroxysms of screaming, I only ever saw one girl actually sobbing-- she was screaming "A.J! A.J!" over and over as tears streamed down her cheeks. But this same girl was in every other camera shot and ended up on the front page of this paper.)

But when you hear a bunch of eight- and nine-year-old boys in your house singing, "If you want it good girl, get yourself a (beat) BAD boy!" you know they're serious fans. They don't have a clue what the words might mean, they just like the way they sound--kind of like when I was 11 and walked around singing, "I gotta do it to a duck on a two-ton truck ..." (from the Guess Who song Friends of Mine).

But everything ends--even your first concert. The Backstreet Boys slipped out the back, natch. Ambulances hauled off eight fainting girls. And Michael and Kyle exited with me, stopping only to be introduced to station boss/avatar Moses Znaimer.

"So guys, how does it feel to be at the center of the universe?" a cheerful Moses asked, enigmatic even with kids.

Kyle shrugged his shoulders and said, "I dunno."

Me neither.

Source: by Maureen Callahan, SPIN

IN BED WITH...BACKSTREET BOYS

Say "wassup" to the new kids on the block: 1998 song-and-dance pinups the Backstreet Boys. Their young fans absolutely adore them, but, Maureen Callahan wonders, is the feeling entirely mutual? TIFFANY IS, LIKE, SHAKING. SHE HAS JUST SMELLED A BACKSTREET BOY. "He was wearing cologne!" she shrieks, as she pogos outside Disney World's House of Blues. The venue itself, where the Backstreet Boys will later perform to a sellout crowd whose average age is 12, is more than apt: An antiseptic franchise inspired by similarly successful ventures, it's practically a metaphor for the Boys themselves. But to the girls who swarm around Tiffany on this bright Florida afternoon, Backstreet inspire nothing less than reverence. "I was close to Nick once," says a solemn 15-year-old named Jana. "But I was so shocked I couldn't say anything."

Having borrowed liberally not just from now-defunct, sexually nonthreatening Euro boy bands such as Take That and East 17 but also from the American daddy of them all-New Kids on the Block-the Backstreet Boys have emerged as the teenybopper band of the moment. "I've tried everything to meet them," says a shy, chubby fan named Katie, who would really rather worship from afar; she's happy to sit with her copy of Hangin' With the Backstreet Boys: An Unauthorized Biography, and reread factoids about Nick. "We have a lot in common," she says, readjusting her wire-rimmed glasses. "We both like to play Nintendo, and we both like sports, and...ooooh, he's fine!"

Eighteen-year-old Nick Carter is by far the most popular Boy-he's the youngest and looks a lot like Leonardo DiCaprio. Then there's 20-year-old AJ "Bone" McLean, who-with his three tattoos, wacky facial hair, and 200 pairs of tinted sunglasses-is either a cliché or kinda dangerous, depending on your age. Howie Dorough, 24, answers to Howie D. or Sweet D. He lives at home, and aside from a Corvette Stingray, his most extravagant post-fame purchase has been central heat and AC. Howie hooked up with Nick and AJ back in 1993, when they were all auditioning for TV shows here in their native Orlando. Kevin Richardson, now 27, responded to an ad placed by a talent agency; he then called his cousin, Brian Littrell. Unlike the others, who were looking to get famous any way they could, 23-year-old Brian had nursed dreams of singing professionally. In fact, back in high school, he'd wander the halls crooning New Kids tunes. "People looked at me like it was a sissy thing," Brian says, "but I didn't care. I would've given anything to do what they were doing."

Today, thanks to their manager, Johnny Wright, he is. Wright had just come off four years as the New Kids' road manager, working under über-Svengali Maurice Starr, when, in 1993, he heard about a quintet of pretty white boys who could harmonize like an R&B group. He immediately saw the possibilities. "It was all hip-hop and alternative music then," says Wright, "but I knew that the girls who had been New Kids fans had little sisters."

Though they may be five men who dress alike, pop-and-lock in sync, and routinely dodge stuffed animals onstage, the Backstreet Boys-and Wright-predictably run from any and all comparisons to NKOTB. Still, while creating and refining their image, Wright called ex-New Kid Donnie Wahlberg and asked him to give Backstreet advice. Wahlberg passed. "Johnny Wright learned a lot from us," Wahlberg says ruefully. Now 28 years old and cobbling together an acting career, Wahlberg understands all too well the ups and downs of being a teen heartthrob. "If there's any resistance to the Backstreet Boys," he says, "it's probably because of us."

THREE HOURS BEFORE THE SHOW, THE HOUSE OF BLUES OPENS its doors to 17-year-old Leslie, who is confined to a wheelchair. The band's tour publicist, Denise (who is also AJ's mom), had mentioned the Boys would be busy entertaining "a little handicapped girl" before the concert, but Leslie isn't the one. She doesn't care; it's her birthday, and she's just spotted Nick roaming the hall. She's so rattled she inadvertently crumples her Backstreet Boys calendar. As Nick perfunctorily wishes Leslie a happy birthday, he spies two able-bodied girls lurking not five feet away, and he's off. Later, as he passes Leslie on his way backstage, she goes for it again: "Nick! Nick!" she implores, hands clawing air. Nick, who possesses a finely calibrated sense of detachment, pretends not to hear her. "Oh," Leslie whispers to herself. "Bye."

Back in the dressing room, Nick and the others huddle with Wright. It was Wright who devised the plan of attack that broke Backstreet: While the alt-rock revolution was raging in the States, Wright took them to Europe and slapped them on every boy-band bill he could, exploiting their all-American wholesomeness. ("At one point I had them run across the stage with the American flag," he says proudly.)

At home, Wright was forced to go the direct-market route, quietly dispatching the Boys to theme parks and junior highs across the nation. "Teenage male vocal groups were not going to meet with acceptance in America," says Jeff Fenster, VP of A&R at their record label, Jive. "So the idea was to make a record that would appeal to the global marketplace." Fenster hired Swedish writing/producing duo Denniz PoP and Max Martin, who had penned hits for Robyn, and produced Ace of Base and Ireland's version of Backstreet, Boyzone. The Euro strategy worked: Backstreet's self-titled debut album, a slick collection of New Jack posturings, went on to sell 12 million copies overseas. Eventually, pop groups such as Hanson and the Spice Girls eased Backstreet's reentry Stateside (their album is now quadruple platinum here); likewise, their success has spawned a slew of harmonizing teen hopefuls, such as 'N Sync, Five, No Authority, and 911-none of which have yet to register with the kids. As the Boys can testify, winning over the jaded youth of America can be a bitch. "Those were the most intimidating, cruelest crowds," says Kevin of the band's days on the junior-high circuit. "Little teenage dudes coming up to us saying, 'Backstreet Boys? Who are you?'"

Though Wright maintains that the Boys are "very much in control of what they do," both Kevin and Howie have flinched over Wright's tactics. "We don't wanna be in a certain situation," says Howie, gently alluding to the New Kids' career trAJectory, "but we have links to certain situations." After making the video for "Quit Playing Games (With My Heart)," Kevin, aghast at the sight of himself bare-chested and wet, demanded a reshoot. The record company shooed him away. After their album was finally released here last August, Kevin called the president of Jive and griped that all the merchandising-Sweet Valley High inserts, throw pillows, bandannas, key chains-was out of hand. He was told to suck it up. "There's always gonna be a market of little girls who wanna hang cute boys on their walls," says Dave McPherson, Jive's assistant VP of A&R, who signed the Boys in May 1994. Wahlberg is even less tolerant of such whining: "Look, if you're lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time, you're gonna tap into a frenzied marketplace," he says. "Teenage girls have an insatiable appetite."

Despite the short shelf life of most boy bands, Backstreet plan on a long-term career. They're all learning to write and play instruments, and McPherson says they have a shot. His mAJor issue is with their lyrics, which are pure Hallmark. Only one line on their album remotely smacks of do-me abandon ("Am I sexual?"), and when they deliver it in Orlando, the girls roar and pound the floorboards so violently two roadies rush to secure the speakers. Still, the real highlight of any show comes during "I'll Never Break Your Heart," when Howie, Kevin, and Nick-in a move conceived by Wright-serenade three lucky fans, pre-plucked by security. As the girls tremble under spotlights, the Boys, swathed in white, gallantly seat each at a small table, then fall to their knees like lovesick troubadours. Tonight, Howie and Kevin pull it off with aplomb; Nick, however, is laughing so hard he's reduced to lip-synching. He gives his girl a buddy pat on the back; she shoots him a quizzical look, but he keeps his head bowed. He's still laughing.

THAT'S WHEN LIZ ARANA PASSES OUT-NOT AT THIS SHOW, but at this same moment. "Oh, that is so beautiful when they sing to the girls," she gasps. Liz is a soft-spoken 15-year-old who, with her sloped eyelids and slight heft, seems like the kind of girl who yearns silently from her Long Island bedroom. But at last year's New York City Backstreet Boys show, her first ever, she was drunk with adrenaline. "Okay," she begins. "I pushed my way to the front of the stage, and there was some 12-year-old standing in front of me on a crate!" So: Liz knocked the girl down, climbed onto the crate, ripped off her bra and threw it at Nick, and then completely lost it. "When they sang 'I'll Never Break Your Heart,' I just burst out crying, and then I passed out." Liz, who bursts out crying whenever she sees anything of theirs for the first time-a video, a photograph, a TV appearance-says it was awful. "I missed three songs!"

Liz spends suburban afternoons watching her compilation tape of Backstreet appearances, or pasting photos into her Backstreet scrapbook, or staring at her walls, which are plastered with Backstreet pinups. The walls, she says, are a problem. "My mom just painted them," she says, "and she wants the posters down. So does my boyfriend." Robbie, whom Liz has been dating for a month ("He's my first serious, serious boyfriend"), loathes the Backstreet Boys. "He says they're faggots and they can't sing," she says. "I'm like, 'Your point is...?'"

This is the first time Liz has ever been so enthralled with a band-she says she has spent more than $1,000 on Boys merchandise-and she, like millions of other girls before, is slightly embarrassed by the depths of her passion. She only feels comfortable talking about it with other girls, girls who, like her, are beginning to date real boys but who feel safer longing for the unattainable ones-the Nick Carters. She cradles a slip of memo paper and reads a quote of Nick's that she copied: "Everyone wants a girl with a perfect personality; it doesn't really matter how they look." Does she believe boys when they say stuff like that? "Not all boys," she answers softly. "But Nick, I would believe."

A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTER THE HOUSE OF BLUES GIG, THE BOYS ARE IN NEW YORK City for a photo shoot. They hug-they perform this ritual constantly, even after only a half-hour apart-then circle a gaggle of models as though they've encountered unidentified life forms. Johnny Wright says that during the junior-high tour, he made sure that the kids knew that "AJ loves cars, Howie loves clothes, and Nick, Brian, and Kevin love sports. We wanted to show that these are regular guys"-i.e., not gay. The courtship of teen girls dictates that the Boys remain publicly unattached, and this makes them sensitive to the notion they are anything but heterosexual. Howie understands it's "not macho" to be into Backstreet, but says if the band were black, they'd get compared to Boyz II Men or Shai, and boys would be down. Here, too, Donnie Wahlberg can empathize. "But instead of worrying about who's not paying attention to them," Wahlberg says, "they should worry about who is. Because once these girls get older and start drinking beer and piercing their noses," he says, "theys (sic) are going away."

While the others chat up the models, Brian stands off in the back. He's the only Boy who's not really comfortable schmoozing or even accepting compliments; by nature, he's quiet and reserved. (While the rest of the Boys went clubbing after the Orlando show, Brian hung with his 50-year-old dad, who was visiting from Kentucky.) Right now, he can't get his mind off the "little handicapped girl" AJ's mom brought backstage in Orlando; she's actually battling two forms of cancer. "I didn't know how to approach her," says Brian, whose most vivid childhood memory is of doctors strapping him to his hospital bed and beating his chest till he was in tears, hoping to break up a staph infection that went straight to his heart. (About a year ago, Brian's heart began leaking blood, and he underwent surgery last month.) "I wanted to say, 'Listen, I'm getting ready to have an operation, too.' So I went over to her mother and told her that, and her mother said, 'Oh, my daughter could tell you a lot of things.'" His eyes widen. "Can you imagine?"

THE NEXT MORNING, THE BOYS ARE ON REGIS & KATHIE LEE, PERFORMING "As Long as You Love Me," a sparkly ode to unconditional love. Nick shares lead vocals with Brian and sings to his own image in the monitor. During the Q&A, Kathie Lee, eyes dewy, offers to set Brian up with her niece, who's also had heart surgery. As soon as the segment is completed, they clamber into a waiting van. The garage door shimmies open, and girls begin crawling all over the van, smushing their faces up against the glass. Nick turns to Brian. "You know, if we don't go out there," he says wearily, "we're gonna look like real pricks."

Having fulfilled all obligations, Nick and Brian head to the nearest Blimpie. Nick orders a tuna fish hero and, as he blithely stares at himself in the mirror, tries to discern the nature of teen girl fandom. He comes up empty: "It's real hard to put yourself in their shoes," he says finally. But Nick's obviously amused by the frenzied adulation-for instance, he could barely contain himself onstage just four nights ago. "The joke was on Howie," says Brian, who explains that security likes to play "little pranks" to break up the monotony. Nick bounces with delight, like a baby in a high chair. "Howie ended up with a not-so-pretty girl," he says, wiping errant chunks of tuna from his chin. "Do you remember her? Do you?" Oh, sure--she was one of the heavier ones, right? "Aaaahhhh, yeah," Nick says, with strained diplomacy. "I got my girl, Kevin got his girl, and the last girl was Howie's. He got stuck, and he made this face like, 'I'm gonna kill somebody.'" He shrugs. "It was funny."

On the way back to the hotel, Nick and Brian are intercepted by yet more fans. They pose for pictures and hurriedly scrawl autographs; a couple of girls hang back and speak in hushed tones. "You know, I saw Nick sign an autograph for one girl and then he threw it back at her. I want to know why he's like that."

"You know what I wonder?" says her friend. "I want to know if he would ever date a fan."

For a live review of the Backstreet Boys with a downloadable music sample, go to keyword: Spin on AOL.

Copyright © SPIN: new music and youth culture.

By SHELLY DECKER -- Express Writer (Edmonton Sun)

Diehard fans know these boys aren't playin' games with their hearts.

The Backstreet Boys aren't just any band, as any adoring girl will tell you. They are the ultimate and deserve the adulation heaped on them - amplified by the deafening shrieks of undying love that will undoubtedly be unleashed during Tuesday's concert in our city.

Dedicated teen followers are ravenous in their appetite for the boys' paraphernalia.

"I need a bigger room to put up all my posters. I've run out of space,'' laments Heather Tasko, 13, of her bedroom walls crammed with 1,000 posters and pictures. "If you ask any of my friends they'd say I'm very obsessed with them.''

The Spruce Grove teen has spent at least $1,000 - raised from savings, babysitting money and gifts from parents - to fill her life with precious treasures related to the boys, especially beloved Kevin, 26. She's adamant in her conviction of such worthy devotion.

"Their music is all from the heart. They think a lot about what they're going to do,'' gushes Tasko. "I can recite their life stories for you and how they came together.''

And the five-member band doesn't just take the money and run. Not only are they amazing performers, they give girls what they want - respect, explains Trina Falkner, 18, who got to meet the revered Nick last year during a local mall promotion.

"It was awesome. I cried so hard,'' recalls the besotted fan who waited more than eight hours for the fleeting encounter where she presented Nick with a red rose and necklace.

"He sort of gave me a strange look. On the tag I wrote, 'From your No. 1 fan. I love you.' He looked up and said, `I love you, too.' The security guard had to hold me because I was shaking. I was so overwhelmed,'' says Falkner, who also sports a massive collection of Backstreet Boys posters and goods.

Local guys can't compare to the pop singers who serenade the lovestruck girls with their syrupy ballads.

"They're way different,'' says fan Atasha Kelm, 15.

"They're a lot nicer. They're sweet. The guys around here, they're not as easy to get along with,'' says Kelm, who adds she listens to their music "almost 24, 7.''

Of course there's another mitigating factor.

"They're absolutely drop-dead gorgeous,'' giggles Kelm, who unlike the other two teens wasn't able to get tickets to Tuesday's sold-out show.

Tasko's entire family - including Trevor, 10, who hates the band - has tickets.

"We're all going for her. It's unreal. She's very devoted,'' understates mom Verna Tasko, who quietly adds, "I'm tired of them.''

Worshipping this clean-image group gets approval from Falkner's mother, Linda Lemoire.

"Their focus is on good morals and this is what Trina has always clung to,'' she says.

These girls don't minimize their frantic desire to have a lengthy visit with their dreamboats.

"If I was dying tomorrow, the last thing I would want is to meet them again. That would be my last wish,'' says a serious Falkner.

Nor is the admiration to be dismissed as some passing stage that includes thousands of teens reciting the boys' favorite colors, hobbies and interests.

"As long as they're together I'm devoted to them,'' sighs Tasko.

(August '98)

Source: The Edmonton Journal

Thanks to Backstreet.net reader Danielle Drummond for sending this in.

Holly Schelpe sat huddled behind Commonwealth Stadium with tears rolling down her cheeks. Hundreds of estatic teens were filing past, on their way to see the Backstreet Boys. Holly and her friends lined up at 7:30pm Monday to get good seats. The next morning Holly's mother; Shelly Scheelpe, came by with the best news she had had in a long time. Holly had won Journal-sponsored backstage passes. "I started crying right there," Holly said. At that point they were tears of joy. Shelly was grateful her daughter finally had something special to look forwards to. Shelly has been struggling with cancer for about 10 years. In January she had her spleen removed and almost died. Holly has been trying to deal with her mother's weak condition.

The backstage passes were a beacon of light. At the last minute, the Backstreet Boys decided that they weren't going to meet any fans. Some said it was AJ's mother Denise, the band publicist, who made the call. The Boys were too tired to say hello and sign an autograph. They weren't feeling well. Holly,15, and her friend Leigh-Anne Spradbrow,16, waited morosely while concert promoters tried to change the band member's minds. "They should care," Spradbrow said. "Kevin's dad died from cancer and he always talks about him. About how he wishes his dad would come back, how he would give up his career to see his dad again." From behind the stadium, they could hear the music starting up, muffled by screaming fans. "We're missing Aaron Carter," Spradbrow said. "They're all praying right now," Holly added. "Like they always do." "Smile Holly," Shelly encouraged.

When she saw her daughter start to cry, tears welled up in her own eyes. She wiped them awayand managed a wan grin. Holly leaned over the wheelchair and they held each other for a moment. Finally someone came to lead them into the Stadium. Spradbrow tried to reassure her friend. "If we get to meet them , I'm gonna tell Brian to give you a hug." Holly was reluctant to say her feelings about the Backstreet Boys had changed. She focused her anger on Denise, and then blamed herself. "It's because I've got back luck." Just before they walked onto the field to the VIP area, they had a brief glimpse at celebrity. "It's Aaron Carter! It's him on that guy's back," Spradbow cried. They took quick photos while the 10-year old opening act smiled and waved. He seemed thrilled to see them. He even stuck out his tongue. But when the music started, the two dejected fans watched halfheartedly. They weren't screaming, they weren't dancing. The disappointment ran too deep.

Source: Smash Hits Magazine

Is A.J getting married? Does Nick have a girlfriend? Are they splitting up? When the Backstreet Boys decided to come clean who do you reckon they called? Yep, Smash Hits brings you the latest and exclusive Backstreet gossip - straight from the horse's mouth.

It not every day the Backstreet Boys invite you to Orlando to interview them, so when they did, we literally jumped at the chance. Their interview took place in what could possibly be the swankist hotel suit in the cosmiverse. AJ was first to enter, while Kevin sloped in just behind him. Howie arrived looking a tad tired, "I was out at a place called Zuma's Beach Bar last night, and I've only had five hours sleep!" he explained. Brian walked in just behind him wearing a friendly grin, while Nick was last to enter, clutching his dog Mickey. They looked relaxed and happy, immediately pumping Smash Hits for gossip. "What new bands are out? What's Geri Halliwell 's single like?" Hold on - we were supposed to be interviewing you.....

Kevin: The best thing is that we've achieved incredible success in the US. We're getting a diamond award, which is for artists who've sold over 10 million albums. The worst things are - (looks at Brian) B-Rok(tm)?

Brian: I had my heart surgery a year ago and it was a trying time. We've become more focused and we feel a lot happier. We've realized that it's not about possessions, it's about being happy on the inside and staying positive.

Howie: I think it's made us stronger. We get on better now than we've ever done before, we've grown up a lot and have learnt to accept each other.

A.J: We've supported each other and that's brought us closer. We've changed the way we do things and we're more conscious of things around us. With success comes responsibility.

A.J: No! we have a new management team called The Firm.

Kevin: That took a lot off our shoulders business wise.

Howie: For about eight months we were basically managing ourselves with the help of AJ's mum Denise. We had to handle the day-to-day schedules and the phone calls and stuff like that.

Nick: We have more guidance and a positive team behind us. Now we can do what were supposed to do, which is get up on stage and perform.

Nick: It really depends where you go. If you go to theme parks, then you get mobbed, but if you go to a quiet restaurant for dinner you don't.

Kevin: It also depends on how you dress and if you get recognized or not.

A.J: I don't mind the attention. I'll go out with no sleeves on, and as my tattoos are the most obvious thing about me, and I'm probably the most recognizable member of the band, people tend to notice me. It can get out of hand if you don't have security with you - you can't really enjoy a peaceful day out with friends.

Kevin: We've had offers, but for now , we're concentrating on the world tour.

Kevin: Yeah, it was while we had some time off. Me and Howie went to Milan to check out the fashion shows and Donatella Verrsace asked me if I would model for her - so I did! It's not like a new career though.

Brian: Not yet, but a bit fruther down the road.

Nick: Actually, a couple of us have been married for 15 years and the press haven't found out yet.

Howie: Yeah, Nick was married when he was four!

Nick: And I've got four kids.

Kevin: (Pointing at A.J) Gosh I really don't know! (Everyong starts pointing at A.J, while Nick hums Here Come The Bride.)

A.J: (Shocked) Y'all pointing at me? Ah hell!

Nick: No, I've got a girlfriend, we all see people.

Brian: Nah. First come love, then marriage, then babies.

Kevin: Not if you're a Spice Girl! (All laugh)

Brian: We all have puppies that's enough for now. Having a puppy is good training for having kids. you have to feed them and clean up after them.

A.J: All mine do is pee and poo.

Howie: I Haven't got a dog or a girlfriend - I'm Totally available!

Brian: We've got a lot to accomplish yet.

A.J: Even if we do solo stuff, it doesn't mean were breaking up.

Nick: Maybe after the world tour we'll take six months or a year off to do our own thing, but we'll come back together.

Howie: We're definitely not going to take a 10 year gap or anything but we'll see what happens.

Nick: But we'll always be together, it's never going to be the end of the Backstreet boys.