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Date: Aug 17, 2002
Source: The New York Times
Submitted By: jmw
By NEIL STRAUSS
THE Backstreet Boys have sold more than 65 million albums around the world,a number that few pop acts have surpassed. In their prime, in the 90's, they were a pop juggernaut, breathing new life into MTV, the record business, children's radio, teen magazines and teenage purchasing power.
But along the way, they were surpassed by a very similar band with the same management, songwriting and production team: 'N Sync. As 'NSync's star rose, the Backstreet Boys seemed to disappear. Music industry observers have
offered scattered reasons: the Backstreet Boys lost their young audience when they tried to fashion a darker, more adult look; they alienated love-smitten fans when two group members married; they damaged their image
when they admitted that the band member A. J. McLean had checked into rehab for alcohol abuse and depression.
But there is more to the story. Or more precisely, the Backstreet Boys' ups and downs are part of a larger story, one about the music industry today. It's about five young men put to work as pop puppets who develop minds and
ideas of their own, then find out what can happen to long-term ambitions in a consolidating industry in which quarterly profits are crucial, professional relationships are not what they seem and pop groups are
treated like disposable products.
The history of rock and roll is littered with broken bands and dashed hopes. But what distinguishes the Backstreet Boys' story is its scale, one involving deals worth as much as $100 million that the band members now say
were a mistake, causing them to lose control of their careers.
"The business is over here," Kevin Richardson, at 29 the oldest group member, said recently, stretching his left hand out. "And the artistry," he continued, stretching out his right hand, "is over here."
The story begins with Lou Pearlman, an aviation entrepreneur based in Florida (and cousin of Art Garfunkel). Inspired by the success of the
80's heartthrobs New Kids on the Block, who happened to charter a plane from him, he decided to recruit and groom his own clean-cut boy bands. After a series of auditions in 1992 and 1993, he recruited Nick Carter (the youngest at 12), Howie Dorough, Mr. McLean and Mr. Richardson, who was 20 and whose cousin, Brian Littrell, soon completed the Backstreet Boys lineup. Mr.Pearlman booked them at grade-school assemblies, shopping malls and Sea
World, and assigned management duties to Johnny Wright, who had worked with New Kids on the Block.
A year later, Jive Records, an independent label best known for its hip-hop acts, was coaxed into signing the Backsteet Boys. But the band's first single, "We've Got It Going On," sputtered in America, where its sweet,
harmony-laden pop was out of step with the alternative rock of the time. So in 1995 the band's first album, "Backstreet Boys," was released in Europe and Canada, hitting the top 10 in numerous countries. Jive and Mr. Pearlman
kept the band busy overseas for the next two years, sometimes putting it on tour for five months straight.
When teenybopper bands like the Spice Girls and Hanson began to succeed in the United States, Jive and Mr. Pearlman decided to bring the boys back. In the fall of 1997, an American version of "Backstreet Boys" was released and,over time, its popularity wore down skeptics at radio stations and MTV. When the album crossed the 10 million mark in sales, it heralded the
cultural arrival of Generation Y.
"They were probably single-handedly responsible for the advent of `Total Request Live,' for Radio Disney, for Teen People becoming the force it has become, and, no doubt, for the explosion in teen purchasing power in
America," said Barry Weiss, the president of Jive. "They pushed the envelope."
As with nearly all sudden pop sensations, a conflict soon grew between the band members, who wanted time off to relax and find perspective, and the business forces behind them, who wanted to keep the momentum going.
"The Backstreet Boys got so big they got tired," Mr. Pearlman said. "And after a while, it became not about managing them but reasoning with them."
Matters grew worse when a doctor recommended in the spring of 1998 that Mr.Littrell have surgery because of a leaky heart valve. "I remember management at the time saying, `Can't you postpone it so we can finish the tour?'
" Mr.Richardson said. "And this just hurt Brian so much because he was like,`Dude, this is my heart.' " (Mr. Pearlman said that he had supported taking time off for the operation immediately.)
Meanwhile, Mr. Pearlman rolled out his next big boy band: 'N Sync. That summer, the Backstreet Boys decided not to accept an offer from Disney, which wanted to broadcast a concert special. Mr. Richardson said that he and
his bandmates were exhausted and wanted to spend time with their families.
"That left the door open for 'N Sync," Mr. Pearlman said. "And 'N Sync walked through the door."
Mr. Richardson said that 'N Sync worked hard and deserved the breakthrough. The Backstreet Boys directed their anger at Mr. Pearlman and his management team, coming to believe that it was a conflict of interest for them to
handle such mirror-image acts. "They were directing them to work with all the writers and producers that we worked with," Mr. Richardson said. "And they were using 'N Sync against us, saying, `Oh, if you guys don't do this gig, we'll just book 'N Sync.' "
In response to accusations from Mr. Pearlman and others that the band lost its drive, he said: "We tried to find a balance. We got tired of being taken advantage of. That's the bottom line."
So the band took its contracts to outside lawyers, who discovered that Mr. Pearlman had legally made himself a sixth member of the group, meaning that he was able to keep 17 percent of the money he distributed to the band after taking his 15 percent commission, according to court documents.
The Backstreet Boys filed suit in 1998, claiming that they had only received $300,000 since 1993 while Mr. Pearlman and their managers had reaped $10 million. In an interview, Mr. Pearlman defended his business practices, saying that he had spent $3 million on the Backstreet Boys before the band had earned a dime. He added that it is common practice in the music business for a company to earn its investment back before paying the artist.
As the battle intensified, the band found itself unable to proceed with a planned tour, Mr. Richardson said. "They locked our production equipment and stage and everything up and said, `You guys are supposed to do a tour, but you're not getting your equipment,' " he recalled.
The band reached a settlement that allowed Mr. Pearlman to retain, among other things, one-sixth of the band's profits.
It was around this time in 1999 that the Backstreet Boys, who were being managed by Mr. McLean's mother, held a meeting with executives of a two-year-old management company called the Firm, which represented bands like Korn and Limp Bizkit. Two executives from the Firm, Jeff Kwatinetz and Michael Green, showed up backstage at a concert in Orlando, Fla., and,
after being kept waiting for an hour outside the group's dressing room, burst in and made their pitch.
The band members were impressed by these brash young executives who promised them greater control of their careers, a larger share of revenues and innovative promotion and merchandising. With the help of the Firm, the
Backstreet Boys sued Mr. Pearlman several more times, until he renegotiated the settlement on terms more favorable to the band. Executives of the Firm said that the Backstreet Boys had bought out Mr. Pearlman's stake in the band, but Mr. Pearlman denied this.
The Backstreet Boys retained the Firm's own lawyer to represent them; later, they transferred legal duties to John Branca, who manages most of the Firm's top clients.
Here, commercially and personally, began a glory period for the Backstreet Boys. In 1999 their CD "Millennium" sold 1.1 million copies in its first week more than any album before it. "Millennium" became the best-selling
release of the year (more than nine million copies), while the accompanying
tour raked in $37 million. Merchandise sales brought in millions more.
THE windfall was good for those around the group, too. It thrust Jive Records into the highly lucrative teen-pop market. (Impressed by its teen-pop sales, BMG, which already owned 20 percent of Jive's parent company, recently purchased the remainder for $3 billion, the most ever paid for an independent record company.)
In the meantime, according to executives who worked with the band, the Firm negotiated tens of millions of dollars in advance payments for
recordings and performances from Jive and the concert promoter Clear Channel. This helped the management company finance its growth. It soon became a powerhouse in film and music, with a current staff of about 240 people. It acquired the sneaker company Pony, a chain of stuffed-animal stores and the merchandising rights to the cartoon aardvark Arthur. It also started
buying other management companies, most notably Michael Ovitz's Artists Management Group earlier this year.
David Baram, the president and chief operating officer of the Firm, denied accusations from rival managers, and from Aaron Ray, a former partner in the Firm that the Firm was built off the backs of bands like the Backstreet Boys. "Our success is totally a function of never making short-term decisions for our artists," he said. "We've been fortunate enough
to grow our business where we're not dependent on any particular commission check."
One thing at which the Firm excels is battling record labels on behalf of its acts. The executives who worked with the band say the Backstreet Boys had a heavily one-sided deal with Jive, which owned most of the band's
merchandising, film and other rights. In addition, on Jive's books the Backstreet Boys still owed the label money, which meant that despite being the most successful band of their time, they weren't getting a penny in royalties from their record label, according to the band's past and current managers.
In a contract renegotiation, the Firm managed to loosen some of the label's restrictions on the band and secure a $65 million advance, a figure that many in the Backstreet Boys camp confirmed. (Though the band only received
30 percent of the money up front; the rest comes with album deliveries and sales bonuses.) Executives who worked with the band said that the Firm had made use of the Backstreet Boys' irritation at Jive's latest coup: the signing of 'N Sync, which had also sued Mr. Pearlman and found new representation.
The band's subsequent album, "Black and Blue," signaled the end of its glory days. "That record and I'm not complaining or blaming anyone because it sold a lot of copies for me personally, I wasn't happy with it," Mr.
Richardson said. "I felt like we should have experimented more. But there was all this pressure and fear from our label and our management company."
Executives of the Firm said that the rest of the band had been happy with the album and voted to release it, especially since any further changes would have meant missing its Christmas-season release date. To promote
the album, the Firm worked closely with Wal-Mart, MTV and Burger King, which paid several million dollars to sponsor the band. (According to executives close to the band, Jive Records, which was not included in the Burger King
deal, made a separate deal for 'N Sync and Britney Spears with McDonald's, whose campaign beat Burger King's by about a week.)
In the end, "Black and Blue" actually beat the first-week sales of "Millennium," selling 1.6 million. (It went on to sell a total of 5.3
million.) But what should have been a triumph was hardly seen that way by the industry. That was because 'N Sync's new album, "No Strings
Attached," had sold 2.4 million copies in its first week. The 'N Sync album followed a
ubiquitous No. 1 single, "Bye Bye Bye"; the Backstreet Boys had not released such a successful single early.
"We made a lot of right decisions when we put the Millennium tour together," Mr. Richardson said, "but because of that success, people in our organization got comfortable and weren't being so cautious anymore."
Other factors were undermining the band. Executives working with the Backstreet Boys said band members had stopped getting along after the release of "Black and Blue." Executives with the Firm were also
frustrated with the band for not working as hard as 'N Sync seemed to be, especially in
making public appearances. Furthermore, Mr. Littrell's wife, Leighanne Wallace, who was critical of the Firm, began exerting a major influence over his decisions, according to executives close to the band, incurring
resentment both within and outside the group.
The relationship with the Firm grew worse when the band began to work on its tour to support "Black and Blue." Clear Channel offered to buy the entire tour outright for $100 million, a figure the group's managers jumped at.
As it turned out, Mr. Richardson said, "it was a big mistake."
"When people were throwing that big number on the table, it was tempting, but we asked questions, we asked about ticket sales, we asked about the control aspect, and we were told not to worry," he said, referring to
his management company. "And it hurt us."
To make money, he said, Clear Channel had to set extremely high ticket prices, shutting out many Backstreet Boys fans. A spokesman for Clear Channel said that the steep ticket prices had actually been pushed by the Firm, and that Clear Channel had fought for lower prices, telling the management company that the ticket costs were "obscenely high" and "detrimental to the band's career." (Mr. Baram of the Firm said that the final decision had rested with Clear Channel, and that ticket prices had been set that were comparable with tours by similar acts.)
Tickets did not go on sale until January 2001, months later than originally planned. The economy dipped and pop music sales began to sag, along with the entire boy-band phenomenon the Backstreet Boys had spearheaded. Ticket
sales were less than expected, and the venues were scaled back from stadiums to arenas. Mr. Baram said that The Firm had made this decision, sacrificing millions of dollars in commissions, because playing to half-filled
stadiums would have been greatly damaging to the band's image and career.
"When the tour went down to arenas, it was renegotiated so that it wasn't $100 million," Mr. Richardson said. "When 9/11 happened, and when A. J. went into rehab and we took two months off, that's another renegotiation. So
that $100 million, that's not $100 million."
Again complicating the situation was 'N Sync, which put its tour tickets on sale a week before the Backstreet Boys did, a move the band interpreted as intentional on the part of 'N Sync's business associates.
In the end, out of what was supposed to be a deal worth $100 million, band members received $6 million to $7 million each, less than half of what they were expecting, according to executives involved in the deal.
From the band's perspective, the money wasn't the problem. The bigger problem was that such large deals, while lucrative for the band and the business people around it, were harmful to its members' long-term careers and the needs of its fans. And the worst was still to come. As 2001 came to a close, Jive Records had not released a blockbuster teen album. So it decided to rush a Christmas release of a Backstreet Boys greatest-hits CD.
The band members say they resisted, feeling that it was too early in their careers for such an album and that it would ruin their longheld plan to mark the group's 10th anniversary in 2003 with a greatest-hits release.
"Our management company was supportive and we weren't," Mr. Richardson said of the album. "And the record company was going to put it out anyway. So it's either promote, or fight with your label, don't promote it and risk it
doing very badly. But ultimately, who is it that's going to get hurt? It's not going to hurt our label. It's going to hurt us."
Despite threats from the band, Jive Records put out the album after long debate. Mr. Weiss of Jive defended the label's decision, saying that the greatest-hits record sold nearly six million copies worldwide, yielded an international top 10 hit ("Drowning") and served to keep the group's profile up.
Mr. Weiss did not respond directly to many of the band's grievances. "If you look at the annals of the entire record industry," he said, "any expert would defy anybody to say that Jive
didn't do the best job in the history of
this kind of music."
However, Mr. Richardson and his current management said the band planned to
commission an audit of its financial relationship with Jive. The band, he said, was still "unrecouped" industry parlance for when a record company says that a band hasn't earned back the money the company has spent on it.
With multi-million dollar advances against future sales (a move that Firm executives said made sense, considering how difficult it is, even for a band this big, to get royalties from a record label), there may be good reason
the band wouldn't be receiving royalties yet.
"I'd rather not get into it," Mr. Weiss said about the royalty situation. "The Backstreet Boys do not have anything to worry about financially. These guys are set for life based on the money they've received from this label."
Last March, the Backstreet Boys had a group meeting because they felt that they weren't getting the personal attention they needed and had been used to before the Firm expanded. "They've built a huge, very powerful company, and they're good people," Mr. Richardson said. "But this past year, some bad decisions were made and some bad advice given."
With Mr. McLean and Mr. Littrell strongly advocating leaving the Firm, the band walked into the offices of the Firm to deliver an ultimatum. Much to the band members' surprise, the Firm did not put up much resistance to
their leaving. The bigger shock came when the other group members found out that Nick Carter, arguably the most popular of them, had chosen to remain. The Firm told the group that it would manage his solo career, and the band
stormed out.
Afterward, in an unexpected move, the group signed on to be managed simultaneously by two industry veterans, Howard Kaufman and Irving
Azoff.
In the meantime, Jive is taking a great interest in Mr. Carter as well as in Justin Timberlake of 'N Sync, an apparent shifting of focus from groups, which are more costly and difficult to manage, to solo acts. With no
blockbuster pop releases this year, the label, according to industry observers, has little choice but to bank on releasing a Nick Carter
solo album by the end of the year. Mr. Weiss of Jive said that he considered the solo album, due to be released in October, ahead of the next Backstreet Boys album, "part and parcel of the reinvention of the Backstreet Boys as a
whole."
Many industry observers, however, feel that these moves are detrimental if not lethal to the bands. "Nick wants to go solo, so does Justin," Mr.Pearlman said. "And if I was more a part of their careers, I'd ask: `Does
this help the group? How does this help the other guys?' "
Currently, Mr. Carter is choosing among 35 songs he has recorded for his album. The rest of the band is recording demos without him, using a number of producers, including Babyface, Jermaine Dupri and Glen Ballard. The
more rock-oriented material made with Mr. Ballard, who produced Alanis Morissette's albums, shows an evolving, maturing direction.
Mr. Azoff said that he had signed on to help the band members with their commitment to a long-term career. Whether that will happen remains to be seen, but Mr. Azoff is unconcerned with the current debate over tensions between the band and Mr. Carter. "Whether Nick is in the band or not, it
doesn't frighten me," Mr. Azoff said. "The Eagles changed members three times, and it didn't hurt their career."
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Date: Aug 16, 2002
Source: Jive Records Press Rewlease / Yahoo!
Submitted By: jmw
NEW YORK--(ENTERTAINMENT WIRE)--Aug. 16, 2002--Jive recording artist
Nick Carter will release his debut solo album, Now or Never worldwide on October 29, 2002.
"Help Me" the first single will ship to radio on August 20. The video will debut on MTV's Making of The Video on September 16.
"Help Me" was written by Matthew Gerrard and Michele Vice-Maslin and produced by Matthew Gerrard.
Now or Never has tracks written by Nick Carter, The Matrix, Mark Taylor, Steve Mac, Max Martin and Rami.
You can also pre-order the new album, Now Or Never from Amazon.com
Date: Aug 29, 2002
Source: People.com
Submitted By: Mary
STEPHEN M. SILVERMAN
ANNOUNCED: Backstreet Boy Brian Littrell, 27, is about to become the first Backstreet Dad, reports the new issue of PEOPLE. His wife, Leighanne, 33, is due by the end of the year. "It's a boy," Littrell tells the magazine's "Insider" column. "We were a little surprised, but it's a good time
because our schedules are lightening up a little bit." No name has been decided yet.
Date: Aug 26, 2002
Source: Hollywood Reporter
Submitted By: Gina Cates
By Steve Brennan
LOS ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter) --- Psychic John Edward is looking to the future as his successful syndicated TV show undergoes some core changes
for next season, including a new focus on celebrities -- living celebrities, that is.
The syndicated strip "Crossing Over With John Edward" debuted in the fall as the top-rated new show in syndication as audiences responded to the quirky format that sees Edward communicating with dead relatives of studio
audience members and passing on messages from beyond the grave.
Universal Domestic Television is now looking to make some changes to the series for next season, including the addition of celebrity readings in which Edward will conduct at-home group readings with well-known
personalities, their families and friends.
A.J. McLean and Brian Littrell of Backstreet Boys, Coolio and Jenny McCarthy already have sat down with Edward to tape segments for the new season, and many more celebrity sessions are planned, UDT has announced.
The series originated on Sci Fi Channel before migrating to syndication for a dual broadcast/cable run as part of a synergistic move by UDT this season. In the coming season, "Crossing Over" will keep airing at 11 and 11:30
p.m. Sunday-Thursday on Sci Fi. But in a switch from last season, the show will now air first in broadcast syndication and later on Sci Fi, allowing the program to reach two distinct audiences available at different times of day.
There also will be several new production elements, including more story updates from previous shows and additional on-location episodes and segments as Edward and the crew take the show on the road.
Date: Aug 18, 2002
Source: Kentucky.com
Submitted By: Gina Cates
Cause Celeb
Backstreet Boy hopes fame will help fight his home state's
environmental battles
By Heather Svokos
HERALD-LEADER POP CULTURE WRITER
"You come out of the Daniel Boone National Forest at about 8,000 feet and on the horizon, instead of seeing green mountain-scapes and rocks and sandstone and limestone cliffs, all of a sudden you see, as if the mountain were
a stick of butter, literally, it's like someone took a butter knife and sliced the entire top off of a mountain. All you see is rocks and dirt. It's like a moonscape. It's like you're looking at Mars."
This, from a guy whose public persona is more known for making young girls shriek and swoon than it is for waxing poetic on the evils of mountaintop removal.
But if you look just beneath the slick, bump-and-grind veneer of the eldest Backstreet Boy, you'll find a 30-year-old man with a solemn commitment to the environment.
Back in June, his interest in the cause earned him non-Backstreet headlines. It also stirred up an old debate: do celebrities and politics mix?
The brouhaha began when the Kentucky-reared pop star was added as a last-minute witness at a congressional hearing, and a U.S. senator announced he would boycott the hearing.
The issue before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee was mountaintop removal mining. The practice, which has become common in Kentucky and West Virginia, shears off the top of a ridge or mountain to expose a coal seam, pushing dirt and rock into nearby valleys and
waterways.
Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, did indeed boycott the hearing, saying the last-minute inclusion of Richardson as a witness made a mockery of the committee and the issue.
"It's just a joke to think that this witness can provide members of the United States Senate with information on important geological and water quality issues," Voinovich said in June. "We're either serious about the issues or we're running a sideshow."
Richardson testified anyway, but the comments stung.
The musician grew up in Estill County, in the mountains of the Daniel Boone National Forest. For the last few years, he's been schooling himself on such issues as water quality and mountaintop removal strip mining. In December
2000, he started Just Within Reach, an environmental foundation. He's part of several other environmental initiatives, including one started with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. -- the Kentucky Riverkeeper, a fledgling organization for river restoration.
"I was really frustrated," Richardson said from Los Angeles, where he's now recording the new Backstreet Boys album. "It's a shame that he (Voinovich) didn't do more research on me before he made those comments -- I think he made himself look bad. He didn't know I grew up in Appalachian Kentucky, that I grew up in those Appalachian mountains, that my grandfather was a coal miner, and that I have a vested interest in that hearing.
"I have flown over those sites, I've seen the damage, and what it's doing to those mountain ranges in West Virginia and Kentucky and Tennessee. They're raping the Appalachian mountain range for profit."
Richardson, who owns a farm near Lexington, says it's also a shame Voinovich didn't attend the hearing.
"He could've cross-examined me. I'm not a scientist but I am an eye-witness. I had every right to be there as a native Kentuckian and a concerned citizen and the head of my own environmental foundation."
Voinovich's office didn't return a phone call seeking comment for this story.
Some personal reasons
The singer was motivated to start Just Within Reach partly because of his then-recent marriage to actress Kristin Willits. "We want to have children," he said at the foundation's launch in December 2000. "I want them to
grow up healthy and have clean water to drink."
Instead of "sitting around on my butt worrying about problems," he said then, "I thought I'd use my status as a celebrity to ask more questions and maybe change things."
Just Within Reach is run by Richardson; his wife; his brother, Tim; and friends Jim and Vicki Hanna of Los Angeles.
Vicki Hanna sees nothing wrong with working the celebrity angle. "The way we see it, the regular citizens who live with it (mountaintop removal) have been trying to get the government to act for years and years," said Hanna,
the foundation's director of programs and publicity. "So then they get a celebrity spokesperson and Kevin says: 'You're right, that is why I'm here.'
"Kevin has spent a lot of time the last two years educating himself on the topic. He wants the senator to quit talking so much about the celebrity thing and get to work on the issue."
'We have the laws'
And the issue, to Richardson, isn't about dismantling the coal industry.
"I realize that coal is an important part of the Eastern Kentucky economy, and I'm not trying to eliminate the coal business," he said. "What I'm trying to bring attention to is the lack of responsibility of the coal companies, who are destroying the water tables, destroying homes and
communities, destroying people's lives."
When mountaintop removal pushes dirt into valleys, it creates "valley fill," and covers streams for miles. "The law says anytime you pollute a watersource, it is illegal," Richardson said.
Last May, a U.S. District Court judge in Charleston, W.Va., agreed. Richardson is part of another group -- Kentuckians for the Commonwealth -- whose lawsuit spurred Judge Charles Haden II to order a halt to new mining permits. His ruling is being appealed.
"We have the laws," Richardson said. "They just need to be enforced. But the Bush administration has provided the coal companies with a loophole, by asking the Army Corps of Engineers to redefine 'valley fill' so they can get around the Clean Water Act.
"There's a way to mine coal responsibly so it doesn't have as bad an environmental impact. The Environmental Protection Agency is not keeping an eye on anything."
The lament of the coal industry is that tighter regulations will cost jobs. "Haden's ruling will shut down mining in Appalachia, both surface and underground mining," Kentucky Coal Association President Bill Caylor said in
May.
"That's not true," Richardson says. "If they take care of the
environment and restore what they tore down, there will be more jobs and it'll leave the community with hope for other things. Literally, these mountains are being torn down. It's so sad. It doesn't have to be like that."
'People listen'
The Backstreet Boy might be a thorn in the side of detractors like Voinovich, but some, like Alan Banks, are thanking their lucky stars for Richardson's involvement.
Banks, director of the Center for Appalachian Studies at Eastern Kentucky University, got to know Richardson through the Kentucky Riverkeeper, acoalition dedicated to Kentucky River restoration, advocacy and education.
"It's been a great surprise that he has the level of commitment and compassion that he does," said Banks, who's also on the Riverkeeper board. "One thing I said to him, I said: 'Kevin, I really respect you as a Backstreet Boy, but I respect you a whole lot more as an eco-warrior.'
And he just sort of puffed up, you know?"
It doesn't hurt that where Richardson goes, cameras follow. "He can talk about when he was growing up (in Kentucky) and what his mother taught him, and people listen," Banks said. "He helps give the whole issue legitimacy.
He's just a powerful voice -- not necessarily for anything radical -- but for cherishing our natural resources, for following the law, for looking at the clean water act as a powerful weapon."
Despite Richardson's passion and knowledge, some will continue to dismiss him as the boy band singer who dabbles in a cause.
"A lot of people, whether it's on this issue, or anything, because I'm a Backstreet Boy, they assume I'm some young kid who has no clue about anything," he said. "I seem to be prejudged. I'm a 30-year-old man -- I'll be 31 in October. I've been to 37 countries around the world in the past 10
years with our group. I've seen a lot with my eyes."
That still won't matter to those who think politics are best left to politicians and "experts."
At the time of the June hearing, Voinovich said the trend of
celebrities testifying was "disturbing" because it uses celebrity witnesses to gain media attention at the expense of substantive testimony.
"Politicians don't like it when celebrities show up in their
designerwear and their glasses and expound on things," said actress Annie Potts, another celebrity Kentuckian, and a former spokesperson for the American Arthritis
Foundation. "Politicians think: 'This is not within your ken. Hey, this is bureaucrats' business, for heaven's sake.'
"I know that there's a lot written about ours being a celebrity culture, but I think we're lucky to have people like him (Richardson)," Potts said. "This kid sounds like he knows what he's talking about. You know, they're heroes
to a lot of kids, and kids will follow their example. So if he's an environmentalist, they'll want to look at that, too.
"I think it's very dangerous to criticize anybody for putting their time, money and heart into a good cause. I mean, what's to criticize there? I think they should be applauded."
Richardson's Backstreet Boy cousin, Brian Littrell, has his own cause, and his own foundation in partnership with St. Joseph Hospital: the Brian Littrell Healthy Heart Club for Kids. But Littrell's cause hasn't ruffled many feathers.
"He likes to keep his views kind of private, and we don't really discuss politics," Richardson said of his cousin. "This is kind of a battle of mine."
And one he plans to continue in the political arena, whether Voinovich and Co. like it or not.
His next strike? Coordinating flights over coal fields with Sens. Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., and Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., who already have accepted his invitation, said Vicki Hanna of Just Within Reach.
Hanna added: "If Sen. Voinovich thinks that Kevin Richardson is going to shut up and go away, he's very badly mistaken and misinformed."
Date: Aug 06, 2002
Source: MTV
Submitted By: Gina Cates
While Justin Timberlake's solo debut looks to be a star-studded affair, another singer stepping out from a celebrated pop group is taking the opposite approach.
Of the 37 tracks Nick Carter has recorded for his first album away from the Backstreet Boys, only one features guest vocals. And that track, with dancehall reggae artist Mr. Vegas, may not make the final cut.
"I don't think you need to [collaborate]," Carter explained at Sunday's Teen Choice Awards. "The Backstreet Boys didn't really ever do any collaborations on the albums. For me, personally, I would love to. But I think just for the first one it would be cool to just show who I am let everybody see what I'm about."
On Now or Never, due October 22, Carter will reveal rock influences that are not so obvious on his group's material.
"People are going to be shocked," he said. "That's what I want. That's the way I am. I'm unexpectable."
Carter has worked with several producers on the project, including Backstreet Boys and 'NSYNC associate Max Martin and several up-and-comers.
"It's cool to spread it open a bit and go underground," Carter said. "That's where you find some really cool producers and writers."
Carter is currently narrowing down the final track list for the album and assembling a band that he'll likely take on the road.
"It's hard when you sit back and listen to your music in your car and you just want people to hear it so bad," Carter said. "It's gonna get there. I'm so excited."
Timberlake's album, which will likely include collaborations with P. Diddy, the Neptunes and others, does not have a release date.
Corey Moss
Date: Jul 09, 2002
Source: Celebrity Close-Ups Magazine
Submitted By: jmw
Interview By Cindy Holthouser
What is new with the Foundation this year?
Howie: Since last year, we have done so much. We went on the cruise again, a seven day cruise to Cozumel, Ocho Rio's, and the Grand Cayman Islands, which was very successful. Since then, I've done a couple other fund raisers here and there. There are a lot of fund raisers going on, that have been set up all around the United States. They raised a lot of money again this year, I don't have the number yet, we're still working on that, but we've done very well. I've partnered with CC& A again for this, Kraft-Nabisco has
gotten involved this year, Nabisco has partnered up and sold to Kraft, so Kraft is the main sponsor which we are very excited about. Just putting together this show, very very pleased with the rock star talent we've got this year,
it's a little bit different then last year, it's more of a rock thing then a pop thing. Why did you decide to go with older type artists then last year?
Howie: You know, it just fit. Every year I think it's cool to get a different genre of music and different types. I always like to try to keep a little bit of variety just because I know that why the major age demographic of our audience is from teenagers to adults and I know REO Speedwagon and
Survivor, growing up on the music their music as well. We've even opened up for REO Speedwagon back I'd say, six years ago. So, it's like I say, their great, it's cool to have. I'm very glad that they would come. The lead
singer of REO Speedwagon has a family member, I think it's his stepson that has Lupus. So they are very outgoing, very encouraged. It's fun, each year it gets bigger and bigger.
Since last year, have they gotten closer to finding a cure?
Howie: They've been working a lot! They'll be getting pretty close here pretty soon. we're talking to a lot of doctors. Last year we gave $125,000.00 to UCLA research center which they were very excited to use towards different ideas and perspectives on how to do it.
Since the 9-11 tragedy, has it been a struggle for Lupus research?
Howie: I don't know if it has been a struggle. There has been a lot of attention put on to 9-11, which our foundation definitely supports all the victims. We've even got a lot of charity work going on, I'm actually getting ready to go to New York here in a couple days to sing on a song called
"United We Sing", which is going to be a fundraiser type song, a collaboration of a bunch of different artists. All the proceeds go to the victims of 9-11. There has been a lot of light shed upon the victims and to get relief and help for them, so our foundation is very supporting and in a
heartbeat, take a backstep to that, because that is a big thing as well and is something that needs immediate attention. The foundation is for Lupus, but we are getting a bunch of attention and it's not something that is going to happen overnight.
You are obviously using your celebrity to promote awareness, does it sometime sadden you that this is the only way to bring overdue attention to the disease?
Howie: It's sad to think that Lupus hasn't really been brought out up until now. I'm happy to be able to bring a lot of attention to it, but it does sadden me that it had to be personal with artists credibility to bring it. A
disease affects everybody, I realize that if I can make a difference, and I can use my celebrity power to do it, I'm going to do it. If it helps me to get out there and to bring more awareness by getting on to talking to
different people, by doing interviews, by being on TV and stuff like that, it's all for a good cause. I accept that and it gives me more of a self worth going on by doing this every day.
Will there be another cruise?
Howie: That's going to be the next focus I think after this. A lot of attention has been put on to putting this fund raiser together because it's a big event and it takes a lot of time, so probably after this the next focus will start going on doing a cruise at Christmas time again.
Will there be a website to get information?
Howie: Yes, The Dorough Lupus Foundation.org is the website, www.doroughlupusfoundation.org, and on that it talks about everything, the different upcoming events, facts about lupus. It talks about how people can send donations and even in regards to donations, how they can receive a
merchandise piece that we're selling. We have jackets out, we have the bears, we have "Pollyanna's Theme", which is the theme song for the foundation. There are different ways that people can send in a donation and at the same time get something back for a good cause.
Do you think that Lupus is under-addressed internationally and what more can be done to spread awareness throughout the U.S. and other countries?
Howie: I think Lupus definitely is not, awareness is not promoted enough all around the world and that's why my goal is to get it around the world. That's why me and my sister went down to South America the year and a
half ago and did a fund raiser down there, Argentina as well as Puerto Rico just recently. We did a benefit concert there as well, which we got $25,000.00 donated to the Foundation. So, definitely, we are trying to get out there as
much as possible, not only in the States, but around the world. I think through our website and having a lot of Backstreet fans, we are starting to notice that it is getting more awareness. We have a lot of fans coming from
Japan that sent us donations as well as coming to the event today. Up in Canada as well. One of our things that we really pride ourselves is when a certain country asks us for help in their country with the disease, we definitely put the money that is raised in that country, back in the country. Like, Canada, they gave us a proposal about trying to do a
paleoclinic in Chatham, a small town in Ontario. We gave them 24 or 25 thousand Canadian. The reason why we did that is to show it's not all about the money coming into America, we keep it all here. I know Lupus is all
around the world, it is not only here, so we are trying to let people know that they are helping their own countries as well.
This question comes from Madas who has suffered with Lupus for many years now. Her question was, "I have Lupus, and it has begun to affect my daily life and movement. It is not contagious and I have nothing to be
ashamed of yet it is treated as an unmentionable disease in so many quarters. Even here in the UK, my children don't like to tell people what's wrong with Mommy. Why do you think that happens, and did your family ever experience
that, too?"
Howie: I find that on a daily occurrence people come up to me and say, "You know what? Lupus is such a hush-hush disease, nobody knows what it is about." A lot of times people feel like they'll be alienated if they talk about it because people might think they have Aids or something. Just because the knowledge is not out there amongst people about the disease. But luckily, on the same hand, people have come to me and said, "Since you've gone out there and been speaking clearly about the disease and encouraged
people to get checked out by the doctors", now people I think don't feel as bad because they're like, it's something that people are starting to get to know. They may not know what Lupus is but at least they are starting to hear the word "Lupus". That to me is the biggest thing to me, just to have
people say, "I didn't know what Lupus was, but I went to see my doctor and I'm all good." A lot of times I see kids that come up to me and say, "I have Lupus," or "My mom has Lupus" but "I feel so uncomfortable talking about it,
but now that you brought it out to people, I donāt feel as uncomfortable." It's really good.
Can you give us an update about what is going on with Backstreet?
Howie: Well, we're actually right now in the studio, recording for the next album. Each of us are just doing a lot of our own charity work right now for their different foundations. The guys are very supportive of them down
here and very excited for me. That's about it, like I said we're just in the studio writing and recording for a new album.
We had some fans write in asking, "Are you single, or did you find that special someone in your life?"
Howie: I am dating someone, yeah. I'm very happy about it, I always very happy that the fans are very supportive of all of us and our different life endeavors, whether it's charity work, whether it's family, whether it's getting married, whether it's eventually having kids for all of us. I'm
very happy that the fans are very supporting and understanding and realizing that we do have normal lives.
The album you are recording right now, did you write any special songs that might possibly make it on the album?
Howie: I actually was in L.A. in February for the whole month and I wrote about 20 different songs, and I think out of that I might hopefully be pretty lucky and get a couple that might go for the next album that I'm very excited about. I don't want to say which songs it is in case it doesn't
get that one, I feel like a dork later on. It looks like the group has been writing a lot. We've written about ten songs already and out of that we are hoping to have at least four or five that will be the creditability. We're just experimenting right now, writing with a bunch of different
writers, just working on it.
We hear the acting bug has hit you. Would you like to pursue an acting career more while Backstreet is on hiatus?
Howie: Uh-huh, sure. Probably, we've all talked about, each of us have said we want to give each other the space to do individual stuff, especially during the down time of the group. I mean the group has to come first,
before everything, before our own individual stuff foundation-wise, everything. But, during the down time, we do give each other the space to do individual endeavors, whether it's acting, singing, dancing, producing,
whatever it is, or even just having normal lives, we give each other the space. So, actually, I think during my down time here, probably after the next album, if we do take a break, I'll probably definitely start getting into doing some acting.
Have you ever gone skinny dipping and have you been caught?
Howie: [LAUGHS] Nope, I have never gone skinny dipping so since then I can't say I've ever gotten caught.
Are you going to be doing any private shows with Backstreet to do with the Lupus Foundation or anything else?
Howie: What we've been talking about, trying to put some stuff together, whether it's a golf tournament, or possibly next tour doing a couple of charity shows where the money goes to our foundations. Last year, each ticket that was sold, 25 cents went to our foundations, as well as we had different things we sold out there for merchandise. I did a bear, Brian had healthy heart T-shirts and stuff like that. We know that the fans are very supportive of our foundations, so we like to do credible stuff that makes them feel like they can hang out with us, at the same time give to a good cause.
Have you thought about changing the event to a different state?
Howie: Not so much about changing to another state, but we're talking about possibly adding it to some other states. That's all up in the works. To put together something like this is a lot of work, it takes a lot of time and it takes a lot of effort to try to get artists to give up their time, to
fly into another town, give up their days off. But we are definitely talking about the idea of possibly taking it to another state as well.
Is there one thing that you have not done in your lifetime that you still want to do?
Howie: Hmmm...
Get married?
Howie: Eventually get married, eventually, not anytime soon. I'm, uh, actually, I'm enjoying life the way it is right now, with me and the group and I just feel like marriage is a matter of timing. I think marriage and having a family, starting a family, is definitely something that to me I
believe is you definitely have to make sure it's the right timing for you. I think right now with the busy schedule for the group and everything, it's just not the right time. It wouldn't be fair to my loved one or to if I had kids, it wouldn't be fair to put them through all this craziness.
Finish the sentence: I get scared when I...?
Howie: I get scared when I have to take shots.
If I can't sleep I...?
Howie: If I can't sleep I make myself sleep because I don't have a problem, knock on wood.
The most funniest thing I've ever done was...?
Howie: The most funniest thing that I've ever done was, good lordy, a lot of things I don't think are funny, a lot of other people think are funny, on a daily occurrence. But, I think it was maybe when I was younger with my sister Angie, we were over my neighbors in Indiana. A friend of ours told us that the traditions is to run out in your long johns in the hallway. For what reason I don't know why and I don't know why I was stupid enough to believe him, but I did it. And I ran from one room into the next room. I
thought it was pretty funny, I didn't think it was that funny actually, but when I thought about it. Now that I look at it, I definitely don't think it was that funny.
I want everyone to know about...?
Howie: My Dorough Lupus Foundation.
And when I look into the sky, I think of...?
Howie: Peace, God, and my sister Caroline.
Do you think that DLF has a hard enough profile that if you suddenly or unexpectedly leave the foundation, that it could continue to be successful without you?
Howie: I hope so. I hope the Foundation carries on a life of it's own. I at least try to dedicate as much time as I can to it, but unfortunately, I'm only one person and that's why I thank God it's a family foundation, it's not the "Howie" foundation, that's why I have my sister, all my family works
for the foundation. That's why I'm very thankful that we have a lot of fans our there that create a lot of events to bring awareness to the foundation on it's own.
I, myself, have a sister with Lupus in the family. My older sister suffers from Lupus and I had an uncle that died suddenly without any warning that he had Lupus. Do you have any advice for friends and family who are learning to
understand the disease?
Howie: I would just tell them to try to educate themselves as much as possible about it. Talk to your doctor. There is definitely several doctors that specialize in Lupus. There are a lot of great doctors that we work out in the West Coast. There is actually books out there on Lupus. Try to
take care of yourself. If you do have Lupus, definitely take your medications. Make sure you protect yourself when going out in the sun. Do what you can.
Have you changed in any way due to the 9-11 attacks, and what has changed about you?
Howie: I definitely have changed by now having to go to the airport definitely early. Being on time, that's for sure, I can't no longer just go the airport. In the past I'd be there fifteen minutes before the plane takes off and hurry up and get on it. I think I've learned as well, I've changed...I don't know. You know, we lost a member of our crew that was
on the plane.
It makes you more nervous to get on the plane?
Howie: It definitely makes me more nervous now, but I think now our airports are the safest they've ever been, because there is heightened security. I can't even go with fingernail clippers in my bags anymore. So, I think, I'm
not as scared, but you never know.
Do you have a message for the fans?
Howie: Just once again, thank you for all the support, especially with my foundation. It's definitely been brought all around the world, making them aware, as well as they have been making other people aware of the disease.
Once again, thanks for all the support with the Backstreet Boys as well. I'm definitely looking forward to them hearing our new album, which will be out hopefully sometime before the end of this year. And just KEEP THE
BACKSTREET PRIDE ALIVE!
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